We brought our big purple hands to the South Side of Pittsburgh on May 28 for the first OpenStreetsPGH event of 2023. We love these events, which open miles of city streets for people to walk, run, bike, and explore spaces that would otherwise be used by motor vehicles.
The event series is organized by Bike Pittsburgh, a non-profit organization that works to make Pittsburgh safe and accessible for everyone to bike and walk.
We lent a hand to help open a brand new venue: Steelhouse Omaha in Nebraska. We performed Hand to Hand as part of their inaugural family weekend in May. The venue was fantastic, and so were the people.
It also marked our first gig in Nebraska, making it the 36th state we have Squonked!
We took Hand to Hand to the largest STEM event in Ohio: COSI’s Science Festival. We were part of the Big Science Celebration in Columbus, where we performed Hand to Hand and presented “It’s a Gas!”—a demonstration showing gas as a visible and powerful fluid. We enjoyed seeing all the other science explorations. And we even got to walk through a giant inflatable colon!
We kicked off our 2023 Hand to Hand tour in Austin, Texas, at the Waterloo Green Fest on April 23. It was our first appearance in Austin, but we hope not our last!
A huge thanks to all the folks at Waterloo Greenway and the Moody Amphitheatre. Photos by Suzanne Cordeiro.
It’s almost time to take Hand to Hand back out on the road! We’re packing up the giant purple puppets and kicking things off in Austin, Texas. It’s our first time performing there, and we promise to do our best to “keep Austin weird.”
We’ll then head to Columbus, Ohio, for Ohio’s largest STEM event: the COSI Science Festival. It’s hands-on science fun, which is right up our alley.
We’ll also help Omaha Performing Arts open its brand new performance space: Steelhouse Omaha.
In between our tour dates, we’re feverishly working on a boisterous new participatory work. It features a truck-sized musical instrument that everyone can play along with us. With deep foghorns driven by hand-operated bellows, we will roar, sputter, and squonk together.
Austin, Texas: Waterloo Green Fest on April 23 at 1 and 3 p.m.
Columbus, OH: Center of Science and Industry on May 6 at 12:15, 1:45 and 3:45 p.m.
Omaha, NE: Omaha Performing Arts on May 20 and 21 at 1:45 and 4:45 p.m.
As part of its 30th anniversary, Squonk performed and presented workshops in 18 Pittsburgh-area communities as part of “Squonk in the Neighborhood” this year, reaching 20,000 audience members.
Started in 2021, “Squonk in the Neighborhood” creates a safe and inclusive post-pandemic celebration of public life, civic space and community connection. This year, Squonk performed Hand to Hand, a joyous, participatory event that brings audiences together for a humorous, uplifting visual extravaganza. Propelled by Squonk’s rollicking music, the show features two giant purple puppet hands, designed so the audience can grab the rigging and be part of the show. The performances were complemented by residency activities and STEAM-based workshops that help audiences develop critical skills and creativity to become engaged citizens.
“Squonk's performance tied in perfectly to the heart of what OpenStreetsPGH is about— creating people-centered spaces and truly unique experiences on our city streets,” said Kéya Joseph, Director of Events, Bike PGH.
“Squonk made our Earth Day event something truly unique, memorable, inspirational, amazing,” said Matt Peters, Community Garden Manager, Hazelwood Initiative.
Our 2022 engagements kicked off April 23 in Hazelwood with a full performance of Hand to Hand as part of an Earth Day Celebration hosted by the Hazelwood Initiative. Other full performances included Kids to Parks Day on May 21 at Oakland’s Schenley Plaza in partnership with the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy, the City of Pittsburgh’s 2022 Independence Day Celebration on July 4 at Point State Park, and the Hands-on Science Showdown on September 13 at the Rachel Carson Bridge, presented by the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh and the Carnegie Science Center.
Squonk also led hands-on STEAM workshops and interactive play with 25-foot-tall hands, as well as presentations about Squonk’s history and creative process in:
Bloomfield (with UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh)
Carnegie (with Boys & Girls Clubs of Western Pennsylvania)
Duquesne (with Boys & Girls Clubs of Western Pennsylvania)
Garfield (with Assemble)
Lawrenceville (with Boys & Girls Clubs of Western Pennsylvania)
McKees Rocks (with Focus on Renewal, Sto-Rox Neighborhood Corporation, Father Ryan's Art Center, Boys & Girls Clubs of WPA, McKees Rocks Community Development Corporation, and McKees Rocks VFD Station 189)
Millvale (with Boys & Girls Clubs of Western Pennsylvania)
Natrona Heights (with Artist Bill Godfrey and Natrona Community Park)
Plum (with Devereux Health/TCVCS)
Penn Hills (with Boys & Girls Clubs of Western Pennsylvania)
Strip District (with BikePGH for Open Streets PGH event)
Turtle Creek (with Propel East)
Vandergrift (with Vandergrift Artfest, Vandergrift Public Library and Vandergrift Improvement Program)
Wilmerding (with Westinghouse Arts Academy)
Photos by Heather Mull and John Altdorfer.
Squonk in the Neighborhood continues on September 14 with performances of Hand to Hand as part of the Hands-on Science Showdown. Presented by the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh and the Carnegie Science Center, this community event features the best in science demonstrations and shows from educators around the country and local organizations.
Squonk will perform Hand to Hand at 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. The event takes place at the Rachel Carson Bridge (Ninth Street) from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
School groups wishing to attend as part of a field trip should reserve space in advance. The general public does not need reservations.
What to expect:
Amazing science demonstrations and activities from the ASTC community and Pittsburgh-based organizations, including members of the Remake Learning network
Projects by local makers and maker organizations
Steamroller prints
Car Take Apart
Performances by Squonk
PNC Mobile Learning Adventure
Food trucks for the best of Pittsburgh’s cuisine
The event is part of RADical Days presented by the Allegheny Regional Asset District. It is also associated with the 2022 Annual Conference of the Association of Science and Technology Centers, which will bring together more than 1,000 professionals from around the world who work at science and technology centers and museums and other organizations committed to engaging the public with science.
Squonk will perform Hand to Hand as part of the City of Pittsburgh’s 2022 Independence Day Celebration and Fireworks on Monday, July 4, at Point State Park.
Festivities will include free musical entertainment by East Winds Symphonic Band and River City Brass, a family activities area, line dancing sessions, performances of Squonk’s Hand to Hand, and much more.
Squonk will perform at 5 and 7 p.m. The City's official Independence Day Fireworks, presented by Zambelli, will begin at 9:35 pm.
All guests will be required to go through a light security screening at park entrances. For a full schedule and a list of prohibited items, visit the City’s website.
Kids help operate a giant puppet hand as part of Squonk in the Neighborhood.
Squonk in the Neighborhood continues at Oakland's Schenley Plaza on May 21 at 4 p.m. We'll be performing Hand to Hand as part of Kids to Parks Day, hosted by the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy. The event starts at noon and features a storyboard walk and other family-friendly activities. The PNC Carousel will be open for people of all ages to enjoy!
Schenley Plaza is at 4100 Forbes Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15260.
We kick off our 2022 Squonk in the Neighborhood program in Hazelwood on Saturday, April 23, with a performance at 5 p.m.
Hazelwood Initiative, Inc. has organized a full day of music, dancing and planting with Izaak Walton League of America, Sierra Club, Grow Pittsburgh, Tree Pittsburgh and others. Also performing are Larry Estep and Friends, 4th River Music Collective, Last Chance Square Dance, and Climate Friendly String Band. Local food vendors too! Come early and bring the whole family!
The event takes place at 4901 Second Ave in Hazelwood and runs from 12 to 6 pm. The Squonk performance of Hand to Hand is at 5 pm (followed by a backstage tour).
Special thanks also to sponsors The Mission Continues, Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, Grounded, ZeroFossil, Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy, Involvemint, and Worm Return.
We’ve got a busy and exciting 2022 season, with lots of touring and local shows. From Tulsa to Fort Worth, Providence to Raleigh, Calgary to St. Paul, and many cities in between, we will be spreading joy and asking audience members to “pull our fingers.”…those giant inflatable purple ones, of course. We’re planning several Squonk in the Neighborhood events, both shows and workshops, throughout our hometown of Pittsburgh, starting with a special Earth Day celebration in April. All dates can be found on our homepage…more to be added soon. Hope to see you!
We can’t tell you how excited we are to perform again! In our nearly 30 years of Squonking, we have never gone this long without doing a show! But we wanted to be safe and do the responsible thing. Now that we seem to be slowly coming out of this pandemic (and we’re vaccinated!), it’s time to Squonk yet again! We’ll start with a new local series here in Pittsburgh, funded by the NEA and several generous regional funders, called Squonk in the Neighborhood. Shows start in mid-July. In mid-August, we head back out on the road. We’ve even got some 2022 dates cooking, which we’ll update you about later. See above (and on our Hand to Hand page) for 2021 details. See you all soon (feels great to say that!)!
We’ve had a busy winter and spring this year, creating and rehearsing our newest production, Hand to Hand, set to start its multi-city premiere next week. In the midst of creation, we found time to ride our Cycle Sonic bikes in the Asbury Park St. Patrick’s Day Parade (for the 2nd year in a row!), at the Columbus Public Library and the RiverCenter for the Performing Arts in Georgia (first time there…had a great time!), and at the Flint Hills Family Festival in St. Paul, MN (we always love being a part of this event!).
And now it’s time to get Hand to Hand out on the road! This new outdoor spectacle, with hands the size of a house and manually rigged like sailing ships, is being co-commissioned by presenters in 6 cities nationally: Artscape (Baltimore), The Kennedy Center (Washington, D.C.), FirstWorks (Providence), Moraine Valley Fine and Performing Arts Center (Chicago), Three Rivers Regatta (Pittsburgh), and Discovery Green (Houston).
We hope that you can catch one of the premiere performances. Dates can be found on our website by clicking here.
So far this year, we've driven our Cycle Sonic bikes in the Asbury Park St. Patrick's Day Parade and we've taken the show to Artsplosure in Raleigh, NC (so fun to return to Raleigh!) and to Riverfest in Wichita, KS (our first time there and we had a blast!)! Next up is PVDFest in Providence, RI. This will be our 5th time in Providence and we are thrilled to go back! Then it's back to Pneumatica for shows in Wheeling (WV), Baltimore (MD), Erie (PA), New Castle (PA), and Cleveland (OH). Check our home page for dates! Hope to see you at a show!
We took our bikes out on the road for the Cycle Sonic tour premiere to one of our favorite cities, Baltimore, for their Light City event and had a fabulous time! We paraded around the Inner Harbor and performed the show at night for the first time. Then we were off to Chattanooga to perform for the University of Tennessee's Earth, Wind, and Solar Festival with our Lady Pneumatica. The shows took place in Historic Engel Stadium, our first baseball field set-up (so naturally we hung out in the dug-out). Hoping to go back to Chattanooga soon! Next stop...Houston! We'll be performing Pneumatica for Earth Day on the Avenida. We're excited to make our Houston debut! More details can be found by clicking here.
We’re super excited to be a part of this year’s Thrival Innovation+Music Festival! First, on Tuesday, September 20, Jackie and Steve will be giving a presentation at 4 PM as part of Thrival Innovation. Their talk, entitled “Way Off Broadway: The Post-Industrial Squonk Phenomenon,” takes place at Nova Place on the North Side of Pittsburgh. To get a taste of the talk, check out the podcast Jackie and Steve did with Aaron Watson of Going Deep – click here to listen. Then, on Friday, September 23 and Saturday, September 24, both of our big outdoor shows will be set up at the Carrie Furnaces, the site of this year’s Thrival Festival! On Friday, from 3 to 4 pm, we’ll be riding our crazy Cycle Sonic bikes around and then at midnight we’ll be performing Pneumatica with our giant blue lady! On Saturday, from 11 am to 12 pm, it’s back to the bikes and then another midnight showing of Pneumatica to close out the festival. We’re thrilled to be a part of it all!
Our new outdoor spectacle, Cycle Sonic, will celebrate bicycles, exploding with human power, with stages propelled by our original music…and our own legs! And we’ve just launched our Kickstarter campaign! The show will premiere at Pittsburgh’s Three Rivers Arts Festival and then tour nationally. So you may be asking yourself…What happens when“Pennsylvania’s most interesting ‘band’” (as the Philadelphia Examiner called us a few weekends ago, despite our age-old intra-state animosities) combines circus parades, bike clubs and marching bands? See for yourself by clicking here…https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/squonkopera/cycle-sonic
It’s that time of year again…time to hit the road and get Squonking! This week we’re off to Fort Worth for a return engagement of Pneumatica at Main Street Fort Worth Arts Festival. We had a blast last year and are looking forward to heading back! Shows are April 14 through 17. Then it’s off to the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts. We’re honored to have been invited by the Kimmel Center to be a part of this prestigious event that takes place on April 23. Hope to see you at a show!
Squonk Opera was chosen by the editors of Pittsburgh Magazine as the “Best Marriage of Sights and Sounds” in their annual ‘Best-Of-The-Burgh’ issue. The magazine hits the newsstands soon but you can also read it online here.
We are excited to be returning to Providence, RI to perform in the Providence International Arts Festival on June 13. We last performed there in 2012 with our Roadshow. Read a preview interview with Squonk Co-Artistic Director Steve O’Hearn in Providence Monthly
