Author Archives
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Preview: Disney’s ‘The Lion King’: Keeping the Legacy Alive on Stage
By MINGSI MA Since the musical’s premiere in 1997, Disney’s The Lion King has staged more than 11,000 performances. This poses an interesting challenge: After years of touring, the performers know the lines, songs, and dances by heart. The muscle memory is… Read More ›
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Preview: Bridges and Stages 10-Minute Play Festival Is Back and on the Move to the North Side
By Mingsi Ma The Becoming Arts Collective marks the return of the Bridges and Stages 10-Minute Play Festival for its second year by introducing a new partnership at a new site, The New Hazlett Theater. The 26 new plays, selected… Read More ›
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Review: A Maze of Manipulation in Kinetic Theatre’s ‘Henry Johnson’
Kinetic Theatre’s production of David Mamet’s Henry Johnson marks the play’s Pittsburgh debut. It is also only the third production of the work, following its premiere in Los Angeles in 2023 and a staging in Chicago in 2025. Henry Johnson has Mamet’s classic flair, with its downward-spiraling plot, coercion, ulterior motives, and the rhythmic, staccato, naturalistic Mamet-speak. It’s a play that makes you wonder: What is the truth? Who should I believe? Am I, as an audience member, just as susceptible as Henry Johnson? The play is less of a moral lesson and more of a question of morality. It leaves us grappling with the ambiguity of where the truth and manipulation begin and end.
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Review: Immersed in ‘Closing Time at the Moonside Cafe’, Where Audience Becomes Detective
By MINGSI MA Directed by Connor McCanlus and written by Sean Collier and Renee Rabenold, Closing Time at the Moonside Cafe is an original interactive theater piece that invites audiences to immerse themselves in an otherworldly club. The immersive experience is largely a success, blurring the line… Read More ›
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Review: South Park Theatre Stages Talley’s Folly: When Love Makes People Brave
By MINGSI MA South Park Theatre stages the second play of its 2026 season, Talley’s Folly, directed by Melissa Hill Grande. Playwright Lanford Wilson’s Talley’s Folly is a romantic comedy that one would not mistake for any other genre from the outset. The story follows… Read More ›
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Water for Elephants: A Feast for the Senses
By MINGSI MA Water for Elephants is a no-doubt true showstopper, and I find it hard to select a single aspect to praise because there are so many stunners throughout the performance. First premiered in the Alliance Theatre (Atlanta) in 2023,… Read More ›
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Pittsburgh Opera Announces 2026/2027 Season: General Director Christopher Hahn Previews the Program Before Retirement
By MINGSI MA On April 2, Pittsburgh Opera announced its 2026/2027 season. The upcoming season comprises five carefully curated productions in order: Rigoletto, Orpheus & Eurydice, Partenope, Working for the Macbeths (World Premiere), and Romeo & Juliet. As announced by Pittsburgh Opera in March 2025, Christopher Hahn, who has… Read More ›
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Review: PICT’s One-Man Thriller ‘The Smuggler’ Features a Tour de Force by Michael Patrick Trimm
In PICT’s “The Smuggler,” a solo show by Ronán Noone about the underbelly of immigration, Michael Patrick Trimm’s Tim Finnegan gives off a pirate-like energy, in a fast-paced and energetic performance — Trimm won’t let you take your eyes off him for a second.
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Review: Pain and Endurance in barebones productions’ ‘Infinite Life’
By MINGSI MA Playwright Ann Baker‘s Infinite Life depicts a group of five women and a man on a wellness retreat at a fasting facility. They sunbathe on lawn chairs, with only a parking lot behind a bakery in their line… Read More ›
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The Lyons at The Theatre Factory: A Juicy, Messy, and Entertaining Family Drama
By MINGSI MA Before I walked into The Theatre Factory for their latest production of playwright Nicky Silver’s The Lyons, out of the blue I somehow wondered whether the room would smell like disinfectant, that faint scent of weariness that reminds you of something unsettling… Read More ›
