Kelly Strayhorn Theater

04/23/2025

Class & Open Rehearsal with Freshworks artists Anya Collins THIS Thursday, April 24 at KST's Alloy Studios! 🛡️⚔️

This 60-minute class invites participants to explore the relationship between music and movement through a guided warm-up and learning a segment of choreography. This beginner-friendly class unpacks musical phrasing, adaptability, and embodiment.

A 45-minute open rehearsal with the cast of Fugue will follow the class, where participants can observe an open rehearsal with Anya’s collaborators, offering a behind-the-scenes look at the creative process.

Photo Credit: Joy Holder 📸
🎟️ Tickets: https://kelly-strayhorn.org/events/anyaclass25/

04/17/2025

Freshworks artist Zuly Inrio revealed her creation La Voz que Soy to the world, and we were happy to journey along with her. Through shimmering powerful vocals Zuly was able to cultivate feelings of love, heartbreak, and connecting with one’s self through ancestral lineage. ☀️🌊💙

With the collaboration of enchanting instruments, and eye catching visuals she created a reality that allowed her to express herself as a Black Latinx woman. She even stopped to pay homage to her favorite rapper Cardi B along the way! ✨🎶

View the album from Delaney Greenburg, and be sure to keep an eye out for Zuly’s future projects! 📸

04/16/2025

04/10/2025

Dance into Fugue, the next Freshworks performance from Anya Collins at KST's Alloy Studios on Friday & Saturday, May 2 -3! This work in development reimagines the classical “fugue”—a musical form where musical phrases chase and build on each other—through a modern lens. 🌟👯‍♀️💖

The interplay of music and dance uses fugue’s fragmented structure as a metaphor to embody the struggle between focus and distraction, reflecting how modern life often pulls us away from our true selves. Anya also addresses the historical connection between Baroque music and the exploitation of enslaved people, drawing a parallel to present-day issues of forced labor.

04/04/2025

ATTENTION: Applications for our 25 /26 Freshworks Residency are closing THIS SUNDAY, April 6, at 11:59pm! ✨🤩

Collect all your resources, put your finishing touches on your applications, and don't miss the deadline! 📖🖋️

Click the link in our bio to learn more. 🎶🔗

📸: Lindsay B. Garvin

04/01/2025

Our friends at the Center for Ethnic Studies Research are hosting their 2025 LatinxConnect Conference this week from April 3 - 5th! 🌍⚡

Join scholars and participants from around the world to explore Latinidad and envision thriving futures. This year’s theme, ¡Com(o)unidad! (Com)unidade, (Comm)unity: State of the People, invites bold dialogue, deep reflection, and meaningful connection.

Our Freshworks artist Zuly Inirio's performance of La Voz que Soy THIS Friday & Saturday, April 4 - 5 at KST's Alloy Studios is a featured event for the conference! She was also the Associate Director / Co-Director for the Center for Ethnic Studies Research.

Be sure to check out the impactful programming this weekend! 🙌🏽

03/28/2025

We danced, we sang, and we laughed all while paying homage to the remarkable legacy of Whitney Houston. ✨💜

Congratulations to musical director Dwayne Fulton, lead vocalists Mychole Starr, Chantal Joseph, Anqwenique, Anita Levels, and Kylie Edwards, with support from Katy Cotten, Delana Flowers, and Carmen Miller of the BGVs! 🎶🥁

This all-star ensemble immersed attendees into Whitney’s world with hits ranging from I’m Your Baby Tonight to Heartbreak Hotel, and more! Powerful voices, triumphant musicians, and neon lights made this a night to remember for many. 😍🤩

Thank you to the art lovers and Whitney enthusiasts who shared this moment with us at our theater. 🖤

Relive the night and check out the photo albums from Delaney Greenburg and Beth Barbis. 📸

03/21/2025

Freshworks Artist, Zuly Inirio journeys through La Voz que Soy at KST's Alloy Studios on April 4th and April 5th at 7:30PM! 💖🎤

La Voz que Soy, or The Voice I Am is Zuly's powerful reinterpretation of the 1958 French opera La voix humaine. 🎶

The multidisciplinary performance uses the opera’s original framework—revisiting her past love through a final phone call—to explore colonialism, double consciousness, Black womanhood, and the African diaspora’s legacy. 🫶🏽

🎟️ available via the link in our bio.
📸 Anthony Peterson

03/14/2025

Emerging artists in the Pittsburgh area! Have you submitted your application for our 2025/2026 Freshworks residency yet? 🎶👯👨‍🎨

Don't miss the chance to receive a TWO NIGHT performance at KST Alloy Studios, studio space, production support, and a resource budget! Applications are open NOW and will close on Sunday, April 6 at 11:59pm. 📝

More info and application via the link in our bio. 🔗

03/13/2025

ATTENTION WHITNEY: A Tribute Concert with Dwayne Fulton ( )is officially sold out!! 🎶🔔.

Congrats to the entire ensemble of all star peformers and let’s get ready to dance with somebody THIS SATURDAY!! ♥️👯‍♀️

To celebrate, let’s hear from Carmen Miller (.o.t.u.s_78 ) of the .sing about her favorite Whitney Houston memory. ✨🤩

“Whitney Houston is one of my favorite female vocalists of all time. One of the first songs I ever sang was “The Greatest Love of All”. The emotions I felt from the lyrics combined with her timeless and classic vocals has been a source of inspiration for me. My husband and I are high school sweethearts. Songs like, “Saving All My Love for You” and “I Believe in You and Me” have been a special part of our love story as I serenade my husband during our anniversary each year. Whitney’s music has been woven into key moments in my life. This tribute is the perfect culmination of my experiences with her music. It is an honor to celebrate her legacy.”

See everyone Saturday, March 15! ☺️

03/12/2025

From our Friends!

03/07/2025

Thank you to everyone who joined us for the opening reception of Lifting Liberty, created by Njaimeh Njie ()! ⚡🙌🏽

Our lobby walls are now adorned with stunning images that celebrate the cultural treasures of East Liberty. Check out the visuals, reminisce about your favorite memories, and share any stories about your go-to spots in the neighborhood! 💙

In case you missed it, we revealed details about Owning Our Future: A Symposium on BIPOC Institutional Ownership. The four-day event will be complete with panels, keynote speakers, performances, a neighborhood trolley tour, and an augmented reality app that will allow you to experience East Liberty from the lens of the past. Mark your calendars and join us for the symposium on May, 15 - May 18! 🤩🔮

📸 Be sure to check out the full photo album from the event by Randall Coleman.

03/06/2025

It’s time for a sneak peek of the powerful programming planned for the national Owning Our Future Symposium! 🔮🌎✨

Whether you’re an arts administrator, urban planner, philanthropic leader, real estate developer, or simply passionate about the power of the arts, join KST for an inspiring symposium in Pittsburgh, PA that reimagines the future of cultural spaces—accessible, equitable, and rooted in the strength of BIPOC communities. Dynamic keynotes and panels highlighting emergent models of ownership encompass the four day event capped by performances on the mainstage and in the KST Lounge.

The programs highlight community change makers from Pittsburgh and beyond at the vanguard of BIPOC Institutional ownership. 🤩🔥

Speakers and Artists include: A.I.M by Kyle Abrahamm, Khamil Bailey, Balafon West African Dance Ensemble with Oronde S. Sharif, Terri Baltimore, Sidra Bell Dance New York, Giselle Byrd, Veronica Corpuz, Jesse Factor, Jasmine Hearn, Ken Ikeda, Chris Ivey, Tomashi Jackson, Adrian Jones, Shaddai Livingston, Kilolo Luckett, Adil Mansoor, Jonathan McCrory, Njaimeh Njie, Avanelle “AJ” No Braid, PearlArts Movement & Sound, Cierra Peters, Andy Shallal, slowdanger, Shyla Spicer, Alisha Wormsley, Jasiri X, Lisa Yancey, and more! 🎶🎨👯‍♀️

🎟️ Tickets on sale now via the link in our bio!

***rarts

03/06/2025

🔹We're excited to have slowdanger in the house at KST's Alloy Studios. 🔹

This past week non-binary dance duo slowdanger set up shop in our downstairs studio to plan and cultivate their latest work in development STORY BALLET. 🟢

The work is a surreal dance theater performance that examines Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, re-contextualizing the tale into an evening-length performance exploring the intersection of mental health de-stigmatization and perception, begging the question, what holds us together?

Keep an eye out because the work premieres at KST in Fall 2026. 🔥👀