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Asides: Pittsburgh Irish & Classical Theatre and Fred Rogers
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Curtains come down in the theater all the time, but the way it fell on Andrew Paul last week was hardly routine; it was just plain rude. Mr. Paul was artistic director of the Pittsburgh Irish & Classical Theatre, which he co-founded 17 years ago. His board of directors fired him just as he was about to return to Pittsburgh to rehearse the first of four plays he was directing this season. For the last two years, he has lived part of the year in Las Vegas, where his wife works, and part in Pittsburgh, a factor cited in his firing. This new script turns out to be a mystery. PICT was running efficiently on a tight budget and its artistic success was not in question. Indeed, the Post-Gazette had chosen PICT performances for best play three years running. For firing someone who was instrumental in forming the company, and without notice, we give the board a hearty boo for its behavior.
FRED ROGERS, a wise and soothing friend for generations of young TV viewers, died 10 years ago on Feb. 27. But that did not end his beautiful days in the neighborhood. As documented by a Post-Gazette story on the anniversary of this death, Fred Rogers' legacy lives on. It didn't take long for this to be revealed. In September of the year he died, the Fred M. Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children's media was established at St. Vincent College (a $14 million building on the Latrobe campus opened in 2008). There have been regular milestones since. They include a statue of Mister Rogers unveiled near Heinz Field in 2009 and an animated series on PBS called "Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood" in 2012. Just recently, after the terrible mass shooting at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., a video of Fred Rogers' words went viral. An old-fashioned voice of compassion still has something to say in the age of social media.
First Published March 3, 2013 12:00 am
