By SHARON EBERSON
July went out like a lion in local theater, with good news (a producing program at the New Hazlett Theater) and less-than-expected news (from the merger), followed by productions showcasing Pittsburgh’s top-of-the-line education and training at work. Limited runs of Alumni Theater Company’s Once on This Island (July 31-August 2) and the premiere/preview of Midsummer, a collaboration of The CMU Center for New Work and Play on Shakespeare (August 1-2), showcased the hotbed of youthful talent and creativity at work on our stages.
‘MIDSUMMER’
That blast of audaciousness out of Pittsburgh and headed to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival comes from the teaming of Tony Award-winner Jeff Whitty (Avenue Q) with CMU School of Drama performers, director Kim Weild and choreographer Lucas Fedele. The uproarious reinvention of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, “a modern verse translation” in 90 minutes, is crammed with contained pandemonium and Whitty’s pop-culture sensibility.
In 2004, I was in LA and experienced a preview of another wild Whitty creation, The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler, described as “owing as much to The Simpsons and The Wizard of Oz as it does to Ibsen and Sophocles.” Midsummer is in that mold of taking big swings, but still occupying the same neighborhood as the Shakespeare comedy/fantasy. Nine actors in multiple roles rarely took time for a breather in the tight space of the Trust Arts Education Center basement, set up as a circle-thrust, with the aisles heavily in play.
Purposefully over-the-top, Midsummer induced roaring laughter, with winking turns of phrase (some Shakespeare’s; some Whitty’s), gutsy and playful choices (for example, the Duke of Athens and Queen of the Fairies were played by the same actor), and in-your-face leaps and bounds (sitting upfront, my feet were tucked in at all times).
There was a joke made about how not to hurt the feelings of the play-within-the-play’s troupe of overacting players, by saying how much you admire their hard work. Here, it was impossible not to admire their well-earned sweat, and a tremendous account of the talent at CMU.
The two preview performances of the 90-minute wild ride readied the production for a trip to Edinburgh Fringe, with performances August 6-19, with only one day off.
The cast featured Celia Evans (Hermia, Moth, Snug, Lion); Christian Trimmingham (Lysander, Peaseblossom, Snout, Wall); Eli Strain (Puck, Philostrate); Logan Yao (Demetrius, Cobweb, Starveling, Moonshine); Moyo Ifafore (Egeus, Quince, Fairy); Rusty Daniel (Bottom, Pyramus); Siahvash Marshall (Theseus, Titania); Suri Noelle (Helena, Mustardseed, Flute, Thisbe); with dance captains Ifafore and swing Von Nishan Markarian.
For more about the production, visit https://drama.cmu.edu/event/a-midsummer-nights-dream/2026-08-01/.
‘ONCE ON THIS ISLAND’
The energy emanating from last weekend’s performances could power the East Coast grid for days. I first thought that on Friday night, as Alumni Theater Company’s production of Once on This Island electrified the Charity Randall Theater crowd.
The Alumni production, loaded with teenagers and young youngsters (Rhea Briggs, 9, as Little Ti Moune, and fourth-grader Riley Taylor), got a lesson in “the show must go on” from the company’s Executive Director, Bridgette Perdue. With just hours to go before opening night on Friday, Perdue stepped into the role of Papa Ge. She also was the show’s music director, working with director Monteze Freeland — his first big musical as Artistic Director of the company — and Perdue did not miss a beat on stage.
The musical by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens must have fired up choreographer LaTrea Rembert, because this production grooved to the Caribbean beat, starting with the opening We Dance, and never stopped. Katherine Bruce as star-crossed Ti Moune (“Waiting for Life”) and Charlese Dawson as Asaka, Mother of Earth (“Mama Will Provide”) provided highlights in a sea of highlights. The cast included a mix of adult professionals, with Broadway’s Kim Exum melting hearts as Erzulie, the goddess of love, singing “The Human Heart.”
The cast included RJ Reed-Williams as Daniel, Shae Wofford as Agwe, James Perry as Armand, Grayce Ransome as Mama Euralie, and Manny Walker as Tonton Julian.
“Storytellers” were Sharae Bynum, Ethan Davis Butler, Ian Dunn, Paris Ford, Marvaya Hampton, Destiny Nwafor, and Shakirah Stephens. Ensemble members were An’Nasia Pearl Allen, Monté Booker, Felicia Bowyer, Nia-Simone Dupree, Allana Mason, Lailonny Morris, Ahrie Payne-Samuels, Jordyn Walker, and Breonna Williams.
As large as that cast may seem, when they were onstage in groups, or all together, there was a joyful synchronicity, earning shouts of delight from friends, family and Alumni alumni.
MERGER MEDLEY
was Gene Kelly Award winner Loren Prisuta. (Image: Sharon Eberson)
On Friday afternoon, as part of an event to announce what turned out to be a progress report on the merger of Pittsburgh Public Theater and Pittsburgh CLO, CLO Academy head Jim Scriven and accompanist Robert Neumeyer presented a musical medley by a group of current and past Gene Kelly Award winners. It was a settling reminder that, no matter what else the future holds, I’ll bet on a theater kid, any day, every day.
Categories: Arts and Ideas, Arts Education, Our Posts, Reviews
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