By Brian Pope Even with their short run times, the plays that make up Program C of the 2019 Pittsburgh New Works Festival don’t pull any dramatic punches. Whether they’re revealing closely guarded secrets, reliving past trauma, or hilariously contemplating… Read More ›
Genesius Theater
PNWF Program B: 2019
By Brian Pope What’s better than one opening night? Four opening nights! For the last 29 years, the Pittsburgh New Works Festival has been a champion of the one act play. Each festival sees 12 plays receive full productions across… Read More ›
Musical of the Month: “A Little Night Music”
Do I Hear a Waltz? is a little-known 1965 musical with a dream creative team that found themselves on a nightmarish road to Broadway. Originally, Arthur Laurents was set to adapt his play The Time of the Cuckoo as… Read More ›
Macbeth
The question of Shakespeare’s continued relevance in the modern world is an inquiry that never fully quiets. After all, so much has changed across four centuries since William Shakespeare penned Macbeth in 1606-07. However, Macbeth reminds us how strikingly little… Read More ›
5 Musicals You Don’t Want to Miss This Summer: 2017 Edition
Our 2017 Summer Musical Preview features a mixed bag of musicals from the interactive Clue, the zany Spamalot to three “serious†musicals exploring life’s purpose; Avenue Q, Pippin and Big Fish. Do you like board games? Then Clue is for… Read More ›
Rust
Even steel rusts, and that is the underlying theme, and title, of the new play currently in production by Duquesne University’s Red Masquers. The play, written by Duquesne alum F.J. Hartland, neatly ties the name of the show into the… Read More ›
Come Back, Little Sheba
This show is magnificent. It’s heartbreaking in the best way. Cathartic gold, Midwestern tea. It’s chock full of that Kansas-grade, square-state repression: a good device to wind up on stage like a spring-loaded-toy and let loose just as the third… Read More ›
Danny and the Deep Blue Sea
Danny and the Deep Blue Sea by John Patrick Shanley is a torrent of frustration, confusion, and kindness as two socially bereft characters make an awkward attempt at finding happiness. Adrift in their drinks Danny, played by Andrew Yackel, and… Read More ›