MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- A new musical is coming to Milwaukee telling the story of Sokrates. Hellenika: The Musical is set in the golden age of Athens. Milwaukee Native Kyle Thomas Hanneken is the composer, lyricist and playwright behind the musical taking viewers through a story narrated by Plato. "This is the most important story never told," shared Hanneken. He said, "my artistic intuition was just telling me, screaming at me, i think you have to do this."

After seven years of research and writing, Hanneken believes it's coming at a pivotal time: "this show, at its essence, really explores the inherent fragility of democratic institutions. It also really emphasizes the importance of raising your voice against injustice and also the power of ideas to shape society."

The four main themes explored in the musical are truth, rhetoric, power, and justice. With original music guiding viewers through Sokrates' story, Hanneken says is one we'll relate to. "A lot of what they were dealing with might be surprising, given that it's 2,500 years ago, just how relevant a lot of their struggles and their issues are to 21st-century democracies across the globe."

The musical will be presented as a “public reading” meaning that there won't be props or costumes on this stage. But the creator says the music and story takes us back to ancient Greece. "There's something very special about perfecting a lyric, getting a line that sits just right, and getting rhymes that sit and hit the ear in a very pleasing and clear way," he explained. Some of the genres of musical include rock, pop, blues, jazz, and a touch of hip hop. One of the biggest challenges Kyle said, was fitting 33 years of Sokrates' life into one musical. 

He highlighted the fact that the female protagonist is Aspasia, described as "the leading female of her time—and perhaps in the history of Ancient Greece—Aspasia was one of Sokrates’ two known teachers, and a skilled rhetorician."

The cast includes Broadway star Nathaniel Hackman as Sokrates, Chicago's Teagan Earley as Aspasia, Milwaukee's Andrew Varela as Perikles, among other "heavy hitters" said Hanneken.

Hellenika: The Musical

It's an especially big moment for the Milwaukee native: "to be doing this in Milwaukee, in my hometown, as a means of telling this story for the first time, i just could not be more grateful or more excited." He says he eventually hopes to get the show to Broadway.

The shows will be this Friday, Jan. 30 and Saturday, Jan. 31 at Marcus Performing Arts Center's Vogel Hall. You can get tickets here.