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"Passing By" Brings a Charming Hometown Story to Big City Musical Festivals

"Passing By" the Musical
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Ben Usatinksy and Harper Navin (left), along with Sally Staats and Doug Clemons (right) play the child and adult versions of the characters Jenny Zimmermann and Edison Wolters in the new musical, "Passing By."

For many, the concept of home is relative. For some, it is a location, and for others it can be found in a person.

The new musical Passing By explores the themes of choosing your own path through the relationship of Jenny Zimmermann, an ambitious writer; and Edison Wolters, a young man who works on his family’s farm. In the play, set in the small town of Jacksonia, Wisconsin, the characters must decide if they will plan a life together after high school or follow their own plans.

"Music was the best way to display this story that I was talking about of this feeling of home or nostalgia, and this really strong sense that I feel like only music can display these very heavy emotions," says writer, director and composer Patrick Thompson.

Thompson, along with actors Sally Staats and Doug Clemons, call Wisconsin home and have experienced the challenges of growing up in a small town and moving on to new experiences in a big city.

With a story revolving around only two characters, the dynamic of the show and the production itself is intimate. This, along with producing an original work, allowed all involved to have input into the characters.

"It's just been really cool to revise the show together and have it be so much of our own characters and our own story that we're telling," Clemons says. "So by the time that we finished the music on the page or the script, it comes naturally from us."

Having been involved in multiple productions, both large and small, in Milwaukee, Staats says her involvement in Passing By was unlike any other experience she's had in a musical. "I've never been in a production that has so much input from every single person and it's really wonderful, and I think people will see it on stage," she says.

Though Passing By was created in southeast Wisconsin, it is premiering at the Chicago Musical Theatre Festival through July 17th and will continue on to the New York Musical Theatre Festival July 20th and 21st.

Audrey is a WUWM host and producer for Lake Effect.