Shirley McMarlin stories, Page 10
Final curtain falls on Westmoreland Night of the Stars musical showcase
The final curtain has fallen on Westmoreland Night of the Stars — unless someone steps up to take over running the annual two-night showcase of area school musicals. In 2019, founder John Noble announced his intention to turn the production over to his daughter, Elly Carr of Irwin, a theater...
5 things to do in Westmoreland County this weekend: Feb. 17-19
Student artists Artists of the 21st Century, the annual exhibit of work by students in Westmoreland and Fayette counties, opens Friday at the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Ligonier Valley, Route 711 and Boucher Lane, Ligonier Township. Held in conjunction with National Youth Art Month, the exhibit is open...
Pittsburgh Ballet plans 2023-24 season of celebration, community
The key word for Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s 2023-24 season is “celebration.” “This season we’ll be celebrating PBT’s history, where we’ve been, and our future, where we’re going,” said acting executive director Kathryn Gigler. “We’re also welcoming a new artistic director, who has an incredible vision for PBT as a place...
Tickets going fast for The Westmoreland’s jazz series concertsVideo
Tickets went fast for the first date in the Winter and Spring Jazz Concert Series at The Westmoreland Museum of American Art. Events manager Darrah Resnick expects the remaining three shows to sell out just as quickly. “It’s probably good to get tickets now,” she said. Sam Brooks, a Pittsburgh-based...
Behind the Art: 12 area painters reinterpret Vincent van Gogh’s ‘Irises’
A painting in a student art show at Greater Latrobe Senior High School gave artist Doreen Currie an idea for an oil- painting class she was teaching at Greensburg Art Center. A group of students had worked together on a piece that reinterpreted Henri Matisse’s 1912 work “The Goldfish.” “I thought,...
Out & About: Greensburg artist presents Black History Month exhibit
Greensburg artist Pamela Cooper said she was fascinated by bridges when she was a child. “When we traveled, I loved going over them,” she said. That fascination continued into adulthood, when bridges became the subject of a painting series. One of the bridges was among works Cooper exhibited during a...
Ex-Steelers tight end Vance McDonald’s Ligonier-area retreat lists for $5.5 millionVideo
When former Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Vance McDonald and his wife, Kendi, were hunting for a place to live and also to serve visitors as a spiritual retreat, they thought they’d found a little piece of heaven on earth in Ligonier Township. “Kendi and I are both Christians, and we...
5 things to do in Westmoreland County: Feb. 10-12
More sculpture “More Is More,” a juried exhibit of the Pittsburgh Society of Sculptors, is showing through March 10 in the Harlan Gallery in the Seton Hill University Art Center, 201 W. Otterman St., Greensburg. Featured pieces include floor and wall artwork, installations and works on pedestal, with a variety...
Westmoreland Symphony’s ‘Scottish Fantasy’ promises romantic date nightVideo
Westmoreland Symphony Orchestra’s “Scottish Fantasy” would make for a great date night, promises artistic director Daniel Meyer. Meyer will conduct as the orchestra takes the stage at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at The Palace Theatre in Greensburg. “I conceived this program as a preamble to Valentine’s Day,” Meyer said. “It’s all...
Greensburg Civic Theatre’s ‘Sweeney Todd’ plumbs depths of human psyche
Greensburg Civic Theatre will present the macabre tale of the demon barber of Fleet Street this weekend at the Greensburg Garden & Civic Center, 951 Old Salem Road. Curtain times for “Sweeney Todd” will be at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. The Stephen Sondheim musical is...
Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor seeking new executive director
The Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor is seeking candidates to fill the position of executive director, overseeing its 200-mile heritage corridor and the Lincoln Highway Experience museum in Unity. The search is made necessary by the resignation of Executive Director Lauren Koker. “While I love the work I do for the...
Daycation: Things quiet down in winter in Ohiopyle
The streets of Ohiopyle bustle with visitors during the warm months, as people flock to the Fayette County community for its recreational opportunities, scenic views and dining options. In the winter, it’s a different story. Many days, there’s hardly a soul to be seen along Main Street in the tiny...
Out & About: Westmoreland County prayer breakfast stresses core values
“Love, Listen, Learn and Lead” was the theme of the Westmoreland County Chamber Annual Prayer Breakfast, held Jan. 27 at Ferrante’s Lakeview in Hempfield. Those values were separately explored in a series of spiritual readings. “Love” was covered by Heather McLean, outreach coordinator for Mental Health America of Southwestern PA;...
5 things to do in Westmoreland County: Feb. 3-5
Limbs and rectangles “Fleshy Limb Filled Rectangles,” an exhibition by Kenneth Nicholson, will open Saturday at StopWatch Gallery & Studio, 323 S. Main St., Greensburg. Hours are noon to 5 p.m. The show features oil paintings and drawings of figures and portraits, which the artist says are “aggressively disassembled and...
‘Kinky Boots’ at Irwin’s Lamp Theatre spreads message of acceptance
It wasn’t in the plan for Split Stage Productions to do the musical “Kinky Boots” this season. But when the opportunity arose, it was too good to pass up. “We were actually very, very fortunate to get the rights, and it was almost accidental how it happened,” said Split Stage...
YWCA Westmoreland opens Black History Month programs with art show
The YWCA Westmoreland County will begin its Black History Month programming Saturday, with the opening of an exhibit of work by Greensburg artist Pamela Cooper. The featured drawings, paintings and sculptures are a survey of her life as an artist and as a Black woman, Cooper said. “They reflect work...
Saint Vincent art center hosts retrospective of monk’s sacred artwork
In his artwork, the Rev. Vincent de Paul Crosby is inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement, which championed handicrafts and natural elements in response to the mass-production push of the Industrial Revolution. Still, he’s not above using a computer in the creation of his designs. A member of the...
Green comet makes closest approach to Earth in 50K years
The so-called green comet will make its closest approach to Earth in about 50,000 years late Wednesday/early Thursday, but whether you’ll see it in the skies above Western Pennsylvania is debatable. “Unfortunately, we’re going to have increasing cloudiness overnight,” said Lee Hendricks, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in...
Photography exhibit reveals ‘Jeannette Unvarnished’
When Beth Yadamec worked at the Jeannette Public Library, she sometimes arrived early to spend a little time walking through the streets — and the alleys — of the city. “There are cameras all over Jeannette, and I have purple hair, and I often wondered if people glanced up and...
Pittsburgh Ballet’s new artistic director returning to familiar spaces
Adam McKinney will take over as artistic director of Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre in March, but he says there are many ways in which he already feels at home in the role and in the city. McKinney, 46, grew up in Milwaukee but often visited Pittsburgh, where his late father, Gerald...
Out & About: The Westmoreland’s Vintage Ball is good, old-fashioned fun
Sometimes you just want to have a little, old-fashioned fun. The Westmoreland Museum of American Art provided just the ticket, packing decades of enjoyment into one night at its Jan. 21 Vintage Ball. Everything old felt new again, as guests flocked to the sold-out soiree looking like they’d stepped out...
Greensburg Zion’s Evangelical Lutheran Church sewing group clothes girls in hope
Calling someone a “so-and-so” is not a compliment, but change the spelling to “Sew ’n Sew,” and the term takes on a new — and positive — meaning. It’s the name adopted by a group of women who meet monthly at Zion’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Greensburg. At home and...
Out & About: Fort Ligonier hosts local scoop on ‘Pale Blue Eye’ filming
About 150 guests heard the inside scoop about local filming of the Netflix historical thriller “The Pale Blue Eye” prior to a Jan. 19 screening at Fort Ligonier. The blacksmith shop at nearby Compass Inn Museum in Laughlintown was transformed into an 1830s tavern for a scene between actors Christian...
Out & About: Success stories shared at Westmoreland Community Action meeting
Two young men shared very different stories of success during the Westmoreland Community Action annual board meeting and luncheon. JT, 19, of Greensburg told how he received help in finding housing through WCA’s Transitional Age Living Program. He, his mother and two siblings became homeless on the day of his...
Out & About: Elements inspire Greensburg Art Center members’ work
Awards judge Lisa Rasmussen took an extra step to familiarize herself with the works submitted to “Earth Wind & Fire,” the new members exhibition at Greensburg Art Center. She supervised the placement of the 96 pieces on the gallery walls. Her picks were announced by center President Jerry Scorpion during...
