Reviewed by JESSICA NEU From the moment audiences walk into the Carnegie Stage to attend Off the WALL Productions‘ #UglyCry – Grief Hits Different, they are greeted with a uniquely imm…
Making the Music of the Past Present by Exploring Music of Scotland, Spain, France, Italy, England, the Americas and More By JESSICA NEU Chatham Baroque’s 2023-24 Concert Series, features …
Limited Run Now to August 20th at Carnegie Stage By JESSICA NEU Throughline Theatre Company’s unique production is based on the Living Newspapers productions from the 1930s. President Fra…
By JESSICA NEU It’s the 1950s in New York City. The war is over, the lights are bright, the nights are long, and the bets are big in the classic musical Guys & Dolls. With music by F…
By Jessica Neu Rodgers and Hammerstein’s beloved classic The Sound of Music returns to the Benedum Center as part of the Pittsburgh CLO‘s summer season. The production contains all the…
By Jessica Neu Renowned magician Jimmy Ichihana used to be a math teacher. I am a writer who failed math in high school and took “Physics for Poets” as my science elective in undergrad…
By Jessica Neu The Strand Theater in Zelienople presents Monty Python’s Spamalot – the Especially Silly Revival June 23 – July 2, 2023. This 2005 musical won the Tony Award for Best …
By JESSICA NEU Sarah Ruhl’s play For Peter Pan on Her 70th Birthday does not actually look at the fictional character Peter Pan turning 70. Instead, it follows five siblings as they navi…
By JESSICA NEU Nowadays, it seems that whenever you turn on the TV, open up social media, or read the news; you are apt to find more negativity or bad news than good news. In these times, we…
By Jessica Neu Before Jonathan wrote Tick, Tick…Boom and Rent, and before Lin-Manuel Miranda gave us In the Heights and Hamilton, there was Stephen Sondheim. Hailing from the era of…
By JESSICA NEU Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of seeing Norm Lewis at the Trust Cabaret, where he performed the Johnny Mathis version of the song “Misty.” Yesterday, backed by a 3…
By JESSICA NEU “Oh What A Show!” Classic Music and Raw Talent Highlight PMT’s Production of Jersey Boys I have had the pleasure of attending several of Pittsburgh Musical Theater…
By JESSICA NEU The 2016 musical, Dear Evan Hansen, tells the story of Evan Hansen, a teenage boy with debilitating social anxiety disorder who desperately wants to be found. Evan Hansen…
By Jessica Neu With movie remakes, classic TV reboots, and fashion trends, nostalgic content is becoming popular and profitable across mediums. The Broadway musical industry has also capital…
By JESSICA NEU Riverfront Theater Company has opened its 2023 season with Sam Shepard’s American classic about the combustible reunion of two estranged brothers, the dark comedy True West.…
By JESSICA NEU I would have loved to have been at the first table reading for Once. As I imagine it, the cast and crew are gathered around and read the description of the first scene: “S…
By JESSICA NEU Driving down to Liberty Magic to see Noah Sonie in Trust No One, I listened to Peter Gabriel’s music as he had announced his North American tour earlier that day. In his 197…
by JESSICA NEU “Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice.” Say his name three times in a row, and the deceased yet paradoxically demonic yet kind-hearted man will come alive and visible for…
Reviewed by JESSICA NEU “Think back to a time in your life when you felt extreme gratitude. Now let your spirit sink into that feeling. Feel it through your body. Remember how you were bre…
By Jessica Neu A sold-out crowd of “ladies, gentlemen, and those who have yet to make up their minds” converged on Irwin’s The Lamp Theater to see Split Stage’s production of Kinky …
By Jessica Neu As conductor Moon Doh takes the stage with a Harry Potter wand in hand, you get the feeling that something, dare I say…magical is about to occur. Doh introduces the evening…
Robin McGee’s performance is nothing short of stunning. She does not play Fannie; she becomes Fannie. By Jessica Neu Historical narratives surrounding African American injustice and equali…
Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s Liberty Magic features Steve Valentine through January 20th, 2023. By Jessica Neu The word “magic” is used colloquially quite often. There’s holiday magic…
Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s PNC Broadwai in Pittsburgh presentation of Hairspray is at the Benedum Center this week through January 8th. By Jessica Neu Adapted from the 1988 film of the sa…
By Jessica Neu The Cultural Trust’s Benedum Center comes alive this weekend with Las Vegas Production’s Holiday Dreams: A Spectacular Holiday Cirque! This high-energy holiday show combin…