de Jesús in a blazer over a white top that's partly unbuttoned, looks down with eyes closed, posing against a solid backdrop

The BSR Weekly Arts and Culture Roundup, June 12-18, 2025

Space Opera, TERRA, Table Sessions with Journey Arts, and more
Pride continues, spending three weeks in space, and dancing to reconnect with the earth. Kyle V. Hiller rounds up the week.
Kyle V. Hiller

Kyle V. Hiller

Previews 5 minute read
A route 70 SEPTA bus turns a corner in a Philly neighborhood with autumn trees.

SEPTA’s “doomsday” cuts would be devastating to Philly arts and culture

Arts lovers must speak up now for public transit funding
A “doomsday” budget that would slash SEPTA service by 45 percent and raise fares by more than 20 percent poses an existential threat to Philly’s cultural sector. But if we all speak up now, we can save our city. Alaina Johns looks closer.
Alaina Johns

Alaina Johns

Editorials 5 minute read
The actors hold a large paper pad with a number 5 on it, Chandler-Berat holding a mic and the others making goofy expressions

Philadelphia Theatre Company presents Mickle Maher, Merel van Dijk, and Anthony Barilla's Small Ball

Foul ball
Small Ball, a fairy-tale musical about pint-sized basketball players, still needs a major assist. Cameron Kelsall reviews.
Cameron Kelsall

Cameron Kelsall

Reviews 3 minute read
Advertisement
FK Broad Street Review
Check, in a black polo, crosses his arms & faces away from mustached Aurelio, who approaches from behind. They're lit in blue

Quintessence Theatre Group Presents James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room, adapted by Benjamin Sprunger and Paul Oakley Stovall

The first-ever stage adaptation of a James Baldwin novel comes to Mt. Airy
With exclusive rights to the first stage adaptation ever approved by the Baldwin estate, Quintessence Theatre Group delivers a steamy, affecting treatise on the politics of queer love and desire with Giovanni’s Room. nat čermák reviews.

nat čermák

Reviews 4 minute read
Mobley, a Black man, smiles while standing in front of piano, wearing all black top with white and gray sleeves

BSR Classical Interludes, June 2025

Serafin Summer Music, Chamber Orchestra at the garden, and The Sisters
Serafin Summer Music fills the air with a dozen performances this month, Dolce Suono returns to a 2012 performance, and Orchestra in the Garden blooms. Gail Obenreder previews.
Gail Obenreder

Gail Obenreder

Previews 4 minute read
Godfrey, an Asian American dancer wearing black, strikes an angled pose with one leg extended, their hand on the ankle

Philly’s trans and nonbinary artists push the gendered boundaries of dance

Why is the gender binary so entrenched in dance?
Both locally and nationally, dance is benefitting from increased visibility and representation of openly trans and/or nonbinary artists, but dance still clings to stereotypes of gender more than other art forms. Melissa Strong considers.
Melissa Strong

Melissa Strong

Features 4 minute read
Portrait of 19th-century enslaved man Squire intricately wrought in tiny beads, with broken chains, a spear, and a ship.

The African American Museum in Philadelphia presents Demond Melancon: As Any Means Are Necessary

Preserving culture, one bead at a time
New Orleans glass bead artist Demond Melancon, a modern icon of the Mardi Gras tradition of Black Masking, a confluence of West African, Afro Caribbean, and Indigenous cultures, gets his first solo museum exhibition. Pamela J. Forsythe reviews.

Pamela J. Forsythe

Reviews 5 minute read
Dressed in prep school blazers and lit in dramatic purple and green, Corey and Tyler thumb wrestle excitedly.

Inis Nua and Tiny Dynamite present Kieran Hurley and Gary McNair’s Square Go

Two popular pub-style theater series collide
In their first collaboration, Inis Nua and Tiny Dynamite unite their popular pub-themed performance styles with the Philly premiere of Square Go, a about two Scottish teen boys facing a fight. Chhaya Nayyar reviews.
Chhaya Nayyar

Chhaya Nayyar

Reviews 3 minute read
In prep school uniforms, the actors pose with arms outspread as if screaming at a sports game.

Go behind the scenes of June theater on the BSR podcast with Square Go, Small Ball, and Glitter in the Glass

Artists of Inis Nua, Philadelphia Theatre Company, and Theatre Exile sit down with Darnelle
Dive deep into three shows closing out the 2024-25 theater scene. Darnelle sits down with the artists behind Inis Nua's Square Go, PTC's Small Ball, and Theatre Exile's Glitter in the Glass.
Darnelle Radford

Darnelle Radford

Podcast 2 minute read
Wilfred, in blue shorts and floral tank, laughs while Kidwell, in jeans and a blue robe, looks on angrily.

Theatre Exile presents R. Eric Thomas’s Glitter in the Glass

Siblings face off under the legacy of a Confederate monument
R. Eric Thomas’s Glitter in the Glass gets its East Coast premiere at South Philly’s Theatre Exile in a hilarious and thought-provoking production directed by Ontaria Kim Wilson. Krista Mar reviews.
Krista Mar

Krista Mar

Reviews 2 minute read
Close-up on four stacks of colorful books of all genres.

BSR Book Week staff recommendations: Reading as resistance

Reading is a form of protest. Join us!
In honor of our third annual BSR Book Week, the BSR team offers book recommendations on a theme: reading as an act of resistance. These books inspire us, help us focus and understand the world, and even help us stay fed and rested.
Alaina Johns

Alaina Johns

Previews 7 minute read
14 actors, in evocative 90s clothes, pose in a line onstage, bathed in blue and purple light.

The Arden Theatre presents Jonathan Larson’s Rent

Rent is still relevant
The Arden leans into the political urgency and community spirit of Rent’s roots with a new production featuring interactive couch seats available only with $20 rush tickets. Josh Herren reviews.
Josh Herren

Josh Herren

Reviews 3 minute read
Bookstore table stacked with dozens of thick, heavy, ornately designed hardback romantasy novels.

The romantasy genre subverts women’s agency when we need it the most

Is romantasy regressive?
The new romantasy genre—a mashup of romance and fantasy wildly popular with women—is actually full of regressive themes that deny women’s agency and political stakes. Chhaya Nayyar considers.
Chhaya Nayyar

Chhaya Nayyar

Essays 5 minute read

Sign up for our newsletter

All of the week's new articles, all in one place. Sign up for the free weekly BSR newsletters, and don't miss a conversation.

Also on BSR

Kalaya BSR 6 3 25

Kayala’s Southern Thai Kitchen: A Cookbook, by Nok Suntaranon with Natalie Jesionka

An authentic yet accessible guide for home cooks inspired by Kalaya
In Kayala’s Southern Thai Kitchen: A Cookbook, acclaimed chef Nok Suntaranon shares the flavors of her award-winning Kalaya restaurant with home cooks who want to try their hand at authentic Southern Thai cuisine. An Nichols reviews.
An Nichols

An Nichols

Reviews 4 minute read
The book cover. Title in elaborate scroll of letters over a vintage illustration of Philly, with City Hall at the center.

Philadelphia: A Narrative History, by Paul Kahan

Understanding our city’s history is key to grappling with America’s present
From the Delaware Valley’s earliest inhabitants to the “reform” movements and anti-urbanism of today, Philadelphia: A Narrative Historyis a window on the American experiment—especially as centuries-old attitudespersist. Pamela J. Forsythe reviews.

Pamela J. Forsythe

Reviews 6 minute read
Book cover. Title at top in black handwritten script, with a simple but evocative illustration of a blue mailbox below.

Mendell Station, by J. B. Hwang

A touching story about grief, friendship, and working-class life in the pandemic
J.B. Hwang’s debut novel, out this July, follows a woman who upends her career as she grieves for her best friend, exploring female friendship and working-class lives in the early days of Covid. Krista Mar reviews.
Krista Mar

Krista Mar

Reviews 3 minute read
Book cover. Title in yellow script above a 19th-century illustration of ballerinas onstage in a packed theater with 4 tiers

Theatres of the Body: Dance and Discourse in Antebellum Philadelphia, by Lynn Matluck Brooks

A charged history through the lens of dance
In Theatres of the Body, professor, editor, author, and dance scholar Lynn Matluck Brooks dives into a history of Philadelphia, and the America it influenced, through the lens of dance in the 19th century. Kimberly Haas reviews.

Kimberly Haas

Reviews 3 minute read
The book cover. Title in white letters at center, over a photo of 3 calico koi fish swimming in a lush woodland pond.

minato sketches, by Sharon White

A tsunami of musings
Temple professor and multi-genre writer Sharon White’s latest work of fiction, minato sketches, takes the reader on a rich and poetic interior journey with a woman recovering from stroke. Crystal Sparrow reviews.
Crystal Sparrow

Crystal Sparrow

Reviews 4 minute read
Book cover: Author & title in white letters above a purple illustration of the sisters back-to-back wrapped in music notes

The Griffin Sisters’ Greatest Hits, by Jennifer Weiner

No-one gets you like your sister
Jennifer Weiner’s latest novel follows two sisters from Philly who achieve pop-music stardom in the early 2000s that leads to an estrangement in the present day. It’s a relatable story of sisters, mothers, lovers, and the search for self. Emily Savidge reviews
Emily Savidge

Emily Savidge

Reviews 2 minute read
Book cover: Title at top in white, over self-portrait of Sully holding a paintbrush, and three smaller framed portraits inset

Thomas Sully’s Philadelphians: Painting the Athens of America, by Peter Conn

The painter who captured Philly at the center of American culture
Notable historian, professor, and author Peter Conn reflects on Philly as the Athens of America in his illuminating and rewarding new book exploring the work of 19th-century portraitist Thomas Sully, and the city he lived in. Gail Obenreder reviews.
Gail Obenreder

Gail Obenreder

Reviews 5 minute read
The book cover. Title at center in pink, on a grid of comics showing diverse trans people in many historical eras.

Trans History: From Ancient Times to the Present Day, By Alex L. Combs and Andrew Eakett

An illustrated history of trans lives, from pharaohs and emperors to the present day
A new graphic novel from Alex L. Combs and Andrew Eakett tackles the vast, varied, and longstanding history of trans folks around the world, combatting the ongoing erasure of trans lives. Rachel Bellwoar reviews.
Rachel Bellwoar

Rachel Bellwoar

Reviews 4 minute read
The book cover. Title above in white script, with a smiling portrait of a young Wells on a floral purple background

Ida B. Wells: Journalist, Advocate, and Crusader for Justice, by Erica Armstrong Dunbar and Candace Buford

Courage that inspires us today
Erica Armstrong Dunbar’s latest book (coauthored with Candace Buford) explores the life of another trailblazing Black woman of American history, Ida B. Wells, making her story accessible to young readers. Constance Garcia-Barrio reviews.
Constance Garcia-Barrio

Constance Garcia-Barrio

Reviews 4 minute read
Book cover: title in gold over a close-up photo of a woman in a navy blazer with a gold pineapple pin on the lapel.

True Hospitality: Lessons Learned from Behind the Concierge Desk, by Jamie Cooperstein

A real-life Rittenhouse Hotel concierge shares her unexpected career journey
Debut Philly author Jamie Cooperstein started her career as a journalist before grasping an opportunity in the hospitality field, and she never looked back. Now she shares the journey to finding her own niche. A. Lewis reviews.

A. Lewis

Reviews 4 minute read