Illusionist David Blaine to Appear at Byham; Pig Pen’s ‘The Old Man and and The Old Moon’ Continues at City (Thurs., 11/30/17)

Magician David Blaine. photo: MagicMama and Wikipedia.

1) Magician, Illusionist, endurance artist David Blaine will perform at the Byham Theater this month. The New York native has stood on top of a platform at Pier 54 in his hometown with a million volts of electricity directed at his body, protected only by wearing a special suit that allowed the current to pass around his body and not through it. His Electrified stunt lasted for 72 hours during which he did not eat, drink, or sleep. He has sat encased in a block of ice for over 63 hours for his Frozen in Time stunt. In Buried Alive, he put himself in a Plexiglas container over which a three-ton water tank was placed. It was reported that the  plastic coffin had only six inches of headroom and two inches on each side. Wow, can’t wait to see what he has cooked up for the Byham show! Maybe he will have to escape from a room filled to the ceiling with buttered pierogies and onions. 8 p.m. 107 6th St., Cultural District.

2) Calling The Old Man and The Old Moon a “musical,” or more accurately a “play with music,” is an understatement. Theater critics in New York and elsewhere have been left searching for words to describe it—and for superlatives to praise it. It’s an invented mythical story, acted out with the use of shadow puppets, weird DIY stage props, and original Irish-inflected folk-style music played and sung by the actors. It is the work of PigPen Theatre Co., a group of seven Carnegie Mellon alumni currently based in New York. They’ve won a boatload of non-mainstream theater awards and taken shows on the road across the country, while also playing music gigs and self-releasing albums with songs like this one. City Theatre has invited the PigPen crew back to town to give The Old Man and The Old Moon its Pittsburgh premiere. Chicago-based director Stuart Carden, who co-directed the play in San Diego, takes on the same role here. 8 p.m. Performances through December 3. 1300 Bingham St., South Side. PigPen’s visit also includes concerts at nearby Club Cafe on December 4. (MV)

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