Hike up the city steps, boogie down at Jellyfest or watch rediscovered shorts by a pioneering Black queer filmmaker. Here's what to do in Pittsburgh this weekend.
Step it up
Pittsburgh loves its city steps, and a Thu., July 20, program at the Heinz History Center brings together two experts. History Center volunteer Lee Ann Draud climbs and photographs the steps; poet Paola Corso writes about them and organizes performance events on them. Both women contribute to “Vertical Bridges: A Presentation & Poetry Reading about Pittsburgh’s City Steps.” Admission to this evening event is free with registration.
Boogie down at Jellyfest
Jellyfish is Pittsburgh’s queer monthly dance party, founded by Stephanie Tsong, Ricky Moslen and Adam Shuck in 2017. This week, it hosts the inaugural Jellyfest. The two-day event welcomes DJs and performers from 10 cities and includes drag acts, a fair for local queer vendors. All are welcome to the Fri., July 21, gatherings at Trace (early) and Cobra (late), and to the big finale at Spirit Lodge, on Sat., July 22.
Edward Owens' rediscovered short films
A trove of rediscovered shorts by a pioneering Black queer filmmaker make their Pittsburgh debut this week. In the 1960s, Chicago-born Edward Owens made a series of color films the Chicago Film Society describes as “home movie portraits composed with an almost beatific glow, the subjects simultaneously intimate and larger-than-life.” The late Owens never completed another film; on Fri., July 21, Pittsburgh Sound + Image screens the restored works in the original 16 mm at Eberle Studios, in Homestead.
'The Treachery of Sounds'
The Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble continues its summer season with a commissioned world premiere. Composer Steven Bryant’s “The Treachery of Sounds” is inspired by the surrealist paintings of René Magritte. A complementary stage presentation features original stories and lyrics, with choreography and dance by Chicago-based Gary Abbott. There are two shows, Fri., July 21, and Sat., July 22, both at City Theatre.
'The Servant of Two Masters'
It’s the gig economy, by way of 1700s Venice: The Pittsburgh Savoyards continue their 86th-season-opening production, Carlo Goldoni’s classic farce “The Servant of Two Masters,” about a guy named Truffaldino, who’s desperately juggling a pair of jobs. Five performances remain through July 29 at the Margaret Partee Performing Arts Center, in Bellevue.
