Feature Stories

Season Previews and Interviews.

Reviews of 2 Plays Running – August Wilson’s ‘Two Trains Running’ and ‘Fences’ – in Pittsburgh Playwrights’ Historic Experience

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Mark Clayton Southers kicked off opening night of Two Trains Running by announcing that everyone present was now a part of history: Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company was about complete a second round of all 10 plays in the August Wilson American Century Cycle. As history-making goes, Saturday was a night of two plays running in the Hill District, where Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson spent his formative years, and where he set nine of his plays, one in each decade of the 20th century, about the Black American experience. Two Trains Running, representing the late 1960s, a time when the Civil Rights Movements and Black Power were in full swing, is at Madison Arts Center in the Upper Hill, through August 30, 2025. Fences, set in 1957, can be seen outdoors in the Lower Hill, at the August Wilson House, through September 6, 2025.

VIDEO CHAT: Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company Launches 3-Play August Wilson Experience in Hill District

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VIDEO: onStage Pittsburgh’s Sharon Eberson chats with the directors of the 3-play August Wilson American Century Cycle Experience – Terrence Spivey, Ashley Southers and Mark Clayton Southers – on the set of ‘Two Trains Running,’ at Madison Art Center, which will also present ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’ in a new cabaret space. Pittsburgh Playwrights’ annual outdoor production at the August Wilson House is the Pulitzer Prize-winning ‘Fences.’

Pittsburgh Musical Theater Enters First Phase of Multimillion Dollar Transformation

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The transformation of Pittsburgh Musical Theater got off to a smashing start – a wall-breaking ceremony on July 9, with Mayor Ed Gainey and County Executive Sara Innamorato striking the blows for change. The ceremony offered a view of the façade at the corner of Sanctus and South Main Streets, where a window to the two-story lobby will replace brick and mortar. Inside, renovations were already well underway.

The $8 million first phase of an ongoing $20 million campaign will add the building’s first elevator, allowing accessibility to all levels of a facility that includes the Gargaro Theater and the PMT Conservatory, for students ages 4-18.

2025 Tony Awards Takeaways: Diversity on Display, Little Wins Big, and CMU Rules

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I watch the Tony Awards with Pittsburgh in mind, because the pipeline of talent between here and Broadway is, hands-down, among the region’s chief exports. It also is the awards ceremony that gives and gives, showcasing live performances by the world’s top musical theater artists, especially for those who may never make it to New York. Here are a few highlights and observations from viewing the 2025 Tony Awards.

An Interview with The Becoming Art’s Collective Founder Darrin Friedman: Cool People Doing Really Cool Work in Community Theater 

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By JESSICA NEU This past January, playwright Darrin Friedman and director Art DeConciliis debuted Friedman’s original play Three Blind Mice. After achieving commercial and critical success, Friedman recognized untapped potential in Pittsburgh’s community theater scene. He sat down with his wife, Heather Friedman, and the pair… Read More ›

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