As a sure sign of the arrival of spring and of peak theatre season here in Pittsburgh, there are seven shows opening next week. (In addition to the seven productions currently running.)
[This post updated May 8th.]
Here is a quick look at those five, by our count the first of over 50+ productions, opening between May 1st and the end of August. Who says Pittsburgh isn’t a theater town?
The Pittsburgh CLO’s return engagement of Dixie’s Tupperware Party opens on Wednesday the 11th for a nearly three week run at the Greer Cabaret in Theatre Square.
NOT YOUR GRANDMOTHER’S TUPPERWARE PARTY
Written by Kris Andersson, the production is returning to Pittsburgh after its popular run in 2014. Dixie Longate is the fast-talking, gum chewing, ginger-haired Alabama gal who is bringing your grandma’s Tupperware party into the 21st century. Audiences howl with laughter as Dixie demonstrates the many alternative uses for the iconic plastic kitchen staple. Filled with outrageously funny tales, heartfelt accounts, audience participation, and a little bit of empowerment and homespun wisdom, DIXIE’S TUPPERWARE PARTY leaves your heart a little bigger and your food a little fresher. The show has ADULT CONTENT.
https://pittsburghclo.culturaldistrict.org/production/78970/dixies-tupperware-party
Stage 62’s production of The Marvelous Wonderetts rock the Carnegie Free Library Music Hall’s Basement Studio in Carnegie beginning on the 11th as well.
This smash Off-Broadway hit takes you to the 1958 Springfield High School prom, where we meet Betty Jean, Cindy Lou, Missy, and Suzy: four girls with hopes and dreams as big as their crinoline skirts! As we learn about their lives and loves, the girls serenade us with classic ‘50s hits including “Lollipop,” “Dream Lover,” “Stupid Cupid,” and “Lipstick on Your Collar.” Featuring over 30 classic ’50s and ’60s hits, The Marvelous Wonderettes will keep you smiling in this must-take musical trip down memory lane!
Attack Theatre new home stage welcomes Some Assembly Required starting on Thursday the 12th.
A process/performance inspired by visual art and co-created live with you. From the streets of Avignon (France) and the galleries of the Phillips Collection (DC) to the halls of museums in Pittsburgh, Some Assembly Required comes home to Attack Theatre’s new Lawrenceville studios. First commissioned by the Carnegie Museum of Art, this “irresistible and inspiring process” (Pittsburgh Dance Examiner) is a dynamic merging of audience and performers, dance and visual art, and of the planned and spontaneous.
https://www.attacktheatre.com/sar-2022
The Scottish Play– (traditional theatrical superstition says it is bad mojo, a curse upon you to be precise, to say the shows title) is at the Steel City Shakespeare Center in West View opening on the 13th. (Is that a double bad omen?)
Steel City Shakespeare Center presents Shakespeare’s famous tragedy about ambition and its moral cost. When Macbeth encounters three witches and hears a prophecy that he will be king, he takes his fortune into his own hands, murdering King Duncan in his sleep and anointing himself King of Scotland and taking every bloody measure to retain his power. SCSC’s Macbeth will be told by a cast of six actors and relying on shadow puppetry designed by Catherine Aceto in the intimate setting at the West View Hub while also incorporating much of the Hub’s decor to highlight West View’s colorful history. Directed by SCSC Founder and Artistic Director Jeffrey Chips, Macbeth is an experience you will not want to miss.
https://www.onthestage.tickets/show/steel-city-shakespeare-center/macbeth-78527
After enduring the collective misery of the pandemic, barebones production in Braddock is back with Misery opening the 13th as well.
Reality becomes stranger than fiction when an acclaimed romance novelist wakes up in the home of his “Number One Fan.” Rescued from a wintery car crash, Paul Sheldon finds himself incapacitated in the secluded home of Annie Wilkes, a seemingly kind nurse. When events take a nightmarish turn, the injured Paul realizes the unhinged Annie has no intention of letting him leave. Based on Stephen King’s best-selling novel, barebones’ production of Misery will thrill Pittsburgh audiences as the company returns to the stage for the first time in two years.
https://barebonesproductions.ticketspice.com/misery
And finally to get you up dancing on your feet, Mamma Mia, by Mon River Arts opens at the Grand Theatre in Elizabeth
ABBA’s hits tell the hilarious story of a young woman’s search for her birth father. This sunny and funny tale unfolds on a Greek island paradise. On the eve of her wedding, a daughter’s quest to discover the identity of her father brings three men from her mother’s past back to the island they last visited 20 years ago. The story-telling magic of ABBA’s timeless songs propels this enchanting tale of love, laughter and friendship, creating an unforgettable show. A mother. A daughter. Three possible dads. And a trip down the aisle you’ll never forget!
https://monriverarts.ticketleap.com/mamma-mia/
Samuel Beckett’s masterpiece of Irish theatre takes the PICTClassic Theatre stage this spring starring resident company members Martin Giles, James FitzGerald, Karen Baum & Ken Bolden.
Four characters take shelter from an impending catastrophe outside and not only find themselves stuck in one room, but stuck with each other. Endgameis an exploration of ending – ending life, ending time, and what we find at the conclusion. This wickedly funny and deeply relevant production will be directed by Alan Stanford.
At the WQED Fred Rodgers Studio on Oakland from May 14 to 28. Limited seating available. For tickets and more info visit: https://www.picttheatre.org/play/endgame/
Check out our weekly What’s On Staged Pittsburgh listing and get out there and support local theater. Enjoy!
Categories: Show Previews
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