By SHARON EBERSON
Here’s to the Ghosts of Pittsburgh Holiday Shows Past, and the gifts of the Present …
At present, the 14th annual Peoples Gas Holiday Market that usually occupies Market Square this time of year is now in the heart of the Pittsburgh Cultural District, at Katz Plaza, in the outdoor Benedum Parking Lot and the Cultural Trust Oasis.
It’s going to be tight quarters if you’re headed that way, so plan accordingly. For Holiday Market hours and events, visit https://downtownpittsburghholidays.com/holiday-market.
Here’s a look at some of the live theater of the Pittsburgh holiday season. For more, visit What’s On Stage Pittsburgh.
CITY THEATRE, ‘LOUISA MAY ALCOTT’S LITTLE WOMEN’
Already underway on the South Side, City Theatre once again rolls with a Lauren Gunderson play set in a fictional Christmas past, but not featuring Jane Austen characters. This year, it’s another band of sisters, with the four-theater commission of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women. Both original novels are set against the backdrop of war: In Pride & Prejudice, the Napoleonic Wars, and in Little Women, more urgently, the Civil War.
When: Through December 7, 2025. Where: City Theatre’s Mainstage, 1300 Bingham Street, South Side. Tickets and details: https://citytheatrecompany.org/production/100834/louisa-may-alcotts-little-women.
PITTSBURGH CLO, ‘A MUSICAL CHRISTMAS CAROL‘
No two Scrooges are alike, so it is with nostalgia and anticipation that I think back to, say, Patrick Page or Michael Cerveris, and along with the great anticipation of Denis O’Hare as the 2025 star of Pittsburgh CLO’s A Musical Christmas Carol. The holiday tradition has glorious production values, employs a slew of local actors and has been the springboard for talent including Hamilton Tony-winner and Carnegie Mellon alum Renee Elise Goldsberry.
When: December 13-23, 2025. Where: Byham Theater, 101 Sixth Street, Downtown. Tickets and details: https://www.pittsburghclo.org/shows/a-musical-christmas-carol-2025.
PITTSBURGH MUSICAL THEATER, ‘A LYRICAL CHRISTMAS CAROL‘
Pittsburgh Musical Theater’s A Lyrical Christmas Carol was adapted for the stage by Ken and Jane Gargaro, and, like PCLO’s production, is a 30+-year holiday tradition. This year’s show is a Young Artists Production, performed by students from the PMT Conservatory.
When: December 17-21, 2025. Where: PMT’s Gargaro Theater, 327 South Main Street, West End. Tickets and details:https://pittsburghmusicals.com/alcc/.
PITTSBURGH PUBLIC THEATER, ‘A CHRISTMAS STORY: THE PLAY‘
Pittsburgh Public Theater brings back the Cultural District’s newest tradition, A Christmas Story: The Play, with its grownup cast intact: Tim McGeever as the Old Man, Jamie C. Agnello as Mother, Hope Anthony as Miss Shields and John Shepard as Adult Ralph. However, the annual holiday offering has a new lead as Young Ralphie: Avery Schneider, a fifth-grade student at Horace Mann Elementary and a finalist in the 2024 Shakespeare Monologue Competition. This is first role with Pittsburgh Public Theater.
When: December 4-22, 2025. Where: O’Reilly Theater, Penn Avenue, Downtown. Tickets and details: https://ppt.org/production/94455/a-christmas-story-the-play .
BRICOLAGE, ‘MIDNIGHT RADIO: CHRISTMAS VACA-YINZ’
Last year, Bricolage Productions made the case for Die Hard as a Christmas movie, with Midnight Radio: Die Hard N’at. This year, the on-the-move company is going on a holiday jaunt with Midnight Radio: Christmas Vaca-yinz, at the home of barebones productions, with a cast including Patrick Jordan, Tami Dixon and more.
When: December 4-21, 2025. When: December 4-21, 2025. Where: barebones’ Braddock Black Box, Bingo O’Mally Stage, 1211 Braddock Avenue, Braddock. Tickets and details: https://www.bricolagepgh.org/midnight-radio/live/christmas-vacatyinz/.
PCLO, ‘YIPPEE KI YAY: THE PARODY CELEBRATION OF DIE HARD’
Pittsburgh CLO also is asking the question: Is Die Hard a Christmas movie?. A possible answer: Yippee Ki Yay: The Parody Celebration of Die Hard. The one-man show was written and performed by Richard Marsh, a former London poetry slam champion, among other artistic pursuits. The parody follows another solo show, Who’s Holiday?, as the Greer Cabaret holiday offering.
When: December 2-21, 2025. Where: Presented by James Seabright at the Greer Cabaret, Theater Square, 665 Penn Avenue, Downtown. Tickets and details: https://www.pittsburghclo.org/shows/yippee-ki-yay.
KINETIC THEATRE, ‘A SHERLOCK CAROL’
One of the delights of Christmas 2024 was Kinetic Theatre’s production of A Sherlock Carol, reuniting David Whalen, in the title role, with director Andrew Paul, and with live music arranged by Douglas Levine and performed by Levine and Cara Garofalo. The cast also features Simon Bradbury, James Fitzgerald, Joseph McGranaghan, Susie McGregor-Laine and Caroline Nicolian, as the Christmas play moves from Oakland to Carnegie in 2025.
When: December 11-21, 2025. Where: Carnegie Stage, 25 W. Main Street, Carnegie. Tickets and details: https://www.kinetictheatre.org/.
Categories: Feature Stories, Our Posts, Show Previews
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