NEO-NOIR THRILLER THE POISONER BRINGS ITS NATIONAL TOUR TO THREE WISCONSIN CITIES THIS OCTOBER

Directed by two-time Obie Award winner Lee Sunday Evans, the production plays Kenosha, Madison, and De Pere with post-show talkbacks featuring local activists, educators, and environmental advocates

Madison, Wis., Sept. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Poisoner, a neo-noir thriller inspired by the Flint water crisis, brings its 7-city national tour to three Wisconsin cities this October. Written by first-time playwright M.M. Haney and directed and developed by two-time Obie Award-winning director Lee Sunday Evans, the production plays Kenosha (October 1-3), Madison (October 8-10), and De Pere (October 15-17), presented by Uncommon Productions and Citizen56.

The Poisoner follows a determined journalist who returns to his hometown to uncover a devastating cover-up of water contamination, and the powerful forces determined to keep the truth buried. A neo-noir thriller about deception, institutional failure, and the fight for accountability, the play asks the question at the heart of every community's struggle for justice: are we ever safe?

The Wisconsin leg of the tour arrives at a moment of particular urgency for the state. From the fight against data center expansion threatening local water and energy resources, to the persistent battle to keep PFAS "forever chemicals" out of drinking water, the questions The Poisoner raises are not history. They are happening now, in Wisconsin communities, and in the backyards of the audiences who will fill these three theaters. In each city, post-show talkbacks will bring together the play's cast and creative team with local activists, educators, and environmental advocates to connect the story of Flint to the fights unfolding across the state.

The tour is intentionally routed through seven industrial cities during the seven weeks leading up to the 2026 midterm elections and pairs many performances with local community engagement designed to strengthen civic trust and amplify the voices of communities demanding accountability from corporations and government alike.

"There are parallels across the Rust Belt with communities wrestling with their own questions about data centers, water, accountability, and who has the power to be part of democratic decision-making processes. This is proof the questions in The Poisoner aren't Flint's questions alone, but ours collectively," said director Lee Sunday Evans.

KENOSHA ENGAGMENT

Dates:           October 1–3, 2026 at 8:00 PM
Venue:           Rhode Center for the Arts | 514 56th St., Kenosha, WI 53140
Tickets:          rhodecenter.org/page-7
Friday, October 2 — Talkback: The Fight Against the Microsoft Data Center

Kimberly and Dan Laska of Kenoshans United Against the Microsoft Data Center join the cast and creative team for a post-show conversation drawing direct parallels between the Flint water crisis and Kenosha's own fight to protect its community from data center expansion. The talkback will explore who controls local water, air, and energy resources — and what it takes for a community to hold corporations and government accountable when the answer isn't them.

MADISON ENGAGMENT

Dates:          October 8–10, 2026 at 8:00 PM
Venue:         Wisconsin Union Theater | Madison, WI
Tickets:        union.wisc.edu/events-and-activities/event-calendar/event/theater-the-poisoner

Note: All ticket proceeds benefit the André De Shields Fund

Thursday, October 8 — Talkback: Investigative Journalism
The creative team will talk with investigative reporter Jim Malewitz about the importance of investigative journalism in spotlighting important environmental and public health issues. Jim is the Managing Editor of Wisconsin Watch where he oversees the statewide newsroom. His career has tracked environmental accountability from Texas to Michigan, including coverage of the Flint water crisis aftermath.

Friday, October 9 — Talkback: The André De Shields Fund
The Madison engagement is presented in partnership with the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and all ticket proceeds go directly to the André De Shields Fund — which provides seed grants of $1,000–$3,000 to UW–Madison undergraduate students to develop, design, produce, and perform original artistic works that inspire transformation. Following the Friday, October 9 performance, members of the cast and creative team will join a talkback exploring the intersections of art, activism, and civic life — and the role of the next generation of artists in carrying these stories forward.

DE PERE ENGAGMENT

Dates:          October 15–17, 2026 at 8:00 PM
Venue:         Webb Theatre at St. Norbert College| De Pere, WI
Tickets:        the-poisoner-de-pere.eventbrite.com

Thursday, October 15 — Talkback: Stopping Data Center Expansion in Northeast Wisconsin
Jayne Black of Moms Clean Air Force joins the cast and creative team for a post-show conversation about the fight to stop data center expansion in Northeast Wisconsin — and the threat these facilities pose to local air quality, water resources, and community health. The conversation will draw direct parallels between the institutional failures that led to the Flint water crisis and the corporate pressures communities across Wisconsin are facing today.

Friday, October 16 — Talkback: Keeping PFAS Out of Wisconsin's Drinking Water
Laura Springer of Clean Water Action Council joins the cast and creative team for a post-show conversation about the ongoing fight to keep PFAS "forever chemicals" out of Wisconsin's drinking water. The talkback will explore the parallels between the Flint water crisis and the persistent contamination challenges facing Wisconsin communities — and what residents, advocates, and legislators can do to demand accountability and action.

ABOUT THE POISONER

The Poisoner is a universal tale — an unraveling of the deception, abuse of power, and utter negligence of early 2000s Midwestern water politics. In a neo-noir thriller driven by a determined journalist who returns to his hometown and uncovers more than he bargained for, The Poisoner invites audiences to question: are we ever safe?

Presented by Citizen56 and Uncommon Productions, the production is a fictional work inspired by the Flint water crisis of 2014, aiming to engage audiences and amplify awareness about the persistent challenges faced in Flint, Jackson, Newark, Pittsburgh, and other communities grappling with aging infrastructure, water contamination, and the fight for corporate and government accountability.

The Poisoner is currently on a 7-city national tour running September 17 through October 31, 2026. Tour cities include Bethlehem, PA; Pittsburgh, PA; Kenosha, WI; Madison, WI; De Pere, WI; Kalamazoo, MI; and Detroit, MI. In each city, the production will engage directly with local communities and connect with organizers, advocates, and residents fighting for clean air, safe water, and community control of the resources that corporations have long sought to exploit. The Poisoner originally premiered at New York's acclaimed La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club in 2024 on the 10-year anniversary of the Flint water crisis.

More info: uncommonproductions.com/the-poisoner

ABOUT UNCOMMON PRODUCTIONS

Uncommon Productions was founded in 2000 by Tim Disney and Bill Haney. Uncommon Productions tells stories that inspire, enlighten, and engage. Learn more at uncommonproductions.com.

ABOUT CITIZEN56

Citizen56 is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that provides educational information about history, democracy, science, social institutions and the environment via online service platforms and applications, films, books and other forms of relevant media. Learn more at citizen56.org.

SOURCE Citizen56