Though born and raised in London and having spent time at Cambridge, England, and Cambridge, Massachusetts, Mary Soon Lee has found a home in Pittsburgh. “My father was ethnically Chinese, and my mother was Irish, but I acquired a British accent from my classmates,” said the author of both fiction and poetry, who lives in Squirrel Hill. It’s not often that a writer is both
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I asked my ten year old grandson if he would like to join me at the Benedum to watch The Pittsburgh Ballet perform The Nutcracker. As soon as I asked, the look on his face indicated that he was trying to think of a reason not to go. So I sweetened the deal: we’d stop at a restaurant that serves one of the best pizzas
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This past Wednesday night, the Pittsburgh art community and all its supporters partied hard and celebrated the talent of 60 artists, performers, and models in the RAW Artists showcase, OVATION. RAW Artists is an international organization that serves as a platform for local artists to share their crafts/talent with the community. Their mission statement appropriately represents this message as they wish: “To serve independent artists
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Oh, how the times have changed! If you lived in Pittsburgh during the collapse of the steel industry, you know that the area lost jobs back in the 1980’s as rapidly as a kindergartner loses their lunch money. Recently, Glassdoor, the online job and recruiting site, named Pittsburgh the number one city on its 25 Best Cities for Jobs in 2018. According to Glassdoor, there
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There are a plethora of restaurants in Pittsburgh that serve excellent food. There are restaurants in Pittsburgh that have beautiful settings. But there is only one restaurant in Pittsburgh that is situated in a history-steeped building that combines excellent food and a beautiful setting for an unparalleled, upscale dining experience. And that restaurant is the Grand Concourse. Eating establishments come and go, but since 1978,
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One hundred and thirty years after it opened at the Savoy Theater in London, The Pittsburgh Savoyards presented The Yeomen of the Guard at the Andrew Carnegie Library and Music Hall in Carnegie, PA. This production runs October 12-14 and 18-21. If you haven’t seen this work before, you may hear terms and phrases that are not heard in everyday English but that won’t prevent
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When you think of cities where opera singers may reside, places like Paris, Milan, or New York may come to mind, but another alumna of the Pittsburgh Opera’s Resident Artist Program has decided to call Pittsburgh home. “The weather in Pittsburgh, and I are still trying to get along, but I love it here,” said Laurel Semerdjian, a mezzo-soprano, who will be playing the part
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Market Square truly is the many faceted jewel in the heart of Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh was founded at The Point, where the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers merged to form the Ohio Rivers, but it was at Market Square where Pittsburghers gathered. As the budding community at Fort Pitt grew beyond the settlement there, it became apparent that the developing city needed some direction. In 1784, Philadelphia
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Puppetry and puppet making is one of the oldest art forms; it is believed to have originated 4,000 years ago. Pittsburgh has had a love affair with puppets. The Lovelace Marionette Theater, founded by Puppeteer Margo Lovelace, opened in 1964 and became the longest-running professional puppet theater in the country. The theater closed in 1985. Mr. Rogers and his cast of puppets from the Neighborhood
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The mention of Cinco de Mayo makes you think of bright colors, refreshing alcoholic drinks, and of course a celebration of the Mexican people. However, while America loves any reason to celebrate, the true meaning and purpose of celebrating the “Fifth of May” is often lost beneath fluttering pinatas and the glitters of alcohol-fueled parties. But fear not, because of Popular Pittsburgh’s never-ending thirst for
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