The BSR Weekly Arts and Culture Roundup, October 7-14
Stories of Us, the ReelAbilities Film Festival, Philadelphia Open Studio Tours, and more as October cools down
As the weather crisps to Autumn, we turn our sights to the ReelAbilities film festival in New Jersey, Moore College of Arts's new exhibit, and Chestnut Hill's seven-block festival for the arts. Vicky Diaz-Camacho rounds up.
Previews
4 minute read
Quintessence Theatre Group presents Jen Silverman’s Witch
Then and now are the same world for women
Jen Silverman adapts the 17th-century tragicomedy The Witch of Edmonton into a sizzling modern-ish fable with all the same questions about womanhood, now onstage at Quintessence. Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer reviews.
Reviews
4 minute read
The October 17 Vamonos Pa’l Monte procession celebrates Puerto Rican heritage in Philly
Resilience and remembrance, from Old City to Norris Square
A four-mile public procession led by award-winning interdisciplinary artist Wanda Raimundi-Ortiz celebrates the resilience and the beauty of Philly’s Puerto Rican community. Constance Garcia-Barrio looks closer.
Previews
4 minute read
Dovetail Projects presents All Legacies, its debut exhibition and book release at Atelier Gallery in Brewerytown
A Philly platform for innovative disabled and neurodivergent artists
Founders of Philly independent press This Must Be the Place present their first show with a selection of paintings and a book release by artists Jaither West and Eric Stewart. Anndee Hochman previews.
Previews
3 minute read
The Arden presents Conon McPherson’s Girl from the North Country
Eugene O’Neill meets Bob Dylan
The Arden opens its 2026-27 season with Girl from the North Country, featuring a script by Conor McPherson and music by Bob Dylan. It feels like less than the sum of its parts. Josh Herren reviews.
Reviews
3 minute read
An open letter to 2026 Philly Fringe artists
The path of most resistance
A message from editor Alaina Johns to this year’s Fringe artists, and anyone who values their work.
Editorials
4 minute read
Pier Players Theatre Company presents Kate Brennan and David Lee White’s Big Babies
Parents try to host a party
Big Babies, the latest world premiere from David Lee White and Kate Brennan, about a dinner party for parents of toddlers (and their wacky neighbors), is onstage at Pier Players Theatre Company. Walt Maguire reviews.
Reviews
3 minute read
The Lantern Theater presents David Auburn’s Summer, 1976
People you know, or maybe the people you are
In David Auburn’s Summer, 1976, two women’s reminiscences about the summer they met increasingly diverge. The play gets a believable Philly-premiere production at the Lantern. Walt Maguire reviews.
Reviews
2 minute read
Passage Theatre presents Adrienne Dawes’s Teen Dad
A multi-racial beach play for the soul
In this world premiere by Adrienne Dawes, now onstage in Trenton, former high-school frenemies and one-time lovers end up on vacation together, in a story balanced between comedy and serious topics. An Nichols reviews.
Reviews
3 minute read
Your October guide to Philly-area classical music
Classical interludes with Michelle Di Russo, Mozart, Tennessee Williams, and more
Classical music offerings in the Philly region are as rich as ever this October, with Philly premieres (Suddenly Last Summer) alongside canon favorites (Don Giovanni), a major rediscovery, and more. Gail Obenreder rounds up.
Previews
4 minute read
Your October guide to 250th Anniversary events in the Philadelphia area
Honoring Catto, Revolutionary festivals, Ben Franklin meets Bad Bunny, and lots more
Philly’s 250-themed events are going strong as we round the corner into October. Enjoy the fall weather at historic festivals and tours, catch some dance or theater, and see what’s happening at local museums. Walt Maguire rounds up.
Previews
7 minute read
Your October guide to Philly-area repertory film screenings
The Devils, Stop Making Sense, a night with Karina Longworth, and lots of spooky screenings
October brings lots of scary screenings, naturally, but there’s plenty more in the mix, including a Talking Heads classic, 1949’s The Heiress, Sofia Coppola’s 2006 Marie Antoinette, and lots more. Stephen Silver rounds up.
Previews
4 minute read
It’s easier to demonize immigrants than it is to recognize we’re all in danger.
Empathy takes more than kindness. It takes courage.
Right-wing pundits talk about empathy as if it’s incompatible with justice. But justice does need empathy, and empathy takes courage that anti-immigrant “patriots” just don’t have. Alaina Johns considers.
Editorials
8 minute read
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A visit to Philadelphia Ballet’s new Center for Dance ahead of Stars and Stripes Forever!
The story of American dance
Stars and Stripes Forever! celebrates America’s Semiquincentennial in dance and Philadelphia Ballet’s first season in its new Center for Dance at Broad and Wood Street. Melissa Strong previews.
Previews
3 minute read
Your October guide to Philly dance
Twyla Tharp, Free Fridays at BalletX, Stars and Stripes Forever! and lots more
The October dance calendar balances several important local performances with notable visiting companies and other events for dance lovers, including classes and discussions. Camille Bacon-Smith rounds up.
Previews
4 minute read
The BSR Weekly Roundup: September 30-October 7, 2026
Jeff Goldblum in Philly, queer joy, resistance fighters, and more to kick off October
As we finalize the transition to our new associate editor in October, An Nichols steps up with a Weekly Roundup to get your October arts calendar started, featuring theater, music, and famous resistance fighters.
Previews
4 minute read
Your October guide to Philly-area theater
Liberation, Top/Underdog, Stephen King’s Misery, and lots more
Philly’s October theater scene brings notable regional premieres including Bess Wohl’s Liberation and Jen Silverman’s Witch, and lots more, including a classic horror adaptation. Cameron Kelsall rounds up.
Previews
4 minute read
The Wilma Theater presents DJ Hills’s Horsegirl & Cowdaddy
Transformation in the cornfields
Playwright DJ Hills’s Horsegirl & Cowdaddy gets its world premiere at the Wilma, exploring the power of transformation and the possibilities of putting down roots at home. Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer reviews.
Reviews
6 minute read
Philly Fringe 2026: Theatre Contra presents The Whole F*cking Twilight Saga…in 60 Minutes
A sillier take on Meyer’s vampires
Theatre Contra joins this year’s Fringe with an eight-person rendition of all five Twilight movies…performed in just one hour(ish). Adryan Corcione reviews.
Reviews
3 minute read
Philly Fringe 2026: FringeArts presents How does it feel to look at nothing
An immersive exploration of being
How does it feel to look at nothing, a world premiere from Holland Andrews and yuniya edi kwon in this year’s curated Fringe, is not quite an opera as billed, but it’s an ambitious, immersive, and visually stunning work. Krista Mar reviews.
Reviews
3 minute read
Philly Fringe 2026: Iron Age Theatre presents Howard Zinn’s Marx in Soho
A living performance with a dated thesis
Iron Age Theatre’s Radical Acts production branch brings Howard Zinn’s Marx in Soho to the closing weekend of the Philly Fringe, revealing the odd contradictions of Zinn’s script today. Josh Herren reviews.
Reviews
2 minute read
Philly composer Andrea Clearfield’s “SZalon” marks 40 years of music
Celebrating one of America’s longest-running chamber music series
Prolific Philly composer Andrea Clearfied has been hosting her own chamber-music salon (which became a “Zalon” on Zoom during the pandemic and is now a hybrid “SZalon”) for 40 years. She speaks to Gail Obenreder.
Profiles
3 minute read
Philly Fringe 2026: Cannonball presents Suz Evans’s Ghost Fetus
A risky swing
Cannonball presents Suz Evans’s Ghost Fetus, a baffling abortion satire filled with empty provocations. Kiran Pandey reviews.
Reviews
3 minute read