MILWAUKEE — Ellie Brenner, 19, is preparing for her fifth summer with the performance troupe called Kids From Wisconsin.

It’s a group of 36 singers, dancers and musicians between the ages of 15 and 20. They travel the state, putting on about 50 Broadway-caliber shows and workshops. It’s all done in a relatively short time, between mid-June and mid-August.

What You Need To Know

  • The 56th annual Kids From Wisconsin will travel the state, putting on about 50 Broadway-caliber shows and workshops

  • It's a group of 36 singers, dancers and musicians between the ages of 15 and 20

  • Artistic Director and Chief Orchestrator Taras Nahirniak has led the group for more than 30 years 

  • The performances are between mid-June and mid-August

Brenner is a sophomore in college at Marymount Manhattan College. She’s from the small town of Durand, Wisconsin.

“The group is super special,” said Brenner. “I mean, we become a super tight knit family quickly because camp can be very gruesome and tiring. Yeah, because we spend all of our time together.”

This will be Connor Martin’s sixth summer in a row performing with Kids From Wisconsin. He said he wouldn’t trade it for anything.

“It’s very special,” said Martin, who’s from Hartford and attends Viterbo University in La Crosse. “To be surrounded by people who are all so like-minded and passionate about the same thing that we all kind of share together. It’s a really special feeling to be in this space, and to be surrounded by this amount of talent too is inspiring, and just really just makes us all work hard together.”

The hard work starts at the top with Kids From Wisconsin Artistic Director and Chief Orchestrator Taras Nahirniak. He’s led the group for more than 30 years and is proud to showcase homegrown talent.

“We get to basically show off Wisconsin because all of these kids are from this state, so this state should be very proud,” said Nahirniak.

As two of the older, more experienced performers in the group, Brenner and Martin said they know their summers with Kids From Wisconsin are coming to an end.

“There’s 36 of us up on that stage and some people age out. Some people choose to continue a different path next summer, so it’s your last time being with that specific group of people,” said Martin. “You really take in that bittersweet feeling of we’re all here together, this is our family we created this summer, let’s do it one last time.”

For more on the group, and a list of performances, visit the Kids From Wisconsin website.

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