Pittsburgh started the year off with Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Broadway/worldwide/intergalactic sensation “Hamilton.”
Although we think “Hamilton” coming to Pittsburgh was a great thing — we’re rooting for King George, who is from Sewickley — the rest of the Steel City theater community deserves some press, too.
If you loved Hamilton and want to see more theater or if you weren’t able to get tickets to the show, here are our top picks for more Pittsburgh theater you should see in the first half of 2019.
Pittsburgh Public Theater
PPT fixture Ted Pappas returns to direct Lucas Hnath’s “A Doll’s House Part 2,” a sequel to Henrik Ibsen’s play of the same name. Nora returns 15 years after walking out to set the record straight between her and Torvald. “A Doll’s House Part 2” runs from March 7 to April 7.
Jerick Hoffer — better known as Jinkx Monsoon of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” — brings their musical revue, “The Vaudevillians,” to Pittsburgh beginning July 11. “The Vaudevillians” is a fictional 1920s duo consisting of Monsoon and Richard Andriessen as Major Scales. The two realize their original songs have been co-opted by some of music’s most famous faces. They perform their “hits” in this vintage cabaret-meets-drag extravaganza
View a complete listing of the Public’s season here.
City Theatre Company
Former Homestead-er, CMU alumnae and “Law and Order: SVU” queen Tamara Tunie and Laurie Klatscher — who performed together in “The Tempest” at Pittsburgh Public Theater — return for “The Roommate” from March 2 to 24. Sharon (Tunie) is a recent divorcée and retiree who needs extra cash. Robyn (Klatscher) is a modern New Yorker looking to start over. Together, they form an unlikely friendship and get into a little trouble, too.
City Theatre also offers “pay your price previews” in case you can’t swing regular ticket prices.
View a complete listing of City Theatre’s season here.
Pittsburgh Cultural Trust
Relive the past with “Cruel Intentions: The ‘90s Musical” on April 20 at Byham Theater, presented by the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. Based on the 1999 movie of the same name, “Cruel Intentions: The ‘90s Musical” sets you in the middle of Manhattan’s most complicated love triangle to the tune of ‘90s hits.
“You Will Be Found” at this other wildly popular musical. The winner of six Tony Awards and a Grammy Award, “Dear Evan Hansen” comes to town May 21 to May 26. Evan Hansen is a shy, awkward high schooler whose lies snowball into chaos.
View a complete list of Cultural Trust events here.
New Hazlett Theater
From Kinetic Theater’s performance of “An Octoroon” from Feb. 15 to Feb 24 to Front Porch Theatricals’ staging of “Fun Home” from Aug. 16 to Aug. 24, the New Hazlett Theater has something for seasoned audience members and drama newbs. Don’t miss the Pittsburgh premiere of “Bright Star” and “Her Holiness, The Winter Dog,” in May.
View a complete list of New Hazlett Theater’s season here.
Bricolage Production Company
Immersive theater and escape rooms meet in “Enter the Imaginarium,” the latest experience from Bricolage Production Company. Teaming up with ScareHouse, players must locate the Imaginarium’s creator or risk being trapped in an endless escape room forever.
View a complete list of Bricolage’s season here.
Quantum Theater
Quantum Theater reimagines Shakespeare’s “King Lear” from May 10 to June 2, with an adapted script by James Kincaid and Julian Markels. Performed at Carrie Blast Furnaces, this version explores grief, loss, and madness in a new way.
Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company
Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company stages “Savior Samuel,” by PPTCO founder Mark Clayton Southers. “Savior Samuel” is Southers’ second play in a series that explores the themes of African-American life in the 19th century. Here, the members of an African-American family are trying to survive in 1877 when an unexpected event changes their lives and the lives of everyone around them.
View a complete list of PPTCO’s season here.
Pittsburgh Musical Theater
In pop culture, nuns typically tend to be mean, scary, and pious — not the triple threat we like to see in a musical. “Nunsense the Mega Musical” takes that trope and turns it on its head, with the Sisters of Hoboken pulling out all the stops to put on one helluva talent show. Leave your Catholic guilt behind with this gut-busting show, which runs from March 21 to March 31.
View PMT’s complete season here.
Pittsburgh CLO
Pittsburgh CLO stages “Once,” the 2012 Tony Award winner for best musical, from July 30 to Aug. 4. Based on the 2007 movie of the same name, “Once” follows an Irish musician and a Czech woman drawn together by their love of music. The streets of Dublin come alive with music, played by the actors themselves.
View Pittsburgh CLO’s complete season here.
Looking forward to a show we missed on our list? Let us know on Twitter @VeryLocalPGH or send an email to [email protected].
