Author Archives
-
Barebones’ Patrick Jordan Finds Spark that Brings Him Back to ‘God of Carnage’
It was 15 years ago that Patrick Jordan first read the Tony Award-winning play “God of Carnage,” and put it aside. When he picked it up again, years later, something had changed. The Yasmin Reza four-hander will close barebones productions’ season, with artistic director Jordan as part of the cast. “There are hundreds of plays between now and 15 years ago,” Jordan said of when he first read the script. “This play popped into my head, and I went back and reread it, and I was like, ‘Wow, maybe I am 15 years older, but this play hits a very different way right now,’ and it almost comes off as more relevant now than 20 years ago, when it was written.”
-
Review: Becoming Invested in Chilling, Compelling ‘Enron’
So much of the play “Enron” is true to life, that to call it a dark comedy, you must emphasize dark, or as a cautionary tale, a better emphasis would be: beware. Quantum Theatre is retelling the tale right on time for the demon season, with a compelling, kinetic staging of the Lucy Prebble play that looks back on the downfall of a corporate giant. The Texas-based energy company was known to all who lived through the turn of the 20th century for its national “Ask Why” campaign, which portrayed Enron as a pioneering, innovative energy and business company. It was all smoke and mirrors, laid bare in the compelling production, a collaboration with Attack Theatre.
-
Preview: ‘Enron’ Play Revisits Real-Life Out-of-Control Corporate Greed
Director Kyle Haden on Quantum Theatre Production, New Role at Pittsburgh Public, and CMU ColLABo. By SHARON EBERSON The Downtown parkway ramp spills onto Grant Street with a skyward view of One Oxford Centre, the aluminum, glass and granite skyscraper… Read More ›
-
Spooky, Spoofy ‘Night of the Moth Man’: A 3-Parter at Arcade Comedy Theater
You don’t have to be a role-playing gamer to appreciate “Night of the Moth Man,” but it is a bonus, judging by the reaction to every role of the RPG dice on opening night. The spooky, spoofy Dungeons & Dragons-style live comedy show spending three Fridays at Arcade Comedy Theater is based on the Bedlam Arts and Goods game, designed by Pittsburgh-based Eamon McNamee and ready-made for Halloween.
-
Commentary: Saying Farewell, On the Record, to OFF THE RECORD
Commentary by Sharon Eberson: The countdown is on to year 25 of “laughter for a good cause.” OFF THE RECORD XXV: BURGH TO THE FUTURE! is less than a week away, and, as always, I’m feeling overwhelmed, anxious and proud. How much of each? Ask me again after Thursday, October 16, 2025, which is officially OFF THE RECORD DAY in the City of Pittsburgh. It’s a personal countdown, too, because this is my final year as producer of the musical satire that has consumed a big chunk of my life for the past five years.
-
Review: Sam Tsoutsouvas Adapts Classic ‘Bartleby, the Scrivener’ Into Solo Tour de Force
An adaptation of “Bartleby, The Scrivener,” written and performed by Sam Tsoutsouvas and directed by Andrew Paul for Kinetic Theatre, delivers a pitch-perfect solo retelling as Melville told it, from the perspective of the unnamed Narrator – a Wall Street lawyer who likes his lot in life just fine, until Bartleby walks through his doors.
-
News & Review: Kyle Haden Named Pittsburgh Public Theater Artistic Consultant as Season Kicks Off With ‘Noises Off’
Among the loudest applause on opening night of Noises Off at Pittsburgh Public Theater was the turntable reveal of the play-within-the-play’s backstage, to begin the second act. Another big moment of appreciation came even before the play began, when it was revealed that Pittsburgh theater artist and educator Kyle Haden has been named as Artistic Consultant, for a company that has been without an Artistic Director since Marya Sea Kaminski departed at the end of July.
-
Review: Funny and Fierce ‘First Lady’ Puts a Real Housewives Face on a Dictator’s Mate in USA Premiere at PICT
By SHARON EBERSON A dictator’s wife behaves like a spoiled child, oblivious to her people’s cries of anguish. What could possibly go wrong? The First Lady of the USA premiere play First Lady is named Ishtar (borrowed from the infamous… Read More ›
-
Review: City’s Sensual ‘Another Kind of Silence’ Envelops the Familiar In a New Wave of Theatrical Storytelling
Seductive multilingual, multicultural, multimedia “Another Kind of Silence,” now at City Theatre. contains standard plot points from relationship dramas, but the playwright has wrapped the will-they-or-won’t-theys in complexities rarely seen on stage, in a production that pushes the envelope of creativity, to achieve the goal of inclusivity.
-
Pittsburgh Theaters Are On Trend For Most-Produced Plays, Playwrights
By SHARON EBERSON American Theatre Magazine has released its lists of the Top 10 Most Produced Plays and Top 20 Most-Produced Playwrights for the upcoming 2025-2026 season, with Pittsburgh companies notably helping playwrights and shows to find a spot on… Read More ›
