Entertainment category, Page 268
Popular Pittsburgh club Brillobox closes doors for good
Brillobox, a popular Pittsburgh club offering live music, food and dance parties, is closing its doors. Owners Lou Ickes and Janessa Walter announced the closure via a Facebook post. “We are wrapping it up. We appreciate everyone that has been a part of Brillo, over the years. It’s been a...
Pittsburgh CLO postpones live shows, plans virtual ‘Christmas Carol’
Pittsburgh CLO has postponed all scheduled in-person performances until 2021, citing “uncertainties and risks related to the ongoing health crisis.” Postponed shows includes the previously scheduled fall Kara Cabaret productions of “Dixie’s Tupperware Party” and “Untitled.” The annual production of “A Musical Christmas Carol” at the Byham Theater will be...
Pittsburgh Opera hosting live, reduced audiences for 2020-21 season
Any opera buff would agree that watching a performance of “Cosi fan tutte” on a screen is nothing like hearing it live. As of Monday, fans of the Pittsburgh Opera will have a choice. The organization announced, in response to ongoing covid-19 uncertainty and concerns, four operas will be performed...
Pandemic parody of ‘Goodnight Moon’ to be released in fall
A popular online spoof of the children’s favorite “Goodnight Moon,” reworked for the coronavirus, will be published by Penguin Random House this fall. The Penguin imprint Philomel Books announced Monday that “Good Morning Zoom,” written by Lindsay Rechler and illustrated by June Park, is scheduled for Oct. 6. Currently self-published,...
Book Review: Hank Phillippi Ryan teeters on the improbable
The first liar we meet in Hank Phillippi Ryan’s “First to Lie” is Nora, a pharmaceutical representative whose job is to push Monifan, a drug that can increase fertility in women who have difficulty conceiving. But Nora is secretly pursuing her own agenda. Next come Ellie, an investigative reporter, and...
Steve McQueen sets 3 premieres at New York Film Festival
Three original films by Oscar-winner Steve McQueen will debut at the New York Film Festival this year, organizers said Monday. The “12 Years a Slave” director will get the opening night slot for the 1980s-set music romance “Lovers Rock” in addition to two other premieres for films in his anthology...
Dan + Shay release new song ‘I Should Probably Go To Bed’Video
Dan + Shay didn’t let their time in quarantine go to waste. The country pop music duo just released a new song, “I Should Probably Go To Bed,” on July 31 that was recorded during the coronavirus pandemic. Dan + Shay is comprised of Shay Mooney and Wexford native Dan...
Pittsburgh Concert Chorale partially cancels season, plans virtual performance for Pirates gameVideo
The Pittsburgh Concert Chorale performed selections from Orff’s “Carmina Burana” on March 1. When members gathered March 10 for their first Pops rehearsal, no one knew it would be the last time they’d all be together for the next six months. “Sadly, the very thing that gives our singers and...
Taylor Swift nabs 7th No.1 album with ‘folklore’
To no one’s surprise, Taylor Swift’s surprise album “folklore” is dominating the music charts. Swift’s eighth album debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s 200 albums chart this week, marking the best first-week sales of the year and giving the pop star her seventh No. 1 title on the chart. According...
Wilford Brimley, ‘Cocoon’ and ‘Natural’ actor, dies at 85
LOS ANGELES — Wilford Brimley, who worked his way up from movie stunt rider to an indelible character actor who brought gruff charm, and sometimes menace, to a range of films that included “Cocoon,” “The Natural” and “The Firm,” has died. He was 85. Brimley’s manager Lynda Bensky said the...
Pittsburgh Symphony to host virtual family concert
The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra added a family concert to its “Summer with the Symphony” online series. The piece will post at 11:15 a.m. Saturday and be available through Aug. 31. The 40-minute concert will feature music from Camille Saint-Saen’s “The Carnival of the Animals,” and will have text and illustrations...
How Tyler Perry’s ‘camp quarantine’ fended off the pandemic during filming of ‘Sistas’Video
As filmmakers prepare to resume production after months of shutdown, Tyler Perry has a message for Hollywood: Shooting during a pandemic is challenging. The Atlanta-based producer was one of the first major filmmakers to power back up production in the wake of the coronavirus health crisis. He recently wrapped two...
Delmont’s Apple Hill Playhouse is closed but fond memories remain
Pat Beyer says she’s heard many times over the years that ghosts inhabit the Apple Hill Playhouse in Delmont. After all, the structure has been around since Civil War times, starting out as a barn before its reincarnation as a theater with a long string of owners. Beyer, Apple Hill’s...
Penn-Trafford Community Band plays on during pandemic, new shows planned
Despite the covid-19 pandemic, the Penn Trafford Community Band is rehearsing again and planning at least four concerts for August and September, while following social distancing guidelines, the band manager said. The 65-member community band will play concerts at nursing homes and assisted living facilities, including one in Fox Chapel,...
Ellen DeGeneres apologizes to show’s staff amid workplace inquiry
LOS ANGELES — Ellen DeGeneres apologized to the staff of her daytime TV talk show amid an internal company investigation of complaints of a difficult and unfair workplace. “On day one of our show, I told everyone in our first meeting that ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’ would be a place...
Alicia Keys producing PBS documentary on legendary Black female entertainers
Alicia Keys will do her part in paying homage to legendary Black female entertainers who came before her in an upcoming PBS documentary. The 15-time Grammy Award winning singer and actress has been tapped to executive-produce “American Masters: How It Feels to Be Free” for PBS. Based on historian Ruth...
Malik B, founding member of The Roots, has died at 47
LOS ANGELES — Malik B, a rapper and founding member of The Roots, has died. He was 47. The group announced the death of the Philadelphia-born emcee in a social media post Wednesday. The cause of death was not released. Malik B, whose real name is Malik Abdul Basit, was...
Free children’s admission at Meadowcroft Rockshelter and Historic Village
August is a good time to take the children to the Meadowcroft Rockshelter and Historic Village, in Avella, Washington County. Kids 17 and under will be admitted free courtesy of UPMC. The museum, which is part of the Senator John Heinz History Center’s family of museums, was designated a National...
Pittsburgh playwrights produce new works for online performance
Five Pittsburgh-area playwrights have written 10-minute plays responding to the current state of the world. A one-night-only digital reading of the resulting works, entitled “Homegrown Stories,” is planned for 7:30 p.m. Aug. 6 as part of City of Asylum’s The Show Must Go On(line) Series. The initiative is a collaboration...
Garth Brooks doesn’t want to win CMA entertainer award againVideo
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Country superstar Garth Brooks says he is pulling himself out of nominations for the Country Music Association’s entertainer of the year award, saying it’s time for someone else to win the top prize. Brooks, who won the top prize in November, said during an online press conference...
Movie review: ‘Summerland’ a refreshing take on the cozy WWII-era English seaside village dramaVideo
Filmmaker Jessica Swale makes her directorial debut with the poignant “Summerland,” a tale of love and loss, motherhood and myth, set against the sweeping backdrop of Kent, England, and the White Cliffs of Dover during World War II. Gemma Arterton delivers one of her best performances as prickly writer Alice...
Kennedy Township girl set to debut new song after ending run on ‘America’s Got Talent’Video
Ashley Marina Yankello’s run on “America’s Got Talent” came to an end Tuesday night when judge Howie Mandel delivered the news by video link that the Kennedy Township singer would not be advancing to the quarterfinals of the NBC-TV competition. According to Mandel, the decision to eliminate the youth from...
Westmoreland Symphony musicians plan ‘Live on the Lawn’ concert
A quartet of Westmoreland Symphony Orchestra string musicians will be “Live on the Lawn” Friday on the grounds of the Greensburg Garden and Civic Center. The concert, beginning at 7 p.m., features the WSO String Quartet — violinists Dena Miller and Samantha Nelson, Sarah Ferrell on cello and Sasha Shapiro...
‘Watchmen,’ ‘Mrs. Maisel,’ ‘Ozark’ lead Emmy nominees
LOS ANGELES — “Watchmen,” cloaked in superhero mythology and grounded in real-world racism, received a leading 26 nominations Tuesday for the prime-time Emmy Awards. The series, which captured America’s unease as it faces racial clashes amid a pandemic, was nominated as best limited series and received bids for cast members...
Moon teen’s debut record will be released FridayVideo
After winning a national songwriting competition for a Colorado nonprofit, Moon singer-songwriter Maleena Dominick is preparing to release her first record, “Bruises to Prove It,” on July 31. Dominick, 18, a Moon Area High School graduate this year, said writing the album was an emotional process, and a conversation with...
