PICT to Host 3rd Annual UNCOMMON PLEAS Event

Passions will run high at PICT Classic Theatre's third annual UnCommon Pleas. The Court of UnCommon Pleas will convene on April 7, 2016, at 6 p.m., at the Duquesne Club- a fitting forum to hear the appeal of The Merchant of Venice.

Shylock, a moneylender in 16th century Venice, insists that Antonio, the Merchant of Venice, part with a pound of his flesh as he promised to secure a loan now in default. Antonio prepares for the knife, but then Portia appears in court, disguised as a man and pretending to be an expert on Venetian law. Can she save Antonio and turn the scales of justice against Shylock? Is Portia actually a villain defrauding the court and Shylock of his property? Is Shylock the victim of 16th century anti-Semitism?

These issues will play out before a lively panel of federal and state judges, who will hear the evidence presented by a distinguished cast. Stephanie Gill, Vice President and General Counsel of Consol Energy will play shrewd Portia; Bryan Kocher, Senior Counsel at Wesco, Inc., will play the honorable Antonio; and W. Thomas McGough, Jr., Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer of UPMC, will play the wronged Shylock. Appearing as Court Bailiff will be James FitzGerald, named Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Performer of the Year in 2015. Feisty advocates from local law firms will argue the fate of our cast of characters.

This legal theatrical event, featuring cocktails and a three-course dinner, is open to the public and will entertain everyone who likes a good tale well-told. Seating is limited, as past UnCommon Pleas events have filled the main dining room in the Duquesne club.

Co-sponsors are the Arts and Law Committee, Homer S. Brown Division, and Young Lawyers Division of the Allegheny County Bar Association. Part of the proceeds will benefit the Allegheny County Bar Foundation to support its programs assisting the disadvantaged. Co-chairs are PICT Classic Theatre Board member Chuck Moellenberg, a partner at Jones Day, and his wife, Karen, and Hayley Haldeman, a Jones Day attorney and chair of the ACBA Arts and Law Committee.

PICT plans to produce The Merchant of Venice in November 2016. Alan Stanford, PICT's Artistic & Executive Director, comments: "Like our production, UnCommon Pleas will explore the motivations of Shylock and other scheming characters in The Merchant of Venice, but with light-hearted jesting and jousting. I'm quite curious whether our judges and audience will see Shylock as the victim rather than the villain. Will they allow revenge or insist on mercy? I can't wait to see how they vote."

Tickets are $225/person, or $160/person and $295/couple for members of the Arts & Law Committee, Homer S. Brown Division, and Young Lawyers Division of the ACBA. Tickets can be purchased at 412-561-6000 or by clicking here. Sponsorships are available at various ranges with a host of benefits and the opportunity to become involved in the event. Program advertisers are also sought.

PICT Classic Theatre is committed to the creation of high quality, professional, and thought-provoking theater of substance. We accomplish this mission by investing in and promoting the community and region, and by producing and presenting classics and the "modern" classics of Irish and world theater. We continue to explore innovative ideas that showcase the emotional power of a play and its ability to stir the soul in unimaginable ways.

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