Pittsburgh Playhouse Announces 2022-23 Season

The award-winning Pittsburgh Playhouse at Point Park University, a multidisciplinary arts and entertainment center located in Downtown Pittsburgh, announced the lineup for their Inside/Outside Summer Series as well as over 30 performances across a multitude of arts disciplines for the 2022-2023 season.

Single tickets and choose-your-own packages are on sale now for Inside/Outside, downtown's most original and eclectic performance series featuring hometown entertainers including MCG Jazz, Chatham Baroque, 1Hood Media, the Pillow Project, Shanna Simmons Dance, and slowdanger. Subscriptions are on sale now for the 2022-2023 Conservatory and Presenting Series.

Pittsburgh Playhouse celebrates Sondheim, Rogers and Hammerstein and more

Home to Point Park University's Conservatory of Performing Arts (COPA), part of the Playhouse promise is to function as a laboratory for these young professionals in Cinema, Dance, and Theatre. The Conservatory Dance Company will present six dance concerts throughout the academic year, producing world-class programming that spans from legendary historic choreographers, the most compelling choreographers working today, to the cutting-edge talent of the students' original choreography. COPA Theatre will present a dazzling array of six full theatrical productions through the year. Onstage at the Playhouse you can see Sondheim on Sondheim, Kentucky by Leah Nanako Winkler, Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, Disney's Newsies, Men on Boats by Jaclyn Backhaus, and Sense and Sensibility by Kate Hamill. See the stars of tomorrow onstage today across the twelve offerings of COPA Dance and Theatre across the year.

2nd Season of Playhouse Presents Boasts Kinetic and Original Performances from Across the Globe

This season also launches the second year of Playhouse Presents, bringing some of the most extraordinary professional performing artists from across the globe to Pittsburgh. This year, the Playhouse Presents "Shaping the Arts: Black Femme Artists and Creators" will center the incredible work of these creative trailblazers, unite our diverse performance community, and proactively heal while delivering a message of unity and creativity. Some highlights include Urban Bush Women's Hair & Other Stories, a dance-theater work that explores race, identity, and ideas of beauty through the lens of Black women's hair; powerhouse drummer Terri Lyne Carrington; and the long-anticipated production of Parable of the Sower, Toshi Reagon's congregational opera that recreates Octavia Butler's sci-fi, Afrofuturist masterpiece of the same name live onstage.

If that's not enough, the Playhouse will continue to host National Theatre Live, an initiative operated by the Royal National Theatre in London, which broadcasts live via satellite performances to cinemas and arts centers around the world. Finally, the Playhouse will be the new Pittsburgh home of the National

Geographic Live Speaker Series featuring Explorers Bryan Smith, Ami Vitale, and Alicia Odewale. National Geographic Live's touring speaker series brings to life the awe-inspiring stories of National Geographic Explorers, where they share their behind-the-scenes stories from the front lines of exploration alongside stunning imagery and gripping footage. Smith and Vitale are presented in partnership with Point Park University's Center for Media Innovation. In addition, the Media Innovators Speaker Series will feature international activist and pop star Mai Khoi-"the Lady Gaga of Vietnam-in her original show Bad Activist this September and Wall Street Journal columnist Jason Riley.

Subscriptions are on sale now - choose your own mix of four, six, or more tickets, or choose from our All-Access Pass, our Playhouse Theatre package, and Playhouse Dance. Subscribers receive many benefits including advance notice of newly added Playhouse events, flexibility and free ticket exchanges, complimentary drinks, and more. Subscribe now to receive the lowest price. For more information, visit www.pittsburghplayhouse.com or subscribe to our email list.

Inside/Outside Summer Concert Series

MCG Jazz presents Hugo Cruz Latin Dance Party

Saturday, June 18, 2022, 4 p.m.

Hugo Alexander Cruz Machado is a Cuban-born, award-winning, internationally renowned drummer and composer who has performed in South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Mexico, Venezuela, and the United States. He is the leader of the group Caminos, who have made appearances at the Pittsburgh International Jazz Festival 2019, Fábrica de Artes in Havana, Highmark First Night Pittsburgh 2020, Pittonkatonk Festival, City of Asylum, The Frick Museum, Musicalidades, Market Square, and Con Alma. The Caminos fuse rhythms and melodies of Afro-Cuban, Cuban, and American music in an original contemporary expression that honors traditional Cuban form.

Shana Simmons Dance presents HYBRID

Wednesday, June 22, 2022, 6 p.m.

HYBRID is a mixed repertory of contemporary dance, traditional kathak dance, and live music. Featuring Naina Roychowdhury Green (Kathak dancer), Jeff Berman (musician), and Shana Simmons Dance (SSD) company collaborators, this interactive performance will engage you through rhythmic demonstrations, contemporary improvisations, and lighthearted SSD repertory. "Simmons' level of choreographic sophistication is what sets her apart from other dance-makers of her generation," according to Adrienne Barr Totino. Green's unique style of Lucknow and Jaipur schools of Kathak "evokes a soft and subtle restraint combined with sharp lines, percussive footwork, and evocatively emotional storytelling." Berman will join SSD playing the unique sounds of the Udu drum and Dulcimer (a fretted string instrument), to bring the melody of hands-on clay and the rhythm of fingers on strings to the mix. A blend of live music, percussive dancing/speaking, and energetic dance, come engage your senses and see a blend of cultural backgrounds through dance and music!

Chatham Baroque presents The Three Violins

Wednesday, June 22, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

Boasting three virtuoso violinists with three distinct yet complementary musical personalities, Chatham Baroque dives into the rarely performed repertoire of Baroque music for three violins and continuo. Hear the music of Marini, Fontana, Schmelzer, and Purcell, as well as duos for the unusual combination of theorbo and tiorbino by Castaldi. Stealing the show is one of the most famous Baroque pieces of all time: Johann Pachelbel's Canon in D. The concert features Andrew Fouts, Evan Few, and Edwin Huizinga (violins); Patricia Halverson (viola da gamba, violone); Scott Pauley and Joshua Stauffer (theorbo, archlute, tiorbino, baroque guitar).

MCG Jazz presents Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra

Thursday, June 23, 2022, 4:30 p.m.

The Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra celebrates Pittsburgh's rich jazz history in the here and now by uniting Pittsburgh jazz musicians of all ages and ethnic backgrounds to perform the broad scope jazz styles in an orchestral format. Central to the Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra's mission is the creation of new works that advance the genre. For this performance, Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra's 10-piece configuration includes full rhythm section and six horns. This summer performance will celebrate the unique orchestrations specifically written for this band and its acclaimed players.

1Hood Media; programming

details TBD.

Friday, June 24, 2022, 6 p.m.

slowdanger presents Resonant Body

Wednesday, June 29, 2022, 6 p.m.

slowdanger's co-artistic directors taylor knight (they/he) and anna thompson (they/them) re-examine ocular-centricity in dance performance in Resonant Body, a duet performance and extended research-based project. Theorizing that every movement we make, in some form, is sound, Resonant Body examines how our impact resonates physically in space through sonic memory. Research includes impacting the body against structures such as thunder sheets and utilizing technology to record, loop and amplify the sonic remnants of the body's impact within space, and is furthered by continually questioning how we define sustainability and resilience within capitalist mechanization.

MCG Jazz presents Lucas Ashby Brazilian Jazz

featuring Rose Moraes

Thursday, June 30, 2022, 4:30 p.m.

You will be dancing at your seats and in the aisles when singer, poet Rose Moraes brings the soul of Brazilian Music to Pittsburgh. Joined by Brazilian-American multi-instrumentalist and composer, Lucas Ashby. Ashby's musical resume stretches back to his early childhood being born into a family of internationally touring musicians. In addition to Ashby and Moraes, there will be Tony DePaolis on bass and Rob Curto on accordion and piano.

Chatham Baroque presents Alchemy for Three

Friday, July 1, 2022, 4:30 p.m.

Chatham Baroque showcases the collective synergy, sparkle, and spirit of its artistic directors as they share some of their favorite Baroque music. Join us for a Baroque jam session on popular tunes, dances, and sonatas of the 17th and 18th centuries. Includes music of Corelli, J.S. Bach, Schmelzer, Matteis and others. The concert features Andrew Fouts (violin), Patricia Halverson (viola da gamba), and Scott Pauley (theorbo & baroque guitar).

The Pillow Project x Fourth River presents The Space Upstairs in A Space Outside

Wednesday, July 6, 2022, 6 p.m.

Jazz, for us, is a verb. The Pillow Project - under the direction of Pearlann Porter & John Lambert - is a dance company (est. 2004) for the creation of improvisational, multidisciplinary ideas engaging a 'postmodern-jazz' movement philosophy. Their focus is the investigation of sincere intimacy, characterized by spontaneous perception expressed with deliberate intent to 'physicalize the music' much as a jazz musician articulates their moment in sound. In live-collaboration with the jazz musicians of Fourth River (John Shannon - guitar, Jeff Grubbs - bass, David Throckmorton - drums), The Pillow Project takes their signature monthly jazz-happenings that have been a Pittsburgh institution at The Space Upstairs since 2007 and takes them Downtown and outside for this one-of-a-kind event!

MCG Jazz presents Cindy Bradley

Thursday, July 7, 2022, 4:30 p.m.

Cindy Bradley is a charismatic presence with eight #1 Billboard singles along the way. Cindy has performed everywhere from the Seabreeze Jazz Festival, to the Dubai Jazz Fest. She won Best New Artist at the American Smooth Jazz Awards, Brass Player of the Year and Best New Artist at the Contemporary Jazz Awards, and was named Debut Artist of the Year by the Catalina Island Jazz Trax Festival and Smooth Jazz News.

Chatham Baroque presents Mediterranean Odyssey

Friday, July 8, 2022, 4:30 p.m.

Chatham Baroque joins forces with percussionist extraordinaire, Daniel Mallon, for a summer evening of Baroque favorites from Spain, France, and Italy. Chatham Baroque uncovers Mediterranean musical treasures, including sultry Spanish dances, suave French suites by Marin Marais, and fiery Italian sonatas by Vivaldi. Featuring Andrew Fouts (violin), Patricia Halverson (viola da gamba), Scott Pauley (theorbo & baroque guitar), Daniel Mallon (percussion).

MCG Jazz presents Bob Baldwin

Thursday, July 14, 4:30 p.m.

Bob Baldwin is an American (New York state) born contemporary jazz pianist, music composer, author, producer and radio host of the NewUrbanJazz Lounge. He's also a music industry consultant and strategist. Baldwin learned music from his father, Robert Baldwin Sr. Baldwin's recording career started in 1983 and his debut album, A Long Way to Go, was released in 1988. His latest release is Bob Baldwin Presents Abbey Road and the Beatles.

1Hood Media; programming

Details TBD

Friday, July 15, 2022, 6 p.m.

MCG Jazz presents Paul Cosentino's Boilermaker Jazz Band

Thursday, July 21, 4:30 p.m.

Paul Cosentino's Boilermaker Jazz Band has been performing their unique style of classic jazz and swing for over 30 years. They have toured the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Asia. You will hear familiar tune and rarities performed by superb instrumentalists and heartfelt vocalists as the band interprets jazz classics and the Grant American Songbook in their unique fashion. Join in on the party and bring your Swing Dancing shoes because the Boilermaker Jazz Band can make any crowd move with their infectious beat and enthusiasm.

1Hood Media; programming

details TBD

Friday, July 22, 2022, 6 p.m.

MCG Jazz presents James Johnson III

Featuring Carolyn Perteete

Thursday, July 28, 4:30 p.m.

Master Pittsburgh drummer brings his all-star group to the Playhouse with special guest Carolyn Perteete. Johnson adapts comfortably to a variety of genres. He began his musical journey playing drums at five years old. His father, Dr. James Johnson Jr., a well-known pianist and educator, sparked his passion for music. Later mentored by the great Roger Humphries, this laid the foundation for a stellar career including performing as a regularity Jazz Master Ahmad Jamal. Johnson's collaborator for this performance and in life, vocalist Carolyn Perteete, will perform new music released over the past two years.

Playhouse Presents: The Artists Series

Urban Bush Women's Hair and Other Stories

Friday, September 9 - Saturday, September 10, 7 p.m.

Hair & Other Stories is a dance-theater work that explores race, identity, and ideas of beauty through the lens of Black women's hair. It reflects on what constitutes freedom, liberation, and release in our everyday struggles to rise to our Extra-ordinary Selves in extraordinary times. This is the urgent dialogue of the 21st Century. Hair & Other Stories is an experience for nontraditional spaces, where performers and audience may connect and interact with one another.

The Peking Acrobats

Wednesday, October 12, 2022, 7 p.m.

For the last 31 years, The Peking Acrobats have redefined audience perceptions of Chinese acrobatics. They perform daring maneuvers atop a precarious pagoda of chairs and display their technical prowess at such arts as trick-cycling, precision tumbling, juggling, somersaulting, and gymnastics. They push the limits of human ability, defying gravity with amazing displays of contortion, flexibility, and control. The Peking Acrobats are often accompanied by live musicians who skillfully play traditional Chinese instruments; the time-honored Chinese music coalesces with high-tech special effects and awe-inspiring acrobatic feats, creating an exuberant entertainment event with the festive pageantry of a Chinese Carnival.

National Geographic Live Speaker Series. Alicia Odewale-Greenwood: A Century of Resilience. Wednesday

October 21, 2022, 7 p.m.

A native of Tulsa, Oklahoma, archaeologist Alicia Odewale is uncovering stories of resilience in the hundred years since the attack on Black Wall Street in the city's historic Greenwood district. Considered one of the worst episodes of racial violence committed against Black people in American history, the Tulsa Race Massacre left a devastating toll on generations of survivors and their descendants and impacted the very footprint of the district itself. Join her to discover how archaeology and radical mapping can be used as a tool for recovering lost stories, reclaiming a narrative, and pursuing restorative justice.

Dallas Black Dance Theatre

Saturday, November 12-Sunday, November 12, 2022.

More programming details to follow.

Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra Holiday Concert co-produced with MCG Jazz

Wednesday, December 21, 2022, 7 p.m.

When the Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra formed in 2010, it was decided a Holiday show would be a programming must. Now, the Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra Holiday Celebration has become a tradition for families all over the Greater Pittsburgh region as a way to take a break from the busy prep of the Season. For this performance, the musicians of the Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra render a new treatment on Holiday classics and turn the Holiday Season into a unique celebration of wonder, bliss, and merriment the whole family will enjoy.

Machine de Cirque's La Galerie

Tuesday, January 24, 2023, 7 p.m.

Seven zany acrobats and one electrifying musician take in a monochrome exhibit. With a creative spark, they set off an explosion of color - and a lot of popcorn. In mocking defiance of convention, these wacky and endearing characters eagerly explore the exhibition inside out. Dizzying feats, astonishing discoveries, poetic liberties, and a serious dose of silly good fun come together to fuel this ode to creativity. ART WINS! This 75-minute performance, great for all ages, features breathtaking Russian bar, teeterboard, hand-to-hand, juggling, and high-flying acrobatic acts. Premiered at the Montreal Cirque Festival in 2019, La Galerie has toured throughout Europe with a season in the 2019 Edinburgh Fringe.

Toshi Reagon's Parable of the Sower. Thursday, March 9, 2023-Sunday, March 12, 2023

Parable of the Sower is a triumphant, mesmerizing work of rare power and beauty that illuminates deep insights on gender, race, and the future of human civilization. This fully staged congregational opera brings together over 30 original anthems drawn from 200 years of black music to recreate Octavia Butler's sci-fi, Afrofuturist masterpiece live on stage. With music and lyrics by Toshi Reagon and Bernice Johnson Reagon, this compelling work gives life to Butler's acclaimed science fiction novel of the same name.

Terri Lyne Carrington and Social Science co-produced with MCG Jazz

Saturday, March 18, 2023, 2:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Terri Lyne Carrington's audacious ensemble tackles subjects of racism, homophobia, gender equality, mass incarceration, and police brutality. Championed in her youth by the likes of Art Blakey, Jack DeJohnette and Buddy Rich, Carrington has risen to become a major instrumental and compositional figure, having collaborated with a who's-who of jazz royalty, including long-term associations with Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, and Esperanza Spalding.

MALEVO - the "South American Sensation"

Created by director, choreographer, and dancer Matías Jaime

Thursday, March 23, 2023, 7 p.m.

This thrilling all-male group specializes in Malambo - a traditional Argentine folk dance of great virility and dexterity - and takes it beyond its limits with a modern, avant-garde, and transgressive approach, while still staying true to the cultural foundations of this traditional gaucho artform. MALEVO brings live music and virtuosic dancing to the Contemporary Stage for an exhilarating and engaging show that is perfect for the entire family. After being named an official "Cultural Ambassador to the National Identity of Argentina," and on the tail of numerous successes including events and performances in Las Vegas, New York, Dubai, Paris, Cairo, St Petersburg and Montreal as well as special performances with Latin pop-star Ricky Martin, Cirque du Soleil, a year-long performance season at Universal Studios Osaka, Japan and making it to semi-finalists on the hit TV show America's Got Talent, MALEVO is excited to present a new touring performance created for proscenium theaters of performing arts centers and festivals.

Vuyani Dance Theatre's Cion: Requiem of Ravel's Bolero

Thursday, April 27-Friday, April 28, 2023, 7 p.m.

In this piece, the message of death and its dire consequences are infused through a lament to be able to confront a universe in which the age-old tropes of greed, power and religion have given rise to loss of life not as a natural phenomenon. Cion: Requiem of Ravel's Boléro draws inspiration from creations by two artists: the character Toloki in South African author Zakes Mda's novels Cion and Ways of Dying and music from French composer Maurice Ravel's "Boléro." It's a universal story encompassing the past and the present that champions our ability to band together to share the burden of grief.

Conservatory Theatre

Sondheim on Sondheim

music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim.

October 19, 2022-October 23, 2022

Hailed as a "revelatory revue full of wonderful moments" and a "funny, affectionate and revealing tribute" to one of musical theater's greatest composers, Sondheim on Sondheim is an intimate portrait of the famed songwriter in his own words and music. Through the use of exclusive interview footage, audiences get an inside look at the personal life and artistic process of famed composer, Stephen Sondheim.

Kentucky by Leah Nanako Winkler

November 16, 2022-November 20, 2022

Hiro is a self-made woman making it in New York. But she is also single, almost 30, and estranged from her dysfunctional family who lives in Kentucky. When her little sister, a born-again Christian, decides to marry at 22, Hiro takes it upon herself to do whatever she can to stop the wedding and salvage any shred of hope she had about her sister's future. The themes of identity, religion, and love collide in this unique coming-of-age story.

Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella

December 7, 2022-December 11, 2022

Experience the majesty of the fairy tale happily-ever-after with the Conservatory Theatre.

Disney's Newsies

February 22, 2023- February 26, 2023

Based on the real-life Newsboy Strike of 1899, this musical tells the story of Jack Kelly, a rebellious newsboy who dreams of a life as an artist away from the big city. After publishing giant Joseph Pulitzer raises newspaper prices at the newsboys' expense, Kelly and his fellow newsies take action. With help from the beautiful female reporter Katherine Plumber, all of New York City soon recognizes the power of "the little man."

Men on Boats by Jacklyn Backhaus

March 15, 2023-March 19, 2023

Ten explorers. Four boats. One Grand Canyon. Men on Boats is the true(ish) history of an 1869 expedition, when a one-armed captain and a crew of insane yet loyal volunteers set out to chat the course of the Colorado River.

Sense and Sensibility by Kate Hamill

April 12, 2023-April 16, 2023

A playful new adaptation of Jane Austen's beloved novel follows the fortunes (and misfortunes) of the Dashwood sisters - sensible Elinor and hypersensitive Marianne - after their father's sudden death leaves them financially destitute and socially vulnerable. Set in gossipy late 18th-century England, with a fresh female voice, the play is full of humor, emotional depth, and bold theatricality. SENSE AND SENSIBILITY examines our reactions, both reasonable and ridiculous, to societal pressures. When reputation is everything, how do you follow your heart?

Conservatory Dance

Fall Dance Concert.

October 5, 2022-October 9, 2022

The Conservatory Dance Company presents a concert featuring works by Maud Arnold, LaTasha Barnes, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, and Robyn Mineko Williams.

Fall Student Choreography Project

November 2, 2022-November 6, 2022

See the dancers of tomorrow onstage today. The Student Choreography Project showcases the depth and breadth of talent on display within the Conservatory Dance program, featuring the cutting-edge, fresh work of the top young artists in the country.

Contemporary Choreographers

December 14, 2022-December 18, 2022

The Conservatory Dance Company presents a concert featuring works by Candace Brown, LeeWei Chao, and Staycee Pearl.

Faculty Dance Concert

February 15, 2023- February 19, 2023

This annual concert shines a light on the Point Park Conservatory Dance Faculty and the artistry for which they are renowned.

Spring Student Choreography Project

March 15, 2023-March 19, 2023

The continuation of the Student Choreography Project. New choreographers design the show and new dancers take the stage, demonstrating the strength and versatility of Point Park University's students.

Spring Dance Concert

April 19, 2023-April 23, 2023

The Conservatory Dance Company presents a concert featuring works by Camille Brown, Bob Fosse, Susan Stowe, and Twyla Tharp.

Media Innovators Speaker Series

The Media Innovators Speaker Series, sponsored by Point Park's Center for Media Innovation, welcomes media changemakers and leaders in the field who have made significant contributions to journalism, storytelling, and free expression.

Mai Khoi's Bad Activist

Friday, September 15, 2022 7 p.m.

Mai Khoi rose to pop stardom in Vietnam, playing arena concerts and often being compared to Lady Gaga. But when she turned her celebrity to the cause of free expression, her music was banned. She was detained, harassed, evicted and eventually forced into exile. She now lives in Pittsburgh. For her courage in defending human rights, Mai Khoi has been awarded the Vaclav Havel International Prize for Creative Dissent and the Roosevelt Four Freedoms Award for Free Speech. "Bad Activist: the Stage Show" is a theatrical, multimedia tour de force in which she tells her remarkable story and performs with extraordinary musicianship.

National Geographic Live Speaker Series. Bryan Smith - Capturing the Impossible.

Tuesday, November 15, 2022, 7 p.m.

For extreme filmmaker Bryan Smith, the line between going for it and going too far is often blurry - especially when you're exploring the earth's most remote environments. In this edge-of-your-seat presentation, Bryan shows you what it means to adventure with purpose, and why he believes the best expeditions are the ones with a healthy chance of failure. He's faced machete-wielding locals in Papua New Guinea, suffered frostbite during the first-ever ice climb of Niagara Falls, explored the South Pacific's deepest canyons, and scaled North America's tallest mountains to bring you behind the scenes and capture the impossible.

National Geographic Live Speaker Series. Ami Vitale - Wild Hope

Friday, January 27, 2023, 7 p.m.

Photographer and filmmaker Ami Vitale shares her personal odyssey - from documenting the heartbreaking realities of war to witnessing the inspiring power of an individual to make a difference. Her award-winning work illuminates the unsung heroes and communities working to protect our wildlife and find harmony in our natural world. Hear her awe-inspiring stories of the reintroduction of northern white rhinos and giant pandas to the wild, as well as Kenya's first indigenous-owned and run elephant sanctuary.

Jason Riley

Thursday, March 16, 2023, 7 p.m.

Jason Riley is an opinion columnist at The Wall Street Journal, where his column, Upward Mobility, has run since 2016. He is also a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and provides television commentary for various news outlets. Mr. Riley, a 2018 Bradley Prize recipient, is the author of four books: "Let Them In: The Case for Open Borders" (2008); "Please Stop Helping Us: How Liberals Make It Harder for Blacks to Succeed" (2014); "False Black Power?" (2017); and "Maverick: A Biography of Thomas Sowell" (2021).