This season, three alumni of the School of Drama’s Dramatic Writing program are returning to Pittsburgh with productions at three different professional theater companies, bringing their distinctive voices, creative vision, and years of professional experience back to the city where their journeys began. These productions highlight not only the talent and ambition nurtured by the program, but also its lasting influence on the theater industry, as graduates continue to shape the stories being told on stages here in Pittsburgh and beyond. Catch their work this season!
MFA Dramatic Writing, 1986
Yussef El Guindi
Yussef El Guindi returns to the Pittsburgh stage with Refugee Rhapsody, now playing at PICT Classic Theatre through October 25. This dark comedy explores the intersections of race, class, privilege, and the refugee experience when a chance encounter between a wealthy heiress and a young Arab American couple escalates into a violent crime. Born in Egypt and raised in London, and currently located in Seattle—El Guindi is renowned for plays that examine the intersection of ethnicities, cultures, and the political realities facing immigrants.
MFA Dramatic Writing, 2012
Liza Birkenmeier
Liza Birkenmeier brings a new play to Pittsburgh with radio island, a world premiere at Quantum Theatre running October 23 through November 15. Directed by fellow Carnegie Mellon alumna, and recently named new Artistic Director of Quantum Theatre, Katie Brook (MFA Directing, 2012), this production follows an international hostage negotiator returning to her childhood home, where buried histories and unresolved relationships begin to surface. The production reunites three School of Drama alumni, including Treasure Treasure (BFA Acting/MT, 2013), in a collaboration that showcases the continued impact of CMU artists on Pittsburgh’s adventurous contemporary theatre scene.
MFA Dramatic Writing, 2004
Matt Schatz
Matt Schatz explores the increasingly complicated relationship between people and artificial intelligence in Bobby Robotowitz, a world premiere at City Theatre running January 23 through February 14, 2027. The play follows a novelist and mother who turns to a chatbot for writing assistance, only to discover that a seemingly simple solution can spiral into something far more chaotic. With a premise rooted in the everyday realities of emerging technology, Schatz brings a witty, dark, and comedic perspective to questions about creativity, authorship, and the consequences of relying on machines. The upcoming production offers Pittsburgh audiences an opportunity to experience a new work engaging with one of the most rapidly evolving questions facing artists today.
Unparalleled industry connections and professional channels for aspiring stage and screen writers–
Dramatic Writing MFA
Content Writer
Madison Lefever