In the year that was, the future of three companies takes center stage, Saige Smith hits a series of high notes, “The Shark Is Broken” goes swimmingly for barebones, Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company delivers August Wilson triple play, Karla Boos announces Quantum exit, Arts Landing is readied for its closeup, and much, much more.
Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company
onStage Pittsburgh Call Board: October 2, 2025
IN MEMORAM: GEORGE B. PAROUS, OUR OPERA AND CLASSICAL MUSIC REVIEWER George B. Parous, onStage Pittsburgh’s cherished contributor and reviewer of opera and classical music, passed away unexpectedly last week. A Pittsburgh native, George first studied music and cello in… Read More ›
Review: ‘Fishy Woo Woo’ Possesses Sitcom-Ready Laughs, With Lots of Heart
By SHARON EBERSON Let’s get right to it, because I know you’re wondering: What the heck is Fishy Woo Woo? By the time the newly minted, uproarious comedy by Monteze Freeland reveals the answer, you’ll find that there’s nothing fishy… Read More ›
Pittsburgh Playwrights and New Horizon Companies Slated for 2024 International Black Theatre Festival
Two productions that originated on Pittsburgh stages in the past year are headed to the International Black Theatre Festival this summer. Headed to Winston-Salem, N.C., for the 18th biennial festival are Mark Clayton Southers‘ The Bluegrass Mile, which debuted at his Pittsburgh… Read More ›
Review: ‘The Coffin Maker’ Turns the Tables on Injustice in Searing Debut
The Powerful Premiere Concludes Pittsburgh Public Theater’s 2023-24 Season on a High Note By SHARON EBERSON The Coffin Maker, a riveting, provocative world-premiere work from Mark Clayton Southers, manifests what Judgement Day justice and retribution may look like, as seen… Read More ›
Double Take: Monteze Freeland Directs Pittsburgh Public’s ‘The Coffin Maker,’ While His Own Play Debuts a Few Miles Away
By SHARON EBERSON In theatrical leadership, influence and inspiration, few can match the output and goodwill spread throughout Pittsburgh by Mark Clayton Southers and Monteze Freeland. This coming weekend alone proves the point. Freeland will direct the premiere production of… Read More ›
Delana Flowers Revisits the Queen of the Blues in Pittsburgh Playwrights’ ‘Dinah’
By SHARON EBERSON Just one more thing, Delana Flowers was saying, before our goodbyes. She had been discussing her return to Dinah: A musical revue, as Dinah Washington, who declared herself the Queen of the Blues and had a remarkable… Read More ›
Pittsburgh Playwrights Tees Up 2024 with ‘Dinah,’ August Wilson’s ‘Radio Golf’ and More
Pittsburgh Playwrights Theater Company settles into its Madison Arts Center home this year, starting in April with the biomusical Dinah and the return to the August Wilson House backyard stage, with Radio Golf. The season, with no specific dates at… Read More ›
The Best of Pittsburgh Theater 2023
By SHARON EBERSON So much Pittsburgh theater, so little time is among my top picks for the subtitle of my theater-going life. A good overall title might be: “There’s No Business Like Covering Show Business.” Combine those two, and you… Read More ›
‘Joe Turner’s Come and Gone’ Is on the Way to the August Wilson House
Pittsburgh Playwright Theatre Company’s Annual Dive Into Wilson’s Work Was Playwright’s Favorite By SHARON EBERSON “When I first met August Willson, I said I liked Joe Turner the best of his plays. He nodded and said he did, too.” Playwright… Read More ›
