As the warmer temperatures of spring slowly creep in, Pittsburgh’s theater performances also heat up. Get tickets while you can for the season’s newest performances from the world-class cultural institutions our city has to offer. Whether you’re looking to stimulate your mind with a play, feel the exuberance of a musical, or experience a sultry night at the opera, you’ll be able to find something to warm your spirit up as the first flowers start to grow in the ground.
Plan a Night Out with Pittsburgh’s Spring Theater Performances
Kimberly Akimbo
Benedum Theater, March 4-March 6
Kimberly Akimbo is the tale of a young woman with a condition that ages her rapidly, making her appear elderly when she’s really only sixteen years old. This Tony Award-winning musical will be downtown at the Benedum Center for one weekend only, making a great date night or family night out.
Birthday Candles
City Theatre, March 8-March 30
City Theatre is also feeling the existential weight of aging this spring, as Noah Haidle’s Birthday Candles follows a woman’s life one birthday party at a time. The play asks viewers to reflect on how birthdays are a marker of not just how much things change, but also how much they stay the same.
Lang Lang with the PSO
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, March 19
The New York Times called pianist Lang Lang “the hottest artist on the classical music planet,” and now he’s coming to Heinz Hall once again to perform the Grieg Piano Concerto for Pittsburgh audiences.
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Pittsburgh Public Theater, March 19-April 6
Edward Albee’s high-intensity marital drama is a must-see whenever it’s performed, but particularly in a time when social and political discourse feels so full of strife. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Is a masterclass in how pent-up resentment eventually explodes and how hidden grudges and tragedies always come out in the end.
Madama Butterfly
Pittsburgh Opera, March 22-30
Puccini’s Madama Butterly is a classic opera, but this production in collaboration with the Cincinnati Opera and Utah Opera uses an all-Japanese cast and all-Japanese production team to update its vision of East Asia. The set design also uses futuristic, science fiction-esque aesthetics to highlight the dreamlike nature of operatic performances and reinvent the setting.
Spring Mix: 5 for 55
Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, April 4-6
At the August Wilson African American Cultural Center, the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre will have some of their most seasoned artists perform both classical and contemporary choreography. This “Spring Mix” event in honor of the ballet’s 55th anniversary will showcase ballet’s versatility through the ages.
9 to 5
Little Lake Theatre, April 10-27
Dolly Parton turned 9-5 daily grind into a rollicking musical number in the title track for this workplace comedy musical. Take some time away from the struggles of the work day, sit back in your chair, and enjoy the musical adaptation of the 1980 film that inspired Dolly’s hit.
Story by Emma Riva
Photo by Philip Groshong, courtesy of the Cincinnati Opera
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