off the WALL productions at Carnegie Stage A Pittsburgh Theater

Guest Blogger: Liz Beck - Senior RMU This is why we can’t have nice things!             It’s a phrase I’ve used many times. Usually, I say it when I’ve embarrassed myself. Other times, I’ve said it in a fit of desperation, after I’ve just seen someone of my own generation doing or saying something incredibly stupid on the Internet. We can’t have nice things because this guy is an asshole. We can’t have nice things because, once again, the Millenials have taken man buns to an unprecedented extreme. We can’t have nice things because one guy thought it was okay to run for president and, well, here we are.             Like I said, I’m a big fan of this phrase. So when I heard that this was the title of the latest venture at Off the Wall Theatre singularly starring Heidi Nagle, I was both extremely curious and excited. Finally, someone was going to dive into the same phenomeno...

After staging the  in-repertory production of the World Premiere of Mother Lode by Artistic Director Virginia Wall Gruenert (Shaken & Stirred, Without Ruth) in January of 2016, off the WALL productions now is presenting the third and final run. The often contentious relationships between mothers and daughters will no doubt keep therapists in business for years to come, but there is no denying the deep bond that exists between them.  Mother Lode tells the story of Pittsburgh actor Linda Haston’s mother, Ruth, a force of nature who leaves Jim Crow Alabama as a teen to work and raise her family in Pittsburgh’s Hill District.  This one-woman show deals with the end-of-life decisions that must be made by dutiful daughters, as well as the discord, conciliation, warfare, and ultimate acceptance between strong, independent women bound by love and family. Written by Virginia Wall Gruenert Directed by Virginia Wall Gruenert and Spencer Whale Starring Linda ...