This Show Launched Their Friendship and Their Careers

Theatre Development Fund – TDFWhen Sarah Mezzanotte and Tedra Millan met performing in The Wolves at Vassar's Powerhouse Theater in summer 2016, they immediately connected. "We were each other's first friend in the cast," Millan remembers. "We bonded over quesadillas and being from the same area in Philly."

Pittsburgh City Steps: An Artist Tells Their Stories

Pittsburgh Magazine - December 2017 - Pittsburgh, PA: Laura Zurowski gathers the supplies needed for the day’s exploration: a backpack with a copy of Bob Regan’s “Pittsburgh Steps: The Story of the City’s Public Stairways,” two journals to record information at the stairway, chalk, iPhone and Polaroid Spectra camera. She’s off to the Middle Hill to climb the 100 steps from Center Avenue to Brackenridge Street.

Why Plays About Sexual Assault Are Too Murky for Our Own Good

The New York Times: At the close of Anna Ziegler’s “Actually,” a play about an accusation of sexual misconduct on an Ivy League campus, a feather flutters down from the ceiling. That’s a feather meant to tip the scales of justice. (Scales don’t always work that way, but just go with it.) The stage goes dark before the feather lands.

Glitter Called A Global Hazard, Ban Urged By Scientists

CBS Philly: Arts and crafts enthusiasts have known for years that glitter tends to attach itself everywhere and never seems to come off. Scientists now say that the sticky decorations are also an ecological hazard that needs to be banned across the globe.

The Gig Economy Celebrates Working Yourself to Death

The New Yorker: Last September, a very twenty-first-century type of story appeared on the company blog of the ride-sharing app Lyft. “Long-time Lyft driver and mentor, Mary, was nine months pregnant when she picked up a passenger the night of July 21st,” the post began. “About a week away from her due date, Mary decided to drive for a few hours after a day of mentoring.” You can guess what happened next.

Want to stop sexual abuse in the workplace? Unionize.

theweek.com: Since the Harvey Weinstein scandal broke last month, torrents of women have come forward with credible charges of sexual harassment, bringing down veteran journalists, big-name directors, and powerful politicians across the country. But this necessary reckoning has also relied on newsworthiness. The headlines blare, and the offending man is forced to retreat. That model can cut down a Weinstein, but is unlikely to work against, say, a restaurant supervisor who's guilty of the same behavior.

Glitter is not just annoying, it could be bad for the environment

CNN: Glitter is the ultimate supervillain of the craft and makeup world: Charming, but insidious. Use it once, and you'll be vacuuming it out of the carpet and picking it from under your nails until the day you die.

Sexual Harassment In The Workplace No Different In Pittsburgh

CBS Pittsburgh: Half of American professionals say they’ve had an office romance with a co-worker, and nearly one out of six say they met their spouse at work, according to the annual survey of Vault.com.

But a mutually consensual relationship is a far cry from unwanted sexual harassment.

Disney's "Mulan" Finds Its Lead Actual Chinese Actress

The Mary Sue: Yesterday, The Hollywood Reporter announced that the live-action adaptation of Disney’s Mulan finally found its lead in Chinese actress Liu Yifei, also known as Crystal Liu. Even more impressive, the people in charge of casting went out of their way to ensure that they got an ethnically Chinese actress.

Beware! Krampus is coming to Market Square on Dec. 5

TribLIVE: What is Krampus and should we really be celebrating it?

Well, there's a group of people in Pittsburgh embracing the German folklore character, who apparently punishes children during the Christmas season who have misbehaved — kind of the opposite of Santa Claus, who rewards good behavior.

Miss Universe National Costumes 2017 Part One: SPINAL INJURY SHOWDOWN!

Tom + Lorenzo: Darlings, it’s the most wonderful time of the year once again; that brief period when starry-eyed women with big goals and even bigger pieces of luggage all hop on a plane, fly to a previously agreed-upon location, and then participate in an international drag revue for money. And of course, our very favorite part of this silly little shitshow is the parade of national costumes, which bases its traditions on ethnic folkwear, showgirls, superheros, drag queens, strippers, and street festivals. Sometimes all on the same gal at the same time! Don’t ask why, darlings! You’ll only get a headache!

Theater is Competition

OnStage Blog: In response to Brad Pontius’ piece, I do agree that it’s okay for theater to be competitive, but he fails to mention one major part of theater. It was born of competition. In Ancient Greece, plays were performed and playwrights were able to showcase their skills for the chance to win money and fame. The City Dionysius Festival was the Super Bowl of Ancient Greece. The reason that we have some of these plays exist is that they beat the competition, or they were able to stay intact, either way, they won the historical lottery. Sophocles, Aristophanes, and Aeschylus all won that competition and that’s why their work is still performed today. Don’t belittle theater to keep an aspiring actor from realizing what it is; pure competition.

Russell Simmons Steps Down After Sexual Assault Claims

www.vulture.com: Russell Simmons has announced that he will “step aside” from the companies he founded, Def Jam Records and his Phat Farm clothing line, after being accused of sexual assault by screenwriter Jenny Lumet. Lumet, who wrote Rachel Getting Married, detailed her experience with Simmons on a night circa 1991 in a letter to The Hollywood Reporter after Simmons previously denied another accusation from former model Keri Claussen Khalighi and claimed “I never committed any acts of aggression or violence in my life.”

Have You Heard the Buzz?

Selling Out: Every year, there’s an unmistakable buzz emanating from the loft at TEDxBroadway at New World Stages. It’s not a technical glitch or a sound issue. Nope, it’s the sound of TEDxBroadway Young Professionals and Students, who are enthusiastically chatting about what they’re experiencing that day.

Glitter should be banned over environmental impact, scientists warn

The Independent: Glitter seems like a harmless bit of fun, but its environmental impact has led some scientists to call for it to be banned. Most glitter is made from plastic, and the small size of its particles makes it a potential ecological hazard, particularly in the oceans. “I think all glitter should be banned, because it’s microplastic,” said Dr Trisia Farrelly, an environmental anthropologist at Massey University.