2013’s Seven Most Transportive Dance Programs in Pittsburgh

By Steve Sucato In a year filled with great dance programs in Pittsburgh, here are seven that transported audiences from their seats to worlds away. Soap Opera (Attack Theatre, Feb. 2-10). Soap Opera mixed dance, mythology and opera music to tell the fictitious story of a terminally ill concert pianist — and his opera-singer lover’s bedside efforts to keep him alive by reading colorful stories aloud. The work … Continue reading 2013’s Seven Most Transportive Dance Programs in Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh Ballet opens its season with two modern classics by Twyla Tharp

By Steve Sucato Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre kicks off its 44th season with An Evening of Twyla Tharp, a salute to the irrepressible Emmy- and Tony Award-winning stage and screen choreographer. The Oct. 25-27 program features reprises of two of Tharp’s most popular works. First performed by PBT in 2006, the 35-minute “Nine Sinatra Songs” (1982) has a ballroom setting and features seven couples costumed in gowns and … Continue reading Pittsburgh Ballet opens its season with two modern classics by Twyla Tharp

Corning Masterful in New One-Woman Show about Loss

CorningWorks: The Glue Factory Project – Remains New Hazlett Theater Pittsburgh, PA June 5, 2013 Reviewed by Steve Sucato Choreographers as much or perhaps more than any other artists turn to their personal lives for inspiration in creating their works. Veteran dancer/choreographer Beth Corning in her last several productions for her Glue Factory Project – a performance series featuring dancers over the age of forty … Continue reading Corning Masterful in New One-Woman Show about Loss

After retooling her career, Beth Corning returns with a new solo dance work

By Steve Sucato If necessity is the mother of invention, perhaps change is the mother of reinvention. Such was the case for Beth Corning. After a string of life-changing events, including the death of her mother, the dancer and choreographer set about reinventing herself as an artist. Corning is a veteran dance creator and performer with an international résumé, including several years leading Pittsburgh’s Dance … Continue reading After retooling her career, Beth Corning returns with a new solo dance work

‘War Horse’ a Triumph of the Human Spirit

Reviewed by Steve Sucato One of the most anticipated Broadway touring productions to visit Cleveland this theater season as part of the KeyBank Broadway Series at Playhouse Square, War Horse not only didn’t disappoint, it wowed.   The winner of five 2011 Tony Awards including Best Play, War Horse, based on Michael Morpurgo’s novel of the same name, made an immediate impact in a performance … Continue reading ‘War Horse’ a Triumph of the Human Spirit