This weekend in Pittsburgh, Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens is in full bloom, there’s a Butterfly on 7th Street and an arena is slated to be Rife with laughter.

Pittsburgh Fringe Festival (Thursday-Sunday)

Penn Avenue, from Bloomfield to Friendship and Garfield, will be on the Fringe this weekend with what organizers call “an all-out, no-holds-barred, inclusive multi-disciplinary performing arts festival featuring international, national and local artists.” There will be theater, comedy, visual arts, puppetry, family entertainment, music, dance, spoken word, opera, poetry, literature and more at venues including Mr. Roboto Project, Pittsburgh Glass Center, Level Up Studios, Bloomfield-Garfield Activity Center, Boulevard Studio 100 and other locations.

For details and schedule, go to pittsburghfringe.org

‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?’ (Thursday-Sunday)

Pittsburgh Public Theater sets the table for a tumultuous gathering at the O’Reilly Theater, Downtown. The 1962 Edward Albee classic finds professor George (Daniel Jenkins) and his wife Martha (Tasha Lawrence) inviting a younger couple, Nick and Honey (Dylan Marquis Meyers and Claire Sabatine), over for drinks after a university faculty party. It devolves into a series of “comedically cruel” mind games and “bitter” confrontations, revealing deep-seated resentments and hidden truths about both couples.

Showtimes this weekend are 7 p.m. Thursday; 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday. Tickets start at $35; ppt.org.

‘Birthday Candles’ (Thursday-Sunday)

The fourth show of the City Theatre season is this Noah Haidle comedy that opened on Broadway in April 2022 and follows a woman’s life one birthday at a time. The cast includes Deena Aziz (“American Fast,” 2023), Gavin Lawrence, José Perez, Saige Smith, Andrew William Smith and Robin Walsh. Director Marc Masterson said in a statement, “This beautiful play celebrates rituals and connections on the page and on the stage. There are decades of City Theatre experience in this talented cast.”

Showtimes are 8 p.m. Thursday and Friday; 1 and 5:30 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets start at $35; CityTheatreCompany.org.

Ian Munsick (Friday)

The rising country artist from Wyoming said in a statement that third album “Eagle Feather” (coming April 18) “is rooted in true, personal experiences that have helped create the man I am today,” adding, “I offer this body of work to anyone that loves the freedom that inspires our spirit when we look over a sunset on the mountain. Or the sanctity of returning to the people and places we care about the most.”

He plays Roxian Theatre, McKees Rocks, at 8 p.m. Tickets start at $47; roxiantheatre.com.

Jeremy Piven (Friday)

The Emmy-winning comic who played the pushy agent Ari Gold on “Entourage” makes a tour stop at the Byham Theater, Downtown. Piven also played the title role in the British/PBS series “Mr Selfridge” and recently starred in “The Performance,” a film based on an Arthur Miller short story about a Jewish tap dancer in Nazi Germany.

The show is at 7:30 p.m. Tickets start at $38.50; trustarts.org.

Spring Flower Show (Saturday)

“A Bloom for Every Room” opens at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens with each room dedicated to a different seasonal bloom: tulips, pansies, lilies, etc. They’ll show in shades of yellow, blue, orange and more.

Among the highlights of the show: a sparkling crystal garland above a striking variety of tulips in Palm Court; a rainbow of pansies around the Victoria Room; multi-colored kites above pink, red and orange flowers; a lush garden featuring a cottage with a roof made of living plant material and topiary bees hovering over a field of oversized dandelions.

The show runs through April 20. Hours this weekend run from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Admission is $22.95; $20.95 seniors (62+); 19.95 students (19+); $13.95 kids 2-18; phipps.conservatory.org.

‘Madama Butterfly’ (Saturday)

Pittsburgh Opera will perform the Giacomo Puccini masterpiece, one of the best-loved operas of all time, at the Benedum Center. This production was created by an all-Japanese and Japanese-American creative team and the action takes place in virtual reality. Pinkerton isn’t actually a U.S. navy lieutenant who seduces and abandons a Japanese girl; he’s a gamer using an avatar to live out a fantasy, still set to Puccini’s glittering score.

Performances begin at 8 p.m. Saturday; 7 p.m. Tuesday; 7:30 p.m. March 28; and 2 p.m. March 30. Tickets start at $15; pittsburghopera.org.

Matt Rife (Saturday)

Safe to say the fans who will pack a sold-out PPG Paints Arena are not the types who are easily offended. The comedian from Champaign County, Ohio — whose resume includes “TRL,” “Bring the Funny” and “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” — built his standup following with self-produced specials and TikTok videos. Along the way, he’s stirred his share of controversy, particularly with the domestic violence joke in his 2023 special “Natural Selection” and the prank “apology.”

The show is set for 8 p.m. More info is available at ppgpaintsarena.com.

Rufus Wainwright (Saturday)

The singer-songwriter whose sound was identified as “popera” when he debuted in the late ‘90s will play two shows at City Winery Pittsburgh in the Strip. Wainwright, the son of Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle and older brother of Martha Wainwright, displayed his range on his last two projects, going from folk (“Folkocracy”) to classical “Dream Requiem.” On this tour, he’s playing the favorites from his catalog.

Showtimes are 6 and 9 p.m. Tickets start at $85; pittsburgh.citywinery.com.

Steve and the Millers (Sunday)

The Steve is flutist Steve Sciulli (Carsickness, Plougman’s Lunch, Life in Balance), who’s joined by harpist Stephanie Miller and hammer dulcimer player and percussionist Robert Miller. The ambient ethereal trio will look to create “a drifting textual sound environment” at Rooted in Sound, Aspinwall in celebration of the release of new album “Care” on SSL Records (founded by Steven Machat, who worked with ELO, Genesis, Peter Gabriel and Leonard Cohen).

The show begins at 7 p.m. Tickets are $25. Preregistration is encouraged on the event Facebook page; tinyurl.com/steveandthemillers.

Spyro Gyra (Sunday)

The pioneering jazz-fusion band formed in Buffalo celebrated its 50th anniversary last year with the collection “Jubilee” and now with this tour that stops at The Oaks Theatre in Oakmont. Saxophonist and founder Jay Beckenstein will lead the group — Julio Fernandez (guitar), Chris Fischer (keyboards), Scott Ambush (bass), and Lionel Cordew (drums) — in its blend of jazz, R&B, Latin and world music.

They play at 8 p.m. Tickets start at $45; etix.com.

Desi Banks (Sunday)

In a few leaps, the Atlanta native went from wide receiver at Morehead State (2011-2012) to actor and standup comedian. Having toured with the Mike Epps and Martin Lawrence, he launched The Purpose Chaser Tour in 2024 and is now on The Elevation Tour, stopping at the Byham Theater.

The show begins at 7 p.m. Tickets start at $42.50; trustarts.org.

First Published: March 20, 2025, 9:30 a.m.