Millvale Music Festival Kicks Off; Pittsburgh Ballet Opens ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ at Benedum (Fri., 5/15/26)

Friday, May 15 and Saturday, May 16

The free Millvale Music Festival returns for its annual showcase of myriad local musicians, who will play indoor venues, like Mr. Smalls, and outdoor venues, like the GAP Park. The event promises over 350 acts on 32 stages plus 60 visual artists, spoken word performers, comedians, and food trucks. Performances include many of the top names in local musical talent and lesser-known acts who can put on a good show too. Check the festival’s website for a full lineup and list of venues, which include popular bars, cafés, parklets, and craft breweries. All over Millvale. (R.H.)

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM (ballet inspired by Shakespeare’s comedy). Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre. May 15 – 17. 

If brand-name prestige matters to you, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre is presenting a ballet by a legendary modern choreographer, who adapted it from a legendary play by the most legendary of playwrights. That is Ben Stevenson’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream in a nutshell—although the ballet itself unfolds far beyond the confines of a nutshell. The setting is a surreal forest, where the exuberant trickster, Puck, dances and whirls up a mischievous storm. And of course there’s plenty of mischief already afoot, as the king and queen of the fairies and two pairs of human lovers dance their mating games and their domestic disputes. There’s a troupe of affiliated fairies fluttering about, flying to quite different rhythms than the swans in Swan Lake. You even get to see a dancer grow a dorky donkey’s head. The overall result is what has made Shakespeare’s play so popular—an experience that is enchanting and comical at the same time. The ballet is set to music by Mendelssohn, and PBT has the Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh adding vocalization to the sounds of the company’s orchestra. See A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Benedum Center, 237 7th St. Cultural District. (M.V.) 

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