About Chris Rosella

Chris moved from Boston to the Burgh about 10 years ago. He was raised a Steelers fan, but still sees Pittsburgh through the eyes of a visitor. He especially enjoys writing about music.

Quantum Theatre’s “Twelfth Night” Show Review

Quantum Theatre's Twelfth Night 7/29 - 8/21

“I could marry this wench for this device….”

Perhaps the least well-known, but significant, fact about Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night is that it is the only Shakespeare possessing two titles. The play’s actual title is Twelfth Night, or What You Will, which fits the play more precisely, as there is no Shakespeare play which calls for more suspension of disbelief on the part of the audience. Mistaken-identity farces were nothing new is Shakespeare’s time; it takes an extra leap of reason, however, to believe that a woman could be mistaken for a man, and vice versa, fraternal twins or not, but if you can’t get past that, then you’re watching the wrong play, anyway.
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Carrnivale Theatrics’ INTO THE WOODS Review

Carrnivale Theatrics' INTO THE WOODS performed at the New Hazlett Theater in Pittsburgh

“If the End Is Right, It Justifies…the Beans.”

Carrnivale Theatrics is putting on a great performance of Stephen Sondheim’s INTO THE WOODS right now. I’ll get to it.

“I wish!”
Showtunes. An alien world to me, or at least they were, as the saying goes, “once upon a time.”

“Near may be better than far, but it still isn’t here.”

I have been a music freak all my life. People don’t display their music collections anymore, not in these days of downloads and mp3’s, but it used to be that if you were to invite me into your home, if I saw a music collection, I would head straight for it and instantly form an implacable judgment of you based entirely on your taste in music.

“None would run from us….Yet one has.”

I spent several of my younger years living in a several communal situations, giving me endless opportunities to form snap musical judgments. For a variety of irrelevant reasons, however, it took me a while to have much to do with the greasepaint crowd, but then this one new guy moved in, with box after box of… showtunes.
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Churchill in Short(s)? Show Review

Churchill in Short(s)? a collection of plays by Caryl Churchill

I hadn’t heard of British playwright Caryl Churchill before, but I’m glad I have now. The Pitt Repertory Theatre premiered three of her one-act plays the evening of Friday the 18th, with performances on Wednesday, February 23 through Sunday, February 27.

Churchill is British. So was the accent of the person who welcomed the audience before the actual start of the show. The voice asked us to turn off our cell phones, etc., with just enough of a clipped, sarcastic, edge to elicit a laugh from the crowd. Somehow, it seemed set the stage well—a way of engaging the audience before the fact. Perhaps that’s also in the script.
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“When the Rain Stops Falling” Show Review

When the Rain Stops Falling at the Quantum Theatre by Heather Mull

(Daniel Krell, Daina Michelle Griffith, & Nick Lehane by Heather Mull)

“Some people believe it’s the end of the world. That’s why I wanted to see you.”

This weekend, The Quantum Theatre premiered its latest play, When the Rain Stops Falling, by Australian playwright Andrew Bovell, which is not to say that the play premiered at The Quantum Theatre. The play is being performed in Lawrenceville, at the former site of the Iron City Brewery. Those familiar with Quantum’s reputation will not find this especially unusual, just as the latest installment in Quantum’s long history of staging productions in unconventional venues.
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The Zombie Opera: Show Review

Evenings in Quarantine - Zombies and Zombie Lovers: Meet Here

Evenings in Quarantine: The Zombie Opera had its sold-out opening night on Friday, October 15^th. This was the word I received on Thursday night, having been privileged to attend the final dress rehearsal along with other local influential journalistic voices. There are only five scheduled performances: October 15-16 and 21-23; I wouldn’t be surprised to see some more added on.

To start things off, there was just a movie screen, with the show’s logo projected onto it. Then a woman came out in an official show t-shirt, welcoming the audience, warning us that prop guns would be fired during the evening, asking that no cameras be used, checking to see if there were any children in the audience. While she might have been out there just for the dress rehearsal, I’m inclined to believe that she was indeed part of the show, and, therefore, an homage to the way The Rocky Horror Picture Show, both the original stage show and the subsequent film, used to start out, albeit minus requests not to throw food at the screen. No one yelled insults at her, either; then again, this was just the dress rehearsal.
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