A Pittsburgh theater company is bringing Shakespeare to the site of a once mighty steel company's blast furnace.
Quantum Theatre is using the backdrop of the Carrie Furnace for its production of "King Lear," the bard's darkest tragedy. It tells of grief and madness, family values gone wrong and a powerful king brought low.
The theater company's artistic director and founder says being at the site gives a sense of the enormity of the steel industry and the enormity of its collapse. Karla Boos says those are wonderful metaphors for "King Lear."
In this Saturday, May 18, 2019, photo actor Jeffrey Carpenter, portraying the character King Lear, performs in the opening scene of the Quantum Theatre production of Shakespeare's tragedy at the site of the old Carrie steel producing blast furnace in Swissvale, Pa. Karla Boos, the artistic director said using this backdrop gives a sense of the enormity of the steel industry and the enormity of its collapse and those are wonderful metaphors for the play. (AP PhotoKeith Srakocic)
The Carrie Furnaces are the last remaining structures of what was once the thrumming heart of the Homestead Steel Works. The company produced steel used in the Empire State Building, the Brooklyn Bridge and other iconic structures.
The play runs through June 2.
In this Saturday, May 18, 2019, photo actor Tami Dixon, wearing an industrial hardhat while portraying "The Fool" character, performs in the Quantum Theatre production of Shakespeare's "King Lear" at the site of the old Carrie steel producing blast furnace in Swissvale, Pa. Karla Boos, the artistic director said using this backdrop gives a sense of the enormity of the steel industry and the enormity of its collapse and those are wonderful metaphors for the play. (AP PhotoKeith Srakocic)
**HOLD FOR STORY BY KRISTEN DE GROOT**In this photo made on Saturday, May 18, 2019, actor Jeffrey Carpenter, portraying the character King Lear, performs in the opening scene of the Quantum Theatre production of Shakespeare's tragedy at the site of the old Carrie steel producing blast furnace in Swissvale, Pa.Karla Boos, the artistic director said using this backdrop gives a sense of the enormity of the steel industry and the enormity of its collapse and those are wonderful metaphors for "King Lear." It tells of grief and madness, family values gone wrong and a powerful king brought low. The Carrie Furnaces are the last remaining structures of the Homestead Steel Works. (AP PhotoKeith Srakocic)
In this Saturday, May 18, 2019, photo actor Jeffrey Carpenter, portraying the character King Lear, performs in the Quantum Theatre production of Shakespeare's tragedy at the site of the old Carrie steel producing blast furnace in Swissvale, Pa. Karla Boos, the artistic director said using this backdrop gives a sense of the enormity of the steel industry and the enormity of its collapse and those are wonderful metaphors for "King Lear." (AP PhotoKeith Srakocic)
TOKYO (AP) — The American envoy to the United Nations called Friday for countries armed with atomic weapons to pursue nuclear disarmament as she visited the atomic bomb museum in Nagasaki, Japan.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who became the first U.S. cabinet member to visit Nagasaki, stressed the importance of dialogue and diplomacy amid a growing nuclear threat in the region.
“We must continue to work together to create an environment for nuclear disarmament. We must continue to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons in every corner of the world,” she said after a tour of the atomic bomb museum.
“For those of us who already have those weapons, we must pursue arms control. We can and must work to ensure that Nagasaki is the last place to ever experience the horror of nuclear weapons,” she added, standing in front of colorful hanging origami cranes, a symbol of peace.
The United States dropped the world’s first atomic bomb on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, destroying the city and killing 140,000 people. A second attack three days later on Nagasaki killed 70,000 more people. Japan surrendered on Aug. 15, ending World War II and its nearly half-century of aggression in Asia.
Nagasaki Gov. Kengo Oishi said in a statement that he believed Thomas-Greenfield's visit and her first-person experience at the museum “will be a strong message in promoting momentum of nuclear disarmament for the international society at a time the world faces a severe environment surrounding atomic weapons.”
Oishi said he conveyed to the ambassador the increasingly important role of Nagasaki and Hiroshima in emphasizing the need of nuclear disarmament.
Thomas-Greenfield's visit to Japan comes on the heels of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's official visit to the United States last week and is aimed at deepening Washington's trilateral ties with Tokyo and Seoul. During her visit to South Korea earlier this week, she held talks with South Korean officials, met with defectors from North Korea and visited the demilitarized zone.
The ambassador said the United States is looking into setting up a new mechanism for monitoring North Korea's nuclear weapons program. Russia and China have thwarted U.S.-led efforts to step up U.N. sanctions on North Korea over its ballistic missile testing since 2022, underscoring a deepening divide between permanent Security Council members over Russia’s war on Ukraine.
She said it would be “optimal” to launch the new system next month, though it is uncertain if that is possible.
The U.N. Security Council established a committee to monitor sanctions, and the mandate for its panel of experts to investigate violations had been renewed for 14 years until last month, when Russia vetoed another renewal.
In its most recent report, the panel of experts said it is investigating 58 suspected North Korean cyberattacks between 2017 and 2023 valued at approximately $3 billion, with the money reportedly being used to help fund its weapons development.
The United States, Japan and South Korea have been deepening security ties amid growing tension in the region from North Korea and China.
U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, shake hands during a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)
U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, shake hands during a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)
U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, right, speaks to Rahm Emanuel, U.S. Ambassador to Japan, second right, as they wait for a meeting with Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)
U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Rahm Emanuel, U.S. Ambassador to Japan, right, walk to meet Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)
U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, talk prior to a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)
U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, prepare to talk during a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)
