'Burgh Vivant

Looking for something fun to do this weekend? Here are the top five things to do in Pittsburgh October 17 – 20. We’re deep into the Season of the Witch, so here are some Halloween related fun activities. And some other stuff, too.

Let’s Do the Time Warp Again!

What is Halloween without Richard O’Brien’s madcap sex romp, The Rocky Horror Show? The tongue-in-cheek (and everywhere else) show is about Brad Majors and Janet Weiss exploring their sexuality when they meet the way-way-out Dr. Frank N. Furter. The mad scientist is building the perfect man, with blond hair and a tan, but his servants, Riff Raff and Magenta, and Brad and Janet’s old science professor, Dr. Scott, wants to spoil all the fun.

The Rocky Horror Show, a precursor to The Rocky Horror Picture Show (movie version) runs until October 31 (naturally). How do you get there? Well, it’s a jump to the left, and a step to the right.  Actually, the location is secret, but it’s somewhere in Munhall, PA.

Location released after ticket purchase. www.brisbane-management-group.com

Spirited Debate

When cantakerous novelist Charles Condomine gets re-married, he is haunted (literally) by the ghost of his late first wife in Blithe Spirit. Blame Madame Bovary. Noel Coward’s comedy about the gap between love and marriage, life and death is presented by the Actors & Artists of Fayette County at the Geyer Performing Arts Cente, 111 Pittsburgh Street, Scottdale, PA.

No need to look into a crystal ball, just phone: 724-887-0887 or visit www.geyerpac.com

A Phantom’s Revenge

Looking for some cheap thrills? Okay, how about some reasonably priced thrills? Come out to Kennywood Park for Phantom Fright Nights. Not only are all the regular rides in full swing (literally and figuratively), there are several haunted attractions operating, with a cast of scary characters roaming the park (ideal for photo opportunities). Check out BioFear for Sci-Fi fun, the Voodoo Bayou takes the Raging Rapids and turns them into the Raging Cajuns, or sink your teeth into the Villa of the Vampires.

Fright Nights start at seven, but it’s suggested that you arrive early to get a good spot in line. The park fills up during the Phantom festivities.

www.phantomfrightnights.com

Picture This!

Get Wilde with Oscar at the Steampunk Dorian Gray in South Park. Rage the Stage Players promise a lewd and lascivious time at the re-imagined “Picture of Dorian Gray.”  Dorian is blessed with good looks. He embraces a life of pleasure, but his portrait isn’t so lucky. The painting takes the physical hits instead of the man himself.

Don’t bring the kiddies to this one, folks. The show contains adult content and partial nudity.

Dorian unveils on October 18th, but runs through the 31st. Tickets are only $15.00 (cash at the door). There will be a special “PRIDE NIGHT” performance on WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 23rd, to benefit the GLCC (Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Pittsburgh). Tickets on “PRIDE NIGHT” will be $20.00. South Park Theater is at the corner of Brownsville Road and Corrigan Drive, South Park, PA 15129. For more information, go to South Park Theatre or call 724-292-TICS (8427) or hit up www.rageofthestage@yahoo.com

This Cider House Rules

If All Hallow’s Eve isn’t your thing, there are plenty of other holiday’s coming up to hold your interest. You could go to the Artisan Sale at the Cider House in Gibsonia. Several amazing vendors will be on hand selling their handcrafted wares. Stop and smell the rose-colored soap from Buttercup and Thistle Soap Shop, with soaps like Pineapple Cilantro Goats Milk, Lemon Verbena Goats Milk and many, many more. Check out Featherfield Pottery (the ceramic frog is adorable). Admire Aileen Lampman’s Ai Jewelry, which just won Best in Show in Jewelry at a craft fair in Williamsburg, Virginia October 5th. See the colorful and creative glasswork from ACK Creates, especially the Oliver Ashe trays, flattened wine bottles designed to be either ashtrays or olive trays (smoke your olives).

Saturday October 19, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The Cider House, 1 Treesdale Commons, Gibsonia, PA 15044. Call 724-625-6391 for additional details.

-MB.

The weekend is sneaking up fast upon us. Here is a list of Five Fun Things to do in Pittsburgh October 10, 11, 12 and 13. This week people are talking with their hands, i.e. there is plenty of puppetry on hand.

Doing the Pigeon

There’s Pigeons Down at Market Square. They’re on Liberty Avenue as well. Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s Festival of Firsts presents, “The Pigeoning,” a full-length puppet play. It’s the story of Frank, a fastidious office worker with Monk-like compulsions about cleanliness and order, encounters pigeons, the epitome of filth and chaos. The nearly wordless work features Bunraku puppetry, video and original music to explore the themes of obsessive compulsion, safety and order in the context of the end of the world.

The Pigeoning runs from October 9 through the 12, 7 p.m at 937 Liberty Ave, Downtown Pittsburgh.

If you have additional questions, there’s no need to send a carrier pigeon, just call 412-456-6666.

 

Baby, It’s Dark Outside (or Puppetry Part II)

There’s a second puppet show in the Festival of Firsts (wait, what?). You can see “It’s Dark Outside,” October 9 through 11 at 9:00 p.m. at the Trust Arts Education Center, 805-807 Liberty Ave, Downtown Pittsburgh.

The Perth Theater Company from Australia presents a show with puppetry, mask, animation, live performance, and original music all next weekend. Catch “The Pigeoning” at 7:30 and “It’s Dark Outside,” at 9:00 and have a whole evening of puppet fun!

Turn off the lights and head over to “It’s Dark Outside” at the Trust Arts Education Center. Check out www.trustarts.org for additional details.

Rocky Mountain High

There’s one weekend left to see “Colorado” at the Grey Box Theatre in Lawrenceville.  Those whacky people at 12 Peers Theater found a disturbing and funny play about the disappearance of a teenage beauty queen in Colorado, called, “Colorado.” The playwright, Peter Sinn Nachtrieb, has written some of the most twisted theater pieces produced. A few years ago, Off the Wall made “Boom,” and Bricolage produced “Hunter/Gatherers.” Both shows were not to be missed. Now, you have another chance to catch the dark, dangerous and hilarious mind of Nachtrieb one more time. You have been warned.

Trivia fun fact: If you saw Matt Henderson in “Boom,” now you can see him in “Colorado.”

See “Colorado” in Lawrenceville, at the Grey Box Theatre 3595 Butler St., Pittsburgh. If you need more than that, call 412-586-7744

 

Pearls before the Swine

Pearl Jam comes to the Consol Energy Center on Friday, October 11^th. Throw on your corduroy, grab your brother and make footsteps down to Consol and rock out to the force of nature known as Pearl Jam. You will feel alive as an even flow of music washes over your body. This concert is not just for the faithful. Bring friends!

Hear them on October 11^th at 7:30 at the Consol Energy Center, 1001 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh.

Go here for more: www.consolenergycenter.com

 

Predicting a Good Time

Saturday October 12, you can circle your caravans and get over to the Christine Frechard Gallery, 5871 Forbes Avenue in Squirrel Hill for “Gypsy Night.” Apparently, the Roma are reclaiming the derogatory term and embracing it, thanks to shows like “American Gypsy,” and “My Big, Fat Gypsy Wedding.” You can explore some of the culture at the gallery.  Jon Banuelos will be playing some traditional music. There will be a Tarot card art exhibition with Melissa Von Underwood, but no evening out with the Roma would be complete without psychic readings.

Additional details can be found by calling 412-421-8888 or visiting www.christinefrechardgallery.com, but if you’re a psychic, you already knew that.

 

BONUS TRACK

Friday October 11^th is National Coming Out Day, and the Arcade Comedy Theater is marking the occasion by showcasing the talents of Pittsburgh’s best LGBTQ performers. The show starts at 8 p.m., but you can come out to friends, family and co-workers whenever you want.

Swing open that closet door, and come down to the Arcade Comedy Theater, 811 Liberty Avenue, Downtown Pittsburgh. More details can be found here; www.arcadecomedytheater.com

-MB

Visitors Invited to Have Fun With Origami While Commemorating Sandy Hook Victims

PITTSBURGH, Oct. 1, 2013 — Starting Oct. 3, Carnegie Science Center will invite visitors to participate in Folding for Good, Operation Sandy Hook: Peace, a global initiative to honor those who were affected by the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Led by 17-year-old Calista Frederick-Jaskiewicz, the overall mission of Operation Sandy Hook: Peace is to dedicate 10,000 peace cranes to the victims of this tragedy. Peace cranes were selected because they are a traditional origami folding technique widely seen as a symbol of hope, healing, and peace. Carnegie Science Center will showcase some 5,000 of the cranes Calista has already collected and will host a series of workshops for visitors to learn how to make peace cranes so they, too, can contribute to Folding for Good. The workshops will be free with general admission and are scheduled for 10 – 11:30 am on Thursday, Oct. 3, and from noon until 2 pm on three Saturdays: Oct. 5, 12, and 19. Advance registration is not required. The display will run through Nov. 3, 2013. Currently, Calista is a student at the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School and has already accumulated more than 60 college credits from various institutions; she is currently enrolled in the Accelerated College in High School Program at the University of Pittsburgh.  Calista is founder and CEO of Origami Salami & Folding for Good, which currently comprises 14 chapters in the United States, Australia, the Philippines, and Hungary. Origami Salami is a student movement mobilizing people as advocates for STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) studies through the fun of origami; Folding for Good is an initiative to engineer creative ways to do good with it. Calista started Folding for Good in 2009 to combine her interests in science and origami (a hobby she picked up after receiving a beginner’s kit when she was 6 years old) with community service projects. The organization’s most recent endeavor, Operation Sandy Hook: Peace, has already surpassed its goal by amassing 10,000+ cranes. Participants in the program range from schoolchildren and their teachers, to professional origamists, origami clubs, and various community service groups. Through her foundation, Calista and her student leaders have volunteered at numerous schools and civic organizations, including folding origami centerpieces that were auctioned for $1,300 as part of a fundraiser for the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Foundation. And now, with Carnegie Science Center, visitors of all ages can join Calista’s movement by making their own peace cranes for the victims, as well as by viewing some of the work she has already collected from around the world. In approaching the Science Center, Calista noted science connected with folding. She points to folding patterns in both naturally occurring scientific objects (like proteins and DNA) and man-made ones (such as the Mars Rover and computers) as evidence of the importance of folding to science fields.   Origami Salami was developed through Calista’s participation in the Young Scholar Ambassador Program of the Davidson Institute for Talent Development. A mere six months after its conception, Calista signed a contract with Lincoln Interactive, a national cyber curriculum provider. Through this contract, Calista was responsible for developing a digital curricular program – “Investigation: Paper Engineering” – for middle school students to explain to them the connection between science and folding. As a result of Calista’s promotion of STEM fields, she was honored this past year with the 2013 Award for Aspirations in Computing. This prestigious award is given by the National Center for Women and Information Technology (NCWIT) to just 35 young women in the United States. She was also one of six students selected by the PA Cyber Charter School for their 2010-13 media campaign, and is the sole student blogger listed among the National Network of Digital Schools’ teachers and the Los Alamos’ National Laboratories’ scientists. Calista has also been honored for her charitable contributions: She was named a Nestle Very Best in Youth 2013 National Finalist, a Prudential Spirit of America 2013 Distinguished Finalist, as well as having earned the gold President’s Volunteer Service Award in 2013. She plans to graduate from high school in the spring of 2014 and continue her education in college as an electrical and computer engineering major. For more information about Carnegie Science Center programs, please visit CarnegieScienceCenter.org.

Jam Packed!

Want to see a show no one has ever seen before and will likely never see again? Come down to the Cabaret Theater in Theater Square and watch the Improv Comedy Jam. Improv performers from all over Pittsburgh gather for a raucous evening of fun. You never know what’s going to happen next. The show, like all improv shows, is made up on the spot, from suggestions by the audience. You can even join the fun.

If you have a ticket from any other show in town that night, your admission is free.

For additional details check out http://trustarts.culturaldistrict.org/event/3200/pittsburgh-improv-jam

 

Soldiering On

If laughing isn’t your thing, try something more serious. Tammy Ryan’s new play, “Soldier’s Heart” is about the struggles women face in the military. Casey Johnson returns to Western Pennsylvania from the war in Iraq forever changed by her experience.

You can catch “Soldier’s Heart” at the Pittsburgh Playhouse in Oakland through October 13, 222 Craft Avenue.

You don’t need a horizontal situation display, just go here for more: www.pittsburghplayhouse.com

 

Naked Puppetry

The giant duck was just the beginning. You have a few great opportunities to see world premieres of new art, theater and dance at the International Festival of Firsts. In a film from Belgium comes “Kiss and Cry.”  The characters are portrayed by bare hands as they march around miniature sets.

“Kiss and Cry” opens October 2 at the New Hazlett Theater in Allegheny Square in the North Side. The show blends film, dance, text and theater into one unforgettable experience.

No need to let your fingers do the walking, find out more about the event here. http://trustarts.culturaldistrict.org/production/38837/kiss-and-cry

 

To Bee or Not to Bee

Hilarious. Adjective. Marked by or causing hilarity; extremely funny. Let’s use it in a sentence. “The 25^th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” is completely hilarious.

Learn new words and how to spell them while watching a musical comedy. Six kids compete in the bee to end all bees in this musical comedy. Come out to Elizabeth, PA and sit a spell.

It’s at the Grand Theatre 207 Second Avenue, Elizabeth, PA through October 6. Call 412-384-0504 or hit them up at www.monriverarts.ticketleap.com/spelling-bee

 

It’s all Greek to me

Yasou! It’s time for the Holy Cross Greek Food Festival in Mt. Lebanon. Actually, they have a festival in the summer, but they also have a mini-festival in the fall. It’s here.

Come out and get some Greek pastries, cakes, pies, jams and bread. Plus, they have all those wonderful Greek foods that you can’t pronounce. Just point and hand them money. Your tummy will thank you.

No need to consult the oracle of Delphi, just go here; www.holycrosspgh.org

P.S. While you’re in Mt. Lebanon, check out Art in the Park(ing lot). The Sunrise Rotary club is bringing a lot of talented artists into a parking lot. Come check out the fabulous creations while you’re getting your Greek on.

www.facebook.com/ArtInTheParkMtLebanonPa

 

-MB

It’s the last weekend in September and boy, it’s a big one! There’s a duck, a Big Bird, a Bard and one Bad Bunny!

Duck, Duck, Gallery!

This is it, folks! The big event of the season! A giant duck lands in the waters of Pittsburgh. You heard it here first, folks, during Phil Salvato’s ‘Burgh Vivant interview. Watch the world’s biggest bathtub toy from a party on the bridge! And then prepare yourself for the Festival of Firsts!

Witness the historic launch of a big, yellow ducky from the Sixth Street Bridge. Festivities include food, art and more. DJ Scottro will be spinning tunes from the bridge. It’s a Gallery Crawl Night in Pittsburgh so there will be lots and lots of stuff to see and do.

The duck is just the first step in a series of things going on in Pittsburgh during the Festival of Firsts. Keep watching this space for more information and take a gander at all of the fun over at  www.trustarts.com

Shakespeare in Space!

Come out to the ToonSeum Thursday September 26 for the live reading of “William Shakespeare’s Star Wars,” retelling the cult-classic film in iambic pentameter. Don’t miss this mash up between the Bard of Avon and the Bearded Man of Modesto.

Let’s just lay the end of the opening stanza on you: “In time so long ago begins our play, In star-cross’d galaxy far, far away…”

Thou shan’t miss the tale epic! Even the groundlings can’t pass up this price; ‘tis free! ‘tis free!

Let the Force guide you over to the ToonSeum website for more information: www.toonseum.org

Shakespeare the Sequel

If you miss the ToonSeum event (don’t), you can still get your Shakespeare on at the Bricolage. They’re celebrating Midnight Radio: Shakesburgh! Season five of Midnight Radio doth begin anew! Though it’s not at midnight and it’s not radio; it’s a bunch of whacky fun with Tami Dixon, Jeffrey Carpenter and friends. Fun, laughs, interactive games and prizes!

If you’ve never been to a Midnight Radio show, get thee hence!

Consult thy binary oracle, to learn more; www.bricolagepgh.org

Hey Kids, Comics!

The Pittsburgh Comicon is here September 27, 28 and 29. Get your Geek on!

Hundreds of comic book creators like George Perez (the Avengers), James O’Barr (the Crow) and many more will be there. Catch local legends in Scott McDaniel (Daredevil, Batman) and Pat Olliffe (Thor, Spider-Girl). Also, you can meet Big Bird! Yes! Caroll Spinney the voice of Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch will be in town for the festivities.

Put on your best cape and fly over to their site to learn more: www.pittsburghcomicon.com

Fright Night

This is Halloween! This is Halloween! At least, every day will be Halloween at the Scare House. One of season’s scariest attractions starts up again this weekend opening on September 27.

There are plenty of frights per night. The Forsaken! Pittsburgh Zombies! Creepo’s Christmas in 3D! All this and a deranged man in a dirty bunny costume.

Also, check out the basement. You have been warned!

It takes a brave soul, but you’re a Shakespeare-loving Super-Hero from a galaxy far, far away riding on a giant duck! I have faith in you!

Dare to enter the ScareHouse; for chills and thrills hit them up on their website at www.scarehouse.com

– MB

Adding to your weekend

Start your weekend early and come out Thursday, September 19 for a special live broadcast of Add It Up podcast. Listen, laugh and learn with host Addi Twigg and her special guests, Valiant & Valiant and live music from The Wreckids. There will be audience participation, too; all for a measly sawbuck (five dollars, kids!).

One Night Only Thursday, September 19, at the Arcade Comedy Theater, 811 Liberty Avenue, Pittsburgh PA at 8:00 p.m. For more information, check out www.arcadecomedytheater.com

Face Off

Thursday, September 19 you can attend an art gallery reception for Faceburgh: Portraits of a City.  Take a gander at Matte Braidic’s intriguing portraits of fellow Pittsburghers going about their daily lives.

You’re welcome to attend at the South Side Welcome Center, 1100 E. Carson Street, South Side.

You can call 412-431-3360 or Facebook Faceburgh (just because it’s fun to say out loud) at https://www.facebook.com/faceburgh?fref=ts

Skullduggery

You want a guaranteed skull-cracking good time? Head (and I do mean head) to “A Skull in Connemara.” You don’t even have to go all the way to Ireland, just up Forbes Avenue for the Pittsburgh Irish & Classical Theatre’s take on Martin McDonagh’s modern classic. It’s a story of a hard-working grave digger who may or may not have killed his wife.

Wednesday through Sunday to September 28, at the Charity Randall Theater, 4301 Forbes Avenue, Oakland. Call 412-561-6000 or 412-624-PLAY. You can also click over to www.picttheatre.org

Too, Too Twain

Think you’ve seen everything by Mark Twain? You are wrong; unless you’ve already seen “Is He Dead?” a recently discovered comedic work by Samuel Clemmons AKA Mark Twain.

Everyone knows that artists work sell better when they’re dead. So, a young Parisian painter fakes his own death and passes himself off as his own twin sister. Its art and cross-dressing! Take that RuPaul!

Art DeConciliis directs this merry comedy at the Little Lake Theater in Canonsburg, Thursday through Sunday until September 21. Hop down 19 or hit the Parkway to 500 Lakeside Drive, Canonsburg. For additional information call 724-745-6300 or hit them up at www.littlelake.org

Could Have Been A Contender

When Marlon Brando said, “Charlie, I could have been somebody. I could have been a contender,” he probably never thought people would imitate him forever. See the original movie, “On the Waterfront,” ironically not at the Waterfront but at the Melwood Screening Room in Oakland.

Learn more at http://theaters.pittsburgharts.org/theaters-about

 

-MB

Wigle it, just a little bit

Wigle Whiskey is having an Organic Whiskey Bitters Release Party. Go Green; just don’t drink so much that you actually turn green. Wigle releases its organic whiskey to the world Friday, September 13 in two shifts, 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Drink responsibly or bring a designated driver over to 2401 Small Street in the Strip District.

For additional details call 412-224-2827 or hit them up at www.wiglewhiskey.com

Ebony and Ivory

If you think whiskey is for the birds, head over to the National Aviary’s Black and White Party.

This fundraiser is for the birds (literally). The Aviary will have fortune-tellers, strolling magicians and more. There’s a cash bar for those of you who are opining for the Wigle Whiskey event but let your girlfriend pick.  If you get a little tipsy, you can dance it off.  DJ Midas will be spinning some solid gold hits.

The National Aviary’s Black & White Party is also Friday, September 13, from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. at the National Aviary, Allegheny Commons West, Pittsburgh (North Side).

For more details, fly over to www.aviary.org

Where for art thou, Romeo?

Thou art in Arsenal Park? Come catch the tale of the original star-cross’d lovers, “Romeo and Juliet” in Lawrenceville this weekend. It’s presented by Pittsburgh Shakespeare in the Parks this weekend in Arsenal Park, Arsenal Park, Pittsburgh on September 14 and 15.

Remember to brink a hanky, because there was never a story of more woe than this of Juliet and her Romeo.

Get thee to their website at www.pittsburghshakespeare.com for the details.

Putting the Burger in Pittsburgher

Head down to the River Casino on Saturday, September 14 and taste the best burgers in Pittsburg at the Pittsburgher 2012 Gourmet Burger Competition and Music Festival. Each ticket to the event includes a chance to win an Disney World Getaway, which includes airfare, accommodations, 2 five day Park Hopper passes to Disney World and more.

Find out who makes the best burgers and listen to live music. The event is from 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Try your luck at picking the best burger at 777 Casino Drive, Pittsburgh, PA (North Shore). For more information consult the midnight guru herself high atop a mountain, or easy to reach here: www.midnightguru.com/thepittsburgher

Jazz It Up

Things are getting jazzy in Carnegie. Swing down to Jazz on Third on Sunday, September 15. Be there for the history-making proclamation, whereas Carnegie will declare September 15 Carnegie Celebrates Jazz Day!

The Carnegie Arts Initiative welcomes the The St. John Affair, the Don Aliquo Quartet, Michele Bensen and Friends. There will be silent auctions, raffles and more! There will be some great food from Oasis Pasta, Suzi’s Deli, and A Ward’s Cheesecakes!

Go down to 220 Third Street, Carnegie, PA 15106. All the cool cats are doing it.

You can reserve tickets at www.dddmore.com or call Bonita Farinelli at 412-331-1047. Be there or be square!

Bonus Track (i.e. shameless self-promotional plug)

After the weekend is over, you can make your Monday a fun day! Come back out to Carnegie for Third on Third’s special event, a live reading of “Shakespeare in Love,”

The critically acclaimed screenplay by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard will be read by the cast of South Park Theater’s “Romeo and Juliet,” which wrapped earlier this summer.

Get thee to the art gallery at 220 Third Street, Carnegie, PA 15106 at 7:00 p.m. Monday, September 16 all for the low, low price of $5.00.

 

– MB