Bal Srinivasan on Pittsburgh Public Theater’s50th Season & Community Engagement Downtown
Written by Molly Green
The Pittsburgh Public Theater, located at the O’Reilly Theater Downtown, engages the diverse Pittsburgh community and champions local art creation and education. The 2024-25 season marks the Public’s 50th year of high quality theater.
The Public’s 50 Voices Project showcases the voices of artists, team members, and friends of the theater who have contributed to the Public’s great community impact. One of these voices is the PPT Board of Trustees Chairman, Bal Srinivasan. The Board primarily governs and oversees the activities of the theater, but such considerations as fiduciary oversight have to be “balanced with the artistic excellence of the Theater.”
When Srinivasan moved to Pittsburgh after graduating from college, he fell in love with the city and the arts. He aims to “be an ambassador and advocate for the Public Theater and for the art…to be the voice of the person who doesn’t really come from this arena but…can attract, hopefully, others that feel that way.” He has been attending performances at the Public since the late 90’s but his relationship with the Public deepened during the 2019 production of Marjorie Prime that “viscerally” explored AI ethics and had several post-show engagement activities. Artistic Director, Marya Sea Kaminski, was soon in conversation with Srinivasan after witnessing his passion for the production. Srinivasan describes himself as a “junkie of the [Public] Theater.” Some recent PPT productions that stuck with him include Billy Strayhorn: Something to Live For, Midsummer Night’s Dream in Harlem, The Hobbit, and Dragon Lady.
In the last decade, the Public has faced its fair share of challenges. Between battling post-pandemic expectations and competing with streaming services in fighting for attention, the Public Theater must carefully consider audience wants and needs. Regardless, Srinivasan is looking forward to the next 50 years. He claims, “There’s nothing like live performances…sitting there and sharing that space with the actors and feeling it, being part of that energy.” In addition to being a unique art form, theatre engages with and builds community. Hence, the Public Theater is vital to Downtown Pittsburgh. Srinivasan emphasizes, “A lot of the works represent and reflect our community in Pittsburgh.”
The Public makes it a priority to support local artists, writers, and students. Take The Coffin Maker, for instance, a play written by Mark Clayton Southers, a local Pittsburgh playwright. PPT holds summer sessions for youth and adults, and their Shakespeare Monologue & Scene Contest, for student grades 4-12, has been an exciting annual tradition for 30 years.
The Pittsburgh Public Theater is aptly named as it is indeed a theater by and for the public. Bal Srinivasan attests that PPT offers a space that is inspirational, expressive, and welcoming to all. “Even though I don’t personally know how to make it or to appreciate it with the eye of a critic…what I take away from it is how it makes me feel when I’m in there and what I walk away with…I think everybody should experience that, and the Public [Theater] brings that to Downtown Pittsburgh.”
From Feb. 5 to Feb. 23, 2025, the Public has performances of Trouble in Mind, “a visionary satire once banished from Broadway.” In June, the season will conclude with Public Works’ production of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. For a full listing of productions and to learn more about PPT’s mission, check out their website here.
