There likely will be changes ahead for Quantum Theatre, when Katie Brook takes the helm as Artistic Director, but one thing that won’t change: “It’s safe to say that we’re going to continue to work in unusual spaces,” Brook said: “That’s part of Quantum’s identity, and it’s one of genuinely the most explicit expressions of the values of nontraditional theater.”
Quantum Theatre will movie into the future with director, producer, and educator Katie Brook as its new Artistic Director, beginning January 1, 2027. Brook succeeds founder and Artistic Director Karla Boos, who has led Quantum for 36 years.
onSTAGE PITTSBURGH CALL BOARD as summer 2026 comes to a close: With news about Kelly Strayhorn Theater’s fall 2026 schedule; Prime Stage rethinking program model at 30; and a welcome summer trend: sold out shows.
“THE TEMPEST” DELIVERS QUANTUM MAGIC TO CARRIE FURNACES
An event delayed, and delayed, and delayed again serves to build anticipation, so it was with an exhale of relief and exhilaration that Quantum Theatre was able to realize Karla Boos’ magical vision for The Tempest at Carrie Blast Furnaces.
Quantum Theatre has announced its 2026-2027 season, a three-production lineup including a world premiere, exploring “haunting returns, unexpected reckonings, and bold new beginnings,” while continuing the company’s long-running tradition of staging performances in unconventional spaces throughout Pittsburgh. The season also marks… Read More ›
Theater is an art form that continues to expand humanity’s understanding of reality through many different formats. We’ve seen the changes that theater has gone through and continues to do so, adapting to encapsulate the reality of modern times and tell stories that grab attention and bring us, the audience, into the world. Quantum Theatre’s production of 10 Out of 12 does exactly this. A meta script brought to life through immersive blocking, mixed with sound design that makes the audience feel that they’re in the booth, 10 Out of 12 is a masterclass in what theater today can be.
10 Out of 12 — the working and break hours in a day prescribed by union rules — celebrates the unsung behind-the-scenes heroes who make sure the magic happens. It’s also a time when mundane, often funny conversations flow through headphones, bored or boorish actors stir up trouble, along with the emergence of old wounds and outside distractions.
Disruptions abound, with those 10 hours proving to be necessary if ever the doors will open on opening night, as they did on Friday, April 3, for Quantum Theatre’s production of Anne Washburn’s laugh-out-loud and often maddening play, now at Mellon Institute.
Having the audience wear headphones and be in on every conversation worked beautifully, judging by the laughter all around me. Simple instructions at the entry were all we needed to be in on the unseen action.
In Quantum Theatre’s “10 Out of 12,” the audience is privy to what goes on onstage, behind the scenes and in the booth during the technical rehearsal for the play with the play.
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.
An effervescent brew of curiosity and creativity personified, Karla Boos is a risk-taker in the risky business of theater. For 35 years, the founder and artistic director of Quantum Theatre has been a driving force of originality for the region’s arts scene. Boos will be relinquishing her role at the end of 2026, after arriving in 1990 with Pedro Paramo, an anticipated one-off project, based on the short novel by Mexican author Juan Rulfo.
Oh, the places she would go, and take adventurous theaters along for the ride.
