Playhouse opens its doors

Open House at City Theatre 1300 Bingham St. 412-431-CITY Friday, September 7 5 p.m. -… Open House at City Theatre 1300 Bingham St. 412-431-CITY Friday, September 7 5 p.m. – 10 p.m.

Want to see a new and riveting play but not sure where or when to go?

City Theatre has your answer. Located one block off of Carson Street in the South Side, this Pittsburgh staple is a playhouse specializing in contemporary plays that appeal to diverse theater-goers.

With a variety of shows, it’s important to know what type of play will appeal to people individually. So to begin its 2007-2008 season, City Theatre is holding an open house on Sept7.

According to Tracy Brigden, City Theatre’s artistic director, the open house is a free way to get to know what goes on at the venue.

“It’s sort of an all-access pass,” she added.

In addition to the 270-seat Mainstage, City Theatre also operates the adjacent 100-seat Hamburg Studio Theatre, which is dedicated to independently produced shows, and the Gordon Lounge.

The open house will include a sneak preview of the season’s forthcoming productions, and a complementary taste of the South Side provided by neighborhood restaurants and a cash bar.

The year’s season includes six plays, two festivals and “Sister’s Christmas Catechism,” a comical special engagement running during the month of December.

The first play of the season is Helen Edmundson’s “Mother Teresa is Dead,” which opens Oct. 4 and is the play’s American debut. The play is a British piece about a man in search of his wife, who he finds in India. Described as a tense drama, the woman, Jane, is pulled by her husband, a British expatriate she is living with and Srinivas, a charismatic leader.

Other plays include Jeffery Hatcher’s black comedy “Murderers” and Lauren Weedman’s “Bust,” which The Seattle Times described as “rife with hilarity and home truths gleaned the hard way.”

The City Theatre is also holding the world premiere of “The 13th of Paris,” a romantic comedy by Mat Smart.

City Theatre’s two festivals include “Young Playwrights Festival” and “Momentum: new plays at different stages.”

Under the artistic direction of Brigden, City Theatre has continually brought great shows to the South Side and with this open house everyone can get a sneak peek at what’s to come.

“All of our shows are modern, challenging and often cutting-edge,” Bridgen said, pointing out that the writer of “The 13th of Paris,” Smart, 32, is a very young playwright not too much older than college 20-somethings.

“In that way we are kind of the HBO of theatre venues,” she added.