‘Weird Al’ Yankovic Brings His Silly Fun to Benedum; Apple Hill Staging ‘Death By Fatal Murder’ (Fri., 9/16/16)

1) “Weird Al” Yankovic returns to the region for the second time in a little over a year. In 2015, Yankovic played The Palace Theatre in Greensburg; this month, he plays the Benedum Center downtown. He will be performing cuts from his latest album, 2014’s Mandatory Fun, his first number one album in a career which spans four decades of such satire. Songs from that album include “Tacky,” a lampoon of Pharrell Williams’ “Happy,” and “Foil,” his take on Lorde’s “Royals.” Yankovic recently performed “Foil” on “Conan” as part of Conan O’Brien’s coverage of the 2016 San Diego Comic-Con. On the acclaimed Netflix series “BoJack Horseman,” Yankovic has voiced Captain Peanutbutter. For Yankovic’s show at the Benedum, expect not only “mandatory fun” but also plenty of video interludes from past movie and TV appearances. He’s also sure to don the fat suit that he wore in the video for “Fat,” a parody of Michael Jackson’s “Bad.” “White & Nerdy” was another hilarious top hit for Yankovic. 8 p.m. 237 7th St., Cultural District (CM)

2) Fans of the late Peter Sellers’ Inspector Clouseau movies may get a charge out of another bumbling British detective, playwright Peter Gordon’s Inspector Pratt. The clueless sleuth is the hero of a trilogy of Gordon comedies—and Apple Hill Playhouse, having previously done Murdered to Death and Secondary Cause of Death, now presents the third and (until further notice) final Pratt-fall, Death by Fatal Murder. Patrons who missed the first two should have no trouble following this one. The plot quickly becomes clear, although Pratt of course never quite achieves that blessed state. Death by Fatal Murder is reputed to include some of the Inspector’s funniest scenes. The Apple Hill gang has actor/director Rick Dutrow reprising his prior role as Pratt, so continuity of dramatic intent should be evident. 7:30 p.m. Ends tomorrow. 275 Manor Rd., Delmont. (MV)

The hat, the hat! Clad in crowning glory, lonesome Shirley (Karen Baum) sees brighter days ahead in PICT’s “Shirley Valentine.”

3) Once again, PICT Classic Theatre kicks off a season with a Willy Russell play, but this time it’s different. Last year PICT began its final season at Pitt’s Charity Randall Theatre with Russell’s comedy/drama Educating Rita. Now the company is christening its new home—the Union Project in Highland Park—with the British playwright’s Shirley Valentine. The plays have a similar theme, as both are about middle-aged working-class women who feel confined by their lives and aspire to something more. But whereas Rita dealt with a brassy hairdresser who goes to college to study literature, Shirley gives us a quirky and introspective housewife who goes off to Greece on a fling. Shirley Valentine is a one-person play in which the title character relates and re-enacts the whole story. The London production won the 1988 Laurence Olivier Award (England’s equivalent of a Tony Award) for Best New Comedy, while the tour-de-force role helped to skyrocket the career of actress Pauline Collins. PICT has Karen Baum as Shirley, which is no coincidence: Baum played Rita in last year’s opener. 8 p.m. Ends tomorrow. At the Union Project, 801 N. Negley Ave., Highland Park. (MV)

Share on Social Media