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.
The Impulse Festival, new this spring from Carnegie Mellon University’s Center for New Work, includes among its in-development offerings a musical collaboration with Pittsburgh CLO, and a new TJ Young play, with Pittsburgh Public Theater. In partnership with City Theatre, the festival also boasts a “local artist-focused” New Work Slam, with “scenes, songs, and monologues from some of Pittsburgh’s up and coming playwrights.” The Impulse Festival runs April 30-May 3, 2026 at various Pittsburgh Cultural Trust venues.
