Featuring: David Roussève’s world premiere of Becoming Daddy AF, Pumpkin Palooza, Visual Art Gallery, and New Freshworks Residencies
Kelly Strayhorn Theater (KST) has announced its Fall 2025 season, running from September through December, featuring a full calendar of KST Presents events inviting audiences into a season defined by “joy as an act of resistance”. This year is significant, as the 2025–2026 season honors 25 years of Kelly Strayhorn Theater proudly serving as a cultural anchor in Pittsburgh’s East End, championing creativity, nurturing community, and advancing collective liberation.
Opened in 2001 and named for iconic Pittsburgh artists Gene Kelly and Billy Strayhorn, Kelly Strayhorn Theater (KST) began original programming in 2008. In 2011, KST merged with the historic Dance Alloy Theater—Pittsburgh’s then premier modern dance company—establishing a two-venue operation. This year also marks the 50th anniversary of Dance Alloy’s founding. This milestone underscores Pittsburgh’s enduring commitment to fostering spaces for artistic changemakers, a legacy that KST proudly continues to uphold.
Melanie Paglia, KST’s Co-Executive Director, proudly shares, “For a quarter of a century, Kelly Strayhorn Theater has stood as a beacon in Pittsburgh’s East End, a place where generations have come together to imagine, build, and celebrate. We’ve watched babies become leaders, artists blossom into innovators, and communities unite in the face of change”.
In 2025-2026, “as we mark the 25th anniversary, we are charged to continue to challenge forces that are a direct threat to our basic rights, our bodies, our futures, especially for Black, queer, and historically resilient folks,” says KST’s Co-Executive Director Joseph Hall. These ideas translate into a diverse selection of programs in Fall 2025.
The season begins with the Local & Global Performance series, presenting celebrated dance-theater artist David Roussève’s world premiere of Becoming Daddy AF on Friday & Saturday, September 26-27. This work is a meditation on life’s purpose that reflects Roussève’s ancestral genealogy, his journey living with HIV, and the profound loss of his husband.
When doors open to the public on Friday, September 26, at 5:30 pm for Becoming Daddy AF, our lobby gallery also opens to share the Pittsburgh Queer History Project exhibition entitled Calendar Girls in the House of Tilden. Curator Harrison Apple showcases archival documentation of early queer, trans, and performers of color at House of Tilden, the after-hours queer disco in East Liberty from 1970 to 1981.
KST then proudly supports new performances in progress from local Freshworks Artists in Residence. On Friday & Saturday, October 3 – 4, Moire del Carmen’s Baquiné is inspired by the Puerto Rican tradition to celebrate the life and death of a child, looking at grief when it is met with laughter, love, and the transformative power of art. Rickia Davenport’s The Choice explores the complex reproductive health challenges faced by African American women on Friday & Saturday, November 7 – 8.
Holiday programming takes center stage this fall with two of our most beloved annual traditions. On Saturday, October 25, enjoy creative activities and performances at Pumpkin Palooza: An East Liberty Halloween Adventure. The beloved holiday concert Suite Life: A Celebration of Billy Strayhorn & Gene Kelly returns on Saturday, November 29, featuring reimagined classics with a festive orchestral performance that welcomes the whole family. Donors enjoy early ticket access starting Monday, September 29; public sales open Monday, October 13.
Through KST’s Mutual Aid Residency program, Dreams of Hope and Balafon West African Dance Ensemble offer youth-centered programming throughout the fall, including weekly dance and music classes, workshops, and events that uplift the next generation of artists through intergenerational gathering.
KST’s upcoming fall season continues the commitment to being a home for creative experimentation, community dialogue, and collective liberation.
Categories: Arts and Ideas, Feature Stories, Season Listings
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