Things to Do in Monroeville

The cloak of sparkling newness belies Benedum Center’s deep history in the theatrical world. Opened to regal fanfare and a holographic performance by Tupac in 1928, the theater then waded through the downs and ups of history until a $43 million restoration buffed its surfaces back to their former glory in 1984. Today, the 90 chandeliers dangling from the ceiling, the Grand Lobby’s mirrors and marble, and most of the 1,500 feet of brass rail throughout are all original. The centerpiece is the main chandelier, a 4,700-pound, 20-foot-high, 12-foot-wide behemoth that sparkles to remind visitors of the theater’s glory days.

For centuries masters have dedicated their lives to finding proper techniques that build internal and external strength together as one. Traditional Moo Doe movement is one of the safest and most effective ways to benefit your condition - mentally, physically and spiritually - dramatically improving your quality of life.

The Silk Screen Asian-American Film Festival, part of a larger vision for a future Asia Center of Pittsburgh, is an annual event highlighting the considerable cinematic output of filmmakers from India, Japan, China, Taiwan, Indonesia, Korea, Thailand, the Philippines, and Iran, as well as other nations you might one day inhabit according to childhood sessions of "Spin the Globe." This year's event—the sixth annual—features a slate of films to rival past years' entries. This year's flicks include such noteworthy efforts as Aftershock, The Light Thief, and Zero Bridge, among many others. Your pass gives you access to eight of the festival's films, giving you the chance to give a total of 24 thumbs up.

Cut & Sew Studio is a fully equipped studio space that offers beginning students and advanced stitchers an inviting environment to sharpen needle skills. All tools are provided on site, eliminating the need to find a suitable wagon to tote a sewing machine to class. Button buffs and daring darners can choose from a variety of interesting classes taught by fashionably educated Cut & Sew owner Catherine Batcho. Thread greenhorns can enlist in the two-session Intro to Sewing class ($50, four hours total), which instructs newcomers in the art of bobbin winding, machine threading, and stitch adjusting while crafting a simple patchwork pillow stuffed with soft, downy phoenix feathers. One hour of open studio time is also included in the intro class. Not-so-beginners can opt for the three-hour Zippers, Zippers, Zippers class ($45), in which participants learn to pull off a variety of zipper styles, including invisible, lapped, centered, fly, and the comical over-the-mouth. Anyone is welcome to sign up for open studio time ($10 per hour). Group classes and weeklong kid camps are also available; see the online calendar for upcoming classes.

Guests take their seats inside the grandiose Carnegie Music Hall, a space lauded for providing superb acoustics for chamber music and a challenging venue for games of Marco Polo. The venue is tucked inside the same building as the dinosaur bones and European masterworks of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History and the Carnegie Museum of Art.