Pitt Stages Builds Momentum, Sets Season

Issue Date: 
August 24, 2015

University of Pittsburgh Stages has five plays planned for the 2015-16 season—one more than usual.

Theatre Arts Chair Annmarie Duggan says the selection is fitting for the theme of the 2015-16 academic year: The Year of the Humanities in the University.

“We wanted to show the spectrum of the theater,” Duggan said. “We are featuring two female playwrights, a classic Shakespeare play, a big musical, and Water by the Spoonful, winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.” 

Student interest in the Department of Theatre Arts continues to grow, with more than 100 students lining up for auditions, compared with 30 to 40 people a few years ago. In addition, Duggan said, more Pitt students are enrolling in the University who have an interest in double majors. 

“We’re perfect for that. You can enroll in the School of Arts and Sciences and study chemistry but continue your work in theatre,” she said. 

The addition of lecturer Robert Frankenberry to the department’s faculty has also generated student interest in Pitt Stages, Duggan added. He is the first Pitt theatre faculty member to specialize in musical theater.

The Pitt Stages 2015-16 Season lineup follows.

Water by the Spoonful, by Quiara Alegriá Hudes. Directed by Ricardo Vila-Roger. Henry Heymann Theatre (downstairs, Stephen Foster Memorial) Oct. 22 - Nov. 1, 2015

Good Kids, by Naomi Iizuka. Directed by Kimberly Griffin and Lisa Jackon-Schebetta. Henry Heymann Theatre (downstairs, Stephen Foster Memorial) Nov. 11 - 22, 2015 

A Midsummer Night’s Dream, by William Shakespeare. Directed by Victoria Rhodes. Charity Randall Theatre Nov. 12 - 22, 2015

Rhinoceros, by Eugene Ionesco. Directed by Claire Syler. Studio Theatre (Cathedral of Learning basement) Feb. 18 - 28, 2016 

Nine, by Arthur Kopit. Music by Maury Yeston. Directed by Dennis Schebetta. Charity Randall Theatre April 7 - 17, 2016