With news about: Shaunda Miles McDill to Lead TCG, New Horizon in Lawrenceville, Ken Gargaro’s The Encore Players, Cast of Pittsburgh Playhouse’s ‘Girls Just Want to Have Fun,’ Halloween Weekend Theater.
🎭 ICYMI:
- News: City Theatre and CMU Expand Partnership for Momentum Festival
- Review: Heartbreaking ‘Hadestown’ Is Fated to Win Over New Hearts
- Review: ‘Othello of the End Zone, or The Steel City Tragedy’ is a Powerful Tale of Struggle
- Review: PBT’s ‘Giselle’ is a Tale of Drama, Heartbreak, Love, and, Of Course, Technique
- Review: A Younger Generation Thrills the PSO Audience
- Preview: ‘Night of the Singing Dead’ Joins the 27 Club with Two Final Performances at City Winery
Pittsburgh’s Shaunda Miles McDill has been appointed as Interim Executive Director of the Theatre Communications Group, effective November 1. The national organization, founded in 1961, has as its mission, “To lead for a just and thriving theatre ecology,” and boasts more than 650 member theaters and affiliates, and over 3,000 individual members. In announcing McDill’s appointment, TCG said, “Shaunda brings more than two decades of nonprofit leadership and arts management experience, including service as Managing Director of Pittsburgh Public Theater, as a Program Officer at The Heinz Endowments, in leadership roles at theatres across the country, and on TCG’s Board of Directors.” McDill, who founded Pittsburgh-based DEMASKUS Theater Collective, partnered with the New Hazlett Theater to present and direct the play Othello of The End Zone this past weekend.
TCG’s announcement led with the letting go of a trio of co-Executive Directors, due to financial woes: “Like so many organizations across the theatre field, TCG is navigating a difficult moment. We know that news of organizational change can bring uncertainty, so we want to share this update with honesty and care. TCG is facing significant financial challenges and is undertaking a broader restructuring process. As part of that transition, the contracts of our three Co-Executive Directors, Emilya Cachapero, LaTeshia Ellerson, and Alisha Tonsic, concluded effective October 16, 2026. … We are grateful for their service and for everything they poured into TCG’s people, its programs, and this community. … We are committed to honoring their work and to handling this transition with care and respect.”
PITTSBURGH PLAYHOUSE WORLD PREMIERE HAS ITS CAST
The Pittsburgh Playhouse, in collaboration with Lively McCabe Entertainment and Primary Wave Music, has chosen a cast for the world premiere production of Girls Just Want to Have Fun The Musical!, a show inspired by the film written by Amy Spies and featuring a score of 1980s chart-toppers. Students of Point Park University’s Conservatory of Performing Arts are working with Broadway and entertainment industry professionals, including director-choreographer Jennifer Werner (The Book of Mormon, Mystic Pizza National Tour). Arrangements and orchestrations are by Broadway composer and music director Georgia Stitt, with a book by M Dickson and Lauren Marcus. The 23-member company of Girls Just Want To Have Fun includes Paige Schmella as Janey Glenn, Caroline O’Neil as Lynne, Alejandro Tinnell as Jeff Malene, Bee Walker as Natalie Sands, Autumn Papczynski as Mother Superior, Bianca Dixon as Sister Eileen, Marshall Benton as Colonel Glenn, Devin Claudio as Drew, Isabella Corea as Mrs. Glenn/Mrs. Dobson, Evan Williams as Mr. Malene, Cadee Velasquez as Rikki, Sam Welborn as DTV Assistant/J.P. Sands, and Jaqueline Trinh-Juarez as Maggie Malene. The ensemble includes Eric Acosta, Joel Balinao, Casey Rose Colcombe, Kaylee Deenihan, Melissa Garlock, Anthony Raymond, Amber Gibson, and Lucas Lee.
🎟️ TICKETS: Girls Just Wanna Have Fun will play in the Pittsburgh Playhouse’s PNC Theatre November 11-15 and 18-22, 2026 (official opening November 13). https://playhouse.culturaldistrict.org/production/108882/girls-just-want-to-have-fun-the-musical
KEN GARGARO INTRODUCES 55+ ENCORE PLAYERS
Ken Gargaro, who has guided generations of local musical theater performers with Gargaro Productions (now Pittsburgh Musical Theater) and collegians at Robert Morris University, is aiming for a new demo with The Encore Players, for adults 55 and older. The new venture is “built for anyone who’s ever wanted to take the stage, try something new, or come back to a passion that never really went away. No auditions. No pressure. No experience required.” Encore begins with Senior Theater Camp, with rehearsals during the day, and finishes with three performances at The Vincentian Theater at St. Vincent Hall, 8200 McKnight Road, North Hills. The three shows are Guys and Dolls, Neil Simon’s Rumors, and All Shook Up.
🎭 DETAILS: For info an open house at noon on November 18, click here. For more on The Encore Players: https://theencoreplayers.com/.
NEW HORIZON THEATER ROAMS TO ATTACK THEATRE HOME
New Horizon Theater, in recent years a resident company of the O’Reilly Theater, Downtown, will present THE NAM: Boys of the Bamboo, written and directed by Layon Gray, at the Lawrenceville home of Attack Theatre. The play, set against the Vietnam War, “follows five Black soldiers whose courage, sacrifice, and brotherhood are tested in unimaginable ways. [The play] is an opportunity to honor untold stories, reflect on history, and experience the extraordinary power of live Black theater.”
🎟️ TICKETS AND DETAILS: THE NAM is at Attack Theatre, 212 45th Street, November 6–15, 2026. newhorizontheater.org.
HALLOWEEN WEEKEND OUT AND ABOUT
- Night of the Singing Dead: The Final Nail In The Coffin | City Winery | October 28 and 29, 2026 | citywinery.com
- Night of the Living Dead N’AT | Bricolage Production Company | City Theatre’s Lillie Theatre | October 29 – November 15, 2026 | https://citytheatrecompany.org/production/109315/list_performances
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows™ Part 1 | Pittsburgh Symphony at the Movies | Heinz Hall | October 30 & November 1, 2026 | https://www.pittsburghsymphony.org/calendar
- The Rocky Horror Show | 2nd Floor Theatre Company | Greensburg Garden and Civic Center | October 30 & 31, 2026 | https://westmorelandculturaltrust.org/events/rocky-horror-1026
🎟️ Reminder: The discount ticket initiative Go See a Show! is ongoing, with 18 performing arts companies and Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama participating. Find tickets at https://www.goseeashowpgh.com.
👉 Don’t forget — you can always explore the next two months of performances, organized by date or company, at onStage Pittsburgh.
👉 Did we miss your show? Send us your updates at info@onstagepittsburgh.com so we can share them in Listings and a future Call Board.
Categories: Arts and Ideas, CALL BOARD, Our Posts, Preview, Reviews
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