Theater & Arts category, Page 29
Former Palace Theatre owner still loves Greensburg’s grand dameVideo
Judy Marinelli couldn’t help getting a little emotional at Thursday night’s show at The Palace Theatre in downtown Greensburg. Nostalgia was already in the air, as Cornell Gunter’s Coasters, the Drifters and the Platters performed favorites from the 1950s and ’60s. Marinelli’s thoughts invariably turned to her late husband, Carl....
‘The Nutcracker’ continues to be magical in Pittsburgh, Greensburg
Although “The Nutcracker” is perfect family Christmas entertainment, surprisingly it was not a hit when it was first performed in Russia in 1892. But when it did finally catch on more than 50 years ago, it quickly became a ubiquitous part of the holiday season. It’s now the most frequently...
Vandergrift’s Casino Theatre hosts annual holiday extravaganza
Get in the holiday spirit at “Hometown Christmas 2019: Counting Down to Christmas.” This 24th annual event will feature songs that exude happy feelings this time of the year. There are three performances at the Casino Theatre in Vandergrift. Shows are at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 6-7 and 2 p.m. Dec....
Review: ‘School Girls’ tackles universal themes of racism, body image
I was born and brought up in Pakistan, a country that I suppose is known to the world as very traditional and, in some ways, rigid. But as I spent a week in Pittsburgh as a visiting reporter, I saw how things are no different here: Thousands of miles away...
New ‘Night Before Christmas’ takes familiar story on fresh journey
The phrase “Twas the Night Before Christmas” is as much a part of the holiday lexicon as Santa’s “Ho ho ho!” From the Clement Moore poem (actually titled “A Visit From St. Nicholas”) to the oft-sung song to animated and live-action movies, it’s a refrain embedded into our Christmas psyches....
Seton Hill student choreographers promise thought-provoking dances
TaMara Swank, assistant professor of dance at Seton Hill University, knows what a valuable experience it is for dance students to create an original dance piece from concept to completion. “A goal for the student choreographers is to challenge themselves to stay true to their concept or idea during the...
Tale of the March sisters comes alive in song in latest Geyer production
A favorite classic novel comes to life in a production of “Little Women the Musical” being staged Nov. 21-24 at Geyer Performing Arts Center in Scottdale. The musical directed by Jill Jassmann-Sharlock of Acme focuses on the book’s four March sisters and their mother, Marmee, living in Concord, Mass., while...
Beloved ‘Les Miserables’ comes back to PittsburghVideo
Cameron Mackintosh’s epic musical “Les Miserables” is one of those special productions that tend to draw massive crowds wherever they go. The national tour that last came through Pittsburgh in 2013 featured a remastered 25th anniversary edition with new staging — minus the traditional iconic turntable revolving stage — and...
Alumni ‘come home’ for Stage Right’s production of ‘Newsies’
Stage Right’s upcoming musical at the Palace Theatre is going to be “big news” with its cast of nearly 100 actors representing the Greensburg theater company’s current students, alums and professionals. “Disney’s Newsies,” the Broadway musical that debuted in 2012 and played for more than 1,000 performances in NYC, will...
Utah school from ‘High School Musical’ may get tourist boost
SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah high school where the Disney movie “High School Musical” was filmed over a decade ago has become a tourist destination, and the trend could grow with the premiere of Disney’s new streaming service series based on the film. Much of the popular 2006 movie...
Hit the mean streets with ‘A Bronx Tale’ playing in the Benedum Center
The Broadway musical “A Bronx Tale” has been compared to a “Jersey Boys” meets “West Side Story” kind of show: “Jersey Boys” for its rich musical score of doo-wop music and “West Side Story” for its drama and grittiness. It’s not a traditional love story, but it does focus on...
Pitt-Greensburg thespians present a satirical take on Chekhov
The Pitt-Greensburg Theatre Company is gearing up for its fall production, the comedy-drama “Chekhov in Yalta,” written by John Driver and Jeffrey Haddow. Curtain times are 7:30 p.m. Nov. 14-16 and 2 p.m. Nov. 17 in Ferguson Theater on the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg campus. Eleven students will perform...
Quantum Theatre presents ‘Shakespeare’s Will’ in a Homestead churchVideo
The pool of water inside the church is enticing. It’s a different kind of prop used for this play – “Shakespeare’s Will.” But then again it’s Quantum Theatre, which mounts productions in unusual spaces with non-traditional sets. Quantum Theatre founder and director Karla Boos has transformed West Homestead United Methodist...
Riverfront Theater Company takes comedic look at sibling rivalry
Riverfront Theater Company is gearing up for its 2020 season by treating audiences to a special production of Christopher Durang’s comedy, “Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike,” for two weekends in November. The comedy, which won the 2013 Tony Award for Best Play, is being presented Nov. 7-9 and...
‘Leading Ladies’ promises ‘simply hilarious’ experience at Geyer PAC
Director Shawn Conway said no moment is left un-mined for comedic value in Actors and Artists of Fayette County’s upcoming production of “Leading Ladies.” Playwright Ken Ludwig, who also wrote two other comedies familiar to theater companies – “Lend Me a Tenor” and “Moon Over Buffalo” – has set “Leading...
Pittsburgh Opera journeys to the ‘magical realism’ of the Amazon
Popularity is the rarest of accomplishments for contemporary opera, but Mexican composer Daniel Catán achieved it when he wrote “Florencia en el Amazonas.” It has been performed successfully around the world, and has elicited enthusiastic praise from performers, audiences and even critics since its premiere in 1996 at Houston Grand...
Leslie Odom Jr. performs at The Pittsburgh Promise GalaVideo
Joshua Devine, Abigail Lutton, Vanessa Thompson and Michael Warren might never have gone to college if it weren’t for The Pittsburgh Promise. Warren, a Pittsburgh CAPA graduate, received a bachelor of science in music education and a master of education administration K-12 from Duquesne University. He is currently pursuing a...
Carnegie Mellon University lauded for its connection to the Tony AwardsVideo
When a Broadway actor wins a Tony Award, he or she often thanks a teacher, that one person who was an inspiration for the winner’s passion for the theater. That’s what the two women who plan the annual Tony Awards shared with a group of Carnegie Mellon University students on...
Penn-Trafford Drama Guild courts cynical politics with ‘The Mouse That Roared’Video
A tiny, fictitious European-ish nation starts a phony war with the United States — in the hopes that they can immediately surrender and the Americans will pay to rebuild their country and economy. That might sound a bit political for a high school play, but it’s nothing new for the...
Prime Stage Theatre opens season with ‘The Scarlet Letter’
“The Scarlet Letter” opens the Prime Stage Theatre’s 23rd consecutive season. The new, commissioned stage adaptation features Nathaniel Hawthorne, the book’s author, as an onstage character. Performances will be held at the New Hazlett Theater Center for the Performing Arts in Pittsburgh. Liam Macik, a Mt. Lebanon High School graduate,...
Take a journey with ODC/Dance’s ‘Path of Miracles’
Experiencing a work of the performing arts — a play, a ballet or a symphony — is often described as a journey. That’s because, as it unfolds over time, the route to a destination may be at least as important as the destination. Take a piece of a piece of...
Haunting tale opens PICT Classic Theatre’s new season
PICT Classic Theatre general operations manager Catherine Kolos says the upcoming stage production of “The Woman in Black” is “unlike anything we have ever done.” “It’s going to be a really intriguing show,” she says. And be warned. “Our goal is to scare the pants off of people,” she says....
Stage Right presents annual ‘Rocky Horror Show’ with a groovy twistVideo
To baby boomers, this year’s edition of Stage Right’s “The Rocky Horror Show” will be a psychedelic trip down memory lane to the days of peace signs, tie-dye shirts and the “Summer of Love.” Stage Right Artistic Director Tony Marino says it’s easy to see how “The Rocky Horror Show”...
So fetch — ‘Mean Girls’ takes over Benedum CenterVideo
It’s been 15 years since writer and comedian Tina Fey’s heartfelt and funny movie “Mean Girls” first shined a light on the mistreatment of teenage girls by their peers. The success of her Broadway musical of the same name, with music by her composer husband Jeff Richmond and lyrics by...
‘Chicago’ brings corruption, conniving and ‘All That Jazz’ to Seton Hill stage
Good things are worth the wait, especially if the “good thing” is the opportunity to bring one of the longest-running stage shows in Broadway history to Seton Hill University. It took three tries for Denise Pullen, associate professor of theater at Seton Hill, to secure the rights to produce the...
