A New Chapter Begins July 31
We’ve said the word “merger” a lot in this newsletter. This week, we want to tell you what’s actually happening on July 31, in the down-and-dirty legal version.
Pittsburgh Public Theater and Pittsburgh CLO have executed an Agreement and Plan of Affiliation. We know it sounds more like required reading than opening night, but this is the document doing the real work behind the curtain. On July 31, the affiliation will formally take effect, making our new organizational structure official.
Here’s what that means in practice: PPT and CLO are establishing a single governance structure. This isn’t a dissolution of either institution. It’s a shared structure built on top of the strengths, histories, and identities that already exist. We'll have a new leadership model, including a reshaped board of directors and new staff positions geared toward true organizational sustainability. With those pieces in place, we’ll be on our way to finishing the unification work that’s been underway for months.
We know “Plan of Affiliation” is new language to a lot of us. Thanks for sticking with us through the legalese.
For an audio perspective on what’s ahead, listen in as our board chair, Tom McGough, sat down with WQED’s Jim Cunningham in Voice of the Arts.
Calling all Artists
Save the Date: Thursday, August 20 | 5-6:30 p.m.
Early enough to make your call time if you’re in a show!
We’re bringing together the people who actually make this work sing, literally and figuratively. Our Artist Gathering on Thursday, August 20 is a chance to connect with artists and producing companies from across the area. Building a stronger artistic community is at the heart of why we’re creating this new company.
Making a List and Checking it Twice
The work doesn’t stop while we count down to July 31.
Beyond the Unification Team’s work — PPT and CLO staff sitting down together to build the future organization — we’re teaming up with the Cultural District on this year’s Christmas in July promotion, running through Sunday, July 26. This annual celebration offers deep discounts on Cultural District shows. This year it includes two productions that will be produced by the new company for the first time: Who’s Holiday! and A Musical Christmas Carol. Visit CulturalDistrict.org and use code XMASINJULY to unlock savings.
Next up, we’ll put How Shakespeare Saved My Life on sale — an exciting new production that welcomes Gene Kelly Award winner Jacob Ming-Trent home to The O’Reilly stage for the first time.
This collaboration isn’t just paperwork. We’re aligning our box office strategy, sharing expertise, and building the systems and practices that will help create a sustainable future for the new company.
In the Spotlight:
“Nonprofit AI Adoption Hits 92%, But Only 7% See Major Impact” — NonProfit PRO
Why it matters: A benchmark study of 346 nonprofits found nearly universal AI use, but only 7% reporting real gains in what their teams can do — and almost half operating with no governance policy at all. The lesson isn’t that the technology underdelivers; it’s that tools alone don’t move an organization. The gains come from shared standards, clean processes, and staff who know how the work is supposed to get done. Growing our advanced-technology capability is part of our organizational design.
“The Cultural Horizon: 2026” — The Audience Agency
Why it matters: Another take on as similar issues. Many cultural organizations are rushing to use AI while ignoring the quality of the data underneath it. A model is only as good as what you feed it. Messy patron records don’t get smarter with a smarter tool on top. This is the heart of the improved-data-accessibility work: getting our audience information clean, unified, and usable is what makes everything downstream possible.