After wrapping up a jam-packed 2023–24 season, StageQ, Wisconsin’s queer theater company, is preparing to bring queer stories to the stage once again.

StageQ’s mission is to “celebrate and advance queer representation” by spotlighting LGBTQ+ playwrights, stories, and actors. With a play about gay politicians and a musical about a lesbian ax murderer, the upcoming season is no exception.

The shows are not the only new aspect of StageQ. This summer, StageQ welcomed a new president, Abby Pawelski. Pawelski previously performed in multiple StageQ productions, including Act a Lady and Secretaries and served on the board of directors. Pawelski understands the importance of telling queer stories. “As someone who visibly presents queer, it’s a lived experience,” she says. “It colors everything I do.”

StageQ is always looking for new people to join, whether through volunteering, helping out backstage, or auditioning for a show. Pawelski sees StageQ as more than just a space for people to gather, but as a community space. This upcoming season she wants to increase community participation, making StageQ a center point for the queer community.

This season is made up of two plays, one musical, and a festival. “I’m always looking to see what shows are pushing boundaries, what shows are going to grab an audience’s attention,” Pawelski says.

The 2024–25 season kicks off with the play Angry F*gs, a dark comedy exploring the question, “What do you do when the system that’s supposed to help you doesn’t?” The play follows two gay men in politics who turn to violence in order to fight injustice and homophobia after witnessing a hate crime. Pawelski told Our Lives it is no coincidence StageQ is choosing to run a political show in November, shortly after the 2024 presidential election. The play will be shown November 1 through November 16.

Following Angry F*gs, StageQ will offer Dr. Ride’s American Beach House from January 24 through February 8, 2025. The play will take the audience back to 1983, the night before Dr. Sally Ride made history as the third woman to fly to space. Many assumed Dr. Ride was a lesbian at the time, but it was not confirmed until after she died. The play takes place in Missouri, as four women on a rooftop explore their own queerness while listening to Dr. Ride travel to space on the radio.

From April 18 through May 3, 2025 Lizzie the Musical will electrify the Bartell Theatre stage. Pawleski compares it to Hedwig and the Angry Inch, as both shows have “very rock, very punk energy.” The musical follows the story of Lizzie Borden, an ax murderer from the 1800s. Through song and dance, performers explore what is myth and what is reality. “It’s a rock exploration of her life,” Pawleski says. “Musicals can make things larger than life, and the truth is somewhere in there.”

The CapitolQ festival will close out the season. “It’ll be a bit of a revamp,” Pawleski said, but shared that they are still having international queer playwrights submit their shows and then put them on with local queer directors.

Pawleski encourages those who have not seen a show to take a risk this season. She compares attending a StageQ show to going to a Rocky Horror Picture Show for the first time: You won’t know what to expect, but by the end you are changed.

StageQ is ready to bring in new people who have otherwise never experienced a queer story. StageQ shows provide a sense of escapism, according to Pawleski. She explains that most queer people experience hardship in addition to joy, and so to see queer stories reimagined on stage allows viewers to see themselves in a new light. People see different versions and parts of themselves on stage, she says. “There’s always a bit of magic that happens.”