July went out like a lion in local theater, including two showcases of Pittsburgh’s top-of-the-line education and training at work. Limited runs of Alumni Theater Company’s “Once on This Island” and the premiere/preview of “Midsummer,” a collaboration of The CMU Center for New Work and Play on Shakespeare, showcased the hotbed of youthful talent and creativity at work on our stages.
AN INSIDE VIEW TO THE FUTURE OF PITTSBURGH PUBLIC THEATER AND PITTSBURGH CLO
When their marriage becomes legal sometime this summer, only then will the new name and details of the Pittsburgh Public Theater and Pittsburgh CLO unification be fully revealed. Until that time, they are in the engagement period of a process that will culminate in the region’s two largest professional theater companies merging into one.
The 35th annual Gene Kelly Awards honoring excellence in high school musical theater in Allegheny County crowned the 2026 winners on Saturday night. Representing four budget categories, the Outstanding Musical winners, announced by Gene Kelly’s widow, Patricia Ward Kelly, were Our Lady of the Sacred Heart High School’s Hadestown: Teen Edition (Budget Level 1), Central & Oakland Catholic High Schools’s The Addams Family (Level II), Elizabeth Forward High School’s The Prince of Egypt (Level III), and Pine-Richland High School’s Chicago: Teen Edition (Level IV).
Pittsburgh Public Theater, following the finale of its 51st season, has announced that Homewood-based Alumni Theater Company will present “Once on This Island” at the Public’s Downtown home, the O’Reilly Theater, with dates and tickets sales TBA. “This production is everything The Public stands for,” said Managing Director Shaunda McDill.
PITTSBURGH CLO & PITTSBURGH PUBLIC THEATER ENTER INTO A COMBINED NEW MODEL
The first full season will debut in January of next year, with the programming lineup expected to be announced by early fall.
Pittsburgh Public Theater’s 32nd annual Shakespeare Monologue & Scene Contest had participants from grads 4-12 chanting, “Shakespeare! Shakespeare!,” as if the competition had been a sporting event. In naming the winners, It was much ado about a whole lot of love of language and performance, training and outcome, and good sportsmanship all around, at the O’Reilly Theater on Monday night.
Pittsburgh Public Theater’s 32nd annual Shakespeare Monologue & Scene Contest will crown winners in two divisions at 7 p.m., Monday, February 23, 2026, at the O’Reilly Theater. On Thursday, February 27, the Public kicks off its new Lobby Series, a community-driven initiative billed as “your chance to help transform the O’Reilly Theater lobby into a lively third place for connection and creativity.”
By JESSICA NEU The Benedum Center has invited Disney’s Beauty and the Beast to ‘be their guest’ from Tuesday, February 24th, through March 1st. The production marks the 30th anniversary of Disney’s groundbreaking musical that brings the beloved 1991 film to life…. Read More ›
As February begins, more than a dozen schools are on the eve of their performances, while others have months before curtain. As we continue to seek out upcoming shows and update the 2026 Western Pennsylvania Spring High School Musicals listing, we are kicking off now, to accommodate the schools that are first out of the starting gate.
Prime Stage Theatre’s High School Drama Awards attracted nearly 500 students, teachers and supporting family members to applaud the winners announced in the sixth annual event. The awards for nonmusical plays honor Pittsburgh-area student actors, directors and production crews from… Read More ›
