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The BSR Weekly Arts and Culture Roundup, September 21-27, 2023

Arts festivals, Ratha-Yatra, S(tree)twork, and Where the Young Bols Rumble

Rounding up the coming week with festivals and exhibitions to kick off the official start of fall. Kyle V. Hiller previews.
Kyle V. Hiller

Kyle V. Hiller

Previews 3 minute read
In the foreground, Chang, in gray, moves gracefully with arms extended; ensemble and audience members sit and move behind her

Philly Fringe 2023: Susan Marshall and Mimi Lien present Rhythm Bath

A sensory delight

An inclusive dance installation presented in partnership with Temple’s Institute on Disabilities offers interdisciplinary delights at Christ Church Neighborhood House in this year’s Fringe. Eileen B. Fisher reviews.
Eileen B. Fisher

Eileen B. Fisher

Reviews 3 minute read
Tyson, in colorful button-down & wide blue capri pants, wades in a reedy waterway created onstage.

McCarter Theatre Center and Berkeley Repertory Theatre present Eisa Davis’s Bulrusher

Something in the water

A new production of Eisa Davis’s Bulrusher at McCarter Theatre Center delivers on the playwright’s vision: welcoming, submerging, and transforming us. Jeannine Cook reviews.
Jeannine A. Cook

Jeannine A. Cook

Reviews 4 minute read
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A performer in casualwear in movement, their head tilted back and face expressive, a full band in the background

Philly Fringe 2023: Urban Arts Movement presents Vincent Johnson’s Stank upon a Time: A Story about Funk

A lesson on the blues

Stank upon a Time is a transgressively absurdist exploration of the culture of Black music, from blues to funk, as the soundtrack of revolution and its survival and commodification in the present. Camille Bacon-Smith reviews.
Camille Bacon-Smith

Camille Bacon-Smith

Reviews 3 minute read
McLenigan, in historic priestly black suit, prostrates himself across a table to a smiling O’Hare, in a lacy costume dress.

Lantern Theater Company presents Molière’s Tartuffe

Scandals, scoundrels, and rhyme

The Lantern Theater takes Richard Wilbur’s definitive 1963 translation of Molière’s 1664 play, Tartuffe, sets it in the Belle Époque and sets a high bar for the 2023-2024 theater season. Jill Ivey reviews.
Jillian Ashley Blair Ivey

Jillian Ashley Blair Ivey

Reviews 3 minute read
With a severe, animated expression, Ladd speaks and stretches out her arms, wearing a navy jacket and yellow scarf.

Quintessence Theatre Group presents George Bernard Shaw’s Major Barbara

Overstating the obvious

Directorial bells and whistles impede the socialist message of George Bernard Shaw's Major Barbara at Quintessence Theatre Group. Cameron Kelsall reviews.
Cameron Kelsall

Cameron Kelsall

Reviews 3 minute read
A light-skinned person submissively, sensually embraces a dark-skinned person in a strappy black ensemble & foreboding face

Philly Fringe 2023: Gunnar Montana Productions presents Black Wood

Sex, sorcery, and power

Gunnar Montana’s immersive Black Wood is a dark and bloody exploration of women’s power through sorcery and sexuality. Camille Bacon-Smith reviews.
Camille Bacon-Smith

Camille Bacon-Smith

Reviews 3 minute read
Ahmed, with long dark hair and a white t-shirt, lifts a large cardboard box amid washes of green and purple light.

Philly Fringe 2023: Joseph Ahmed presents Half Magic

A masterpiece of mixed-medium storytelling

Solo performer Joseph Ahmed teams up with director Cat Ramirez for Half Magic, a Cannonball Festival show on grief and mixed-race identity through theater, circus, and storytelling. Krista Mar reviews.
Krista Mar

Krista Mar

Reviews 3 minute read
Grinberg, on his knees, faces the shirtless Header in a moment of sexual tension, next to a single lamp.

Philly Fringe 2023: Ben Grinberg and Hazem Header in Fix Me

What some say we shouldn't see

An arresting backstory grounds this able mix of contemporary dance, acrobatics, and theater from Ben Grinberg and Hazem Header in this year’s Fringe. Eileen Fisher reviews.
Eileen B. Fisher

Eileen B. Fisher

Reviews 3 minute read
Lynn & Nicholls, in blue jumpsuits & red sneakers, tussle at extreme angles. Garcia, in a dark suit, looks on disapprovingly

Philly Fringe 2023: Philadelphia Artists’ Collective presents Citrus Andronicus

Vitamin C tragedy

The fruit juice flies in Citrus Andronicus, Philadelphia Artists’ Collective’s creative retelling of the Shakespearean revenge tragedy in this year’s Fringe Festival. Cameron Kelsall reviews.
Cameron Kelsall

Cameron Kelsall

Reviews 2 minute read
Photo of 3 cast members performing on a sunny day, with a low wooden stage showing The Dumps and overhanging trees.

Philly Fringe 2023: Rough & Tumble Productions presents Magic Trash Day

A fresh twist on the dump

Through creative storytelling, contemporary dance, and clowning, Magic Trash Day tells the story of one kid’s fantastical emotional journey down into the dumps. Helen Walsh reviews.
Helen Walsh

Helen Walsh

Reviews 3 minute read
Against a fanciful watery background, Haro poses regally with his guitar on a stool, wearing green-framed sunglasses.

Philly Fringe 2023: James Haro presents GO AHEAD

Pop-punk, heartbreak, and belonging

James Haro joins this year’s Cannonball Festival with GO AHEAD, an interactive solo show incorporating poetry and live pop-punk on heartbreak, love, and belonging. Crystal Sparrow reviews.
Crystal Sparrow

Crystal Sparrow

Reviews 4 minute read
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We continue our coverage of the 2023 Philly Fringe Festival with Paper Doll Ensemble cofounder Amanda Jensen in conversation with Darnelle Radford about The Pecking Order, a new look at Roe v. Wade.
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Podcast 1 minute read
A multi-racial group of about two dozen people posing together in a simple church venue with high wooden rafters.

The Crossing presents Crickets in Our Backyard

Premieres by Wang Lu, Tania León, and Ayanna Woods

The Crossing choir opens its new season with Crickets in Our Backyard, featuring world premieres by Tania León and Ayanna Woods and an “indoor premiere” by Wang Lu. Gail Obenreder reviews.
Gail Obenreder

Gail Obenreder

Reviews 5 minute read
A female actor in black seriously addresses audience members seated in a bar, pointing one finger at them.

Philly Fringe 2023: Spanking Macbeth and Macbeth in a Bar

Where Shakespeare’s never done

The 2023 Philly Fringe takes on Macbeth in two different shows: Spanking Macbeth, an original play, and Macbeth in a Bar, a restaging at Lilly’s Ferry. Kiran Pandey reviews.
Kiran Pandey

Kiran Pandey

Reviews 4 minute read
A woman stands against a yellow backdrop with black text reading The Yellow Wallpaper, groped by hands painted the same.

Philly Fringe 2023: Humble Materials presents The Yellow Wallpaper

A descent into sanity

Humble Materials takes on Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s classic feminist short story with theater, dance, and impressive makeup in this year’s Fringe. Jill Ivey reviews.
Jillian Ashley Blair Ivey

Jillian Ashley Blair Ivey

Reviews 3 minute read
Creane, in a furry hooded parka, sips tea with a dramatic red sky, choppy sea, and snowy mountains behind her.

Philly Fringe 2023: IKantKoan Play/s presents Tea Party at the End of the World

Good to the last drop

How would you like to spend the end of the world—or maybe just your own end? This immersive Fringe experience offers big questions with a warm cup of tea. Emily Esten reviews.
Emily Esten

Emily Esten

Reviews 3 minute read
A 12-foot-tall puppet girl with a wooden frame reveals someone piloting inside. A crowd surrounds Amal in a park area

The BSR Weekly Arts and Culture Roundup, September 14-20, 2023

Wildest Dreams, Chasing LOVE, Never Broken, and Oktoberfest this week

A 12-foot puppet takes to the parkway, Ugandan classical music comes to West Philly, and the Wildest Dreams open at Magic Gardens. Kyle V. Hiller rounds up the week.
Kyle V. Hiller

Kyle V. Hiller

Previews 3 minute read
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Philly Fringe 2023: Denise Stephenson presents Finding Melania

A haunting and hilarious dinner party of the mind

Denise Stephenson invokes the specter of our former First Lady in Finding Melania, a one-woman show at the Philly Fringe that offers a surreal portrait of complicity and alienation. Kiran Pandey reviews.
Kiran Pandey

Kiran Pandey

Reviews 3 minute read
Seen from behind, three women in dresses with bare arms pose in dynamic, intertwined shapes.

Philly Fringe 2023: Evalina Carbonell presents Fruit of Her Lips

A woman’s journey

Blending poetry and dance, Evalina Carbonell’s Fringe show Fruit of Her Lips explored the feminine triune, bringing to life archetypes of womanhood. Zara Waters reviews.
Zara Waters

Zara Waters

Reviews 2 minute read
Godfrey, a nonbinary dancer of Korean heritage, poses in a headstand, legs bent in a graceful S shape.

Philly Fringe 2023: Flamencodanza and KCBCxKCBCII’s Summer Series

Classical dance with contemporary flair

Two Fringe Festival performances feature classical forms of dance while looking to the present and future: Aylin Bayaz and Raúl Mannola’s Flamencodanza and KCBCxKCBCII’s Summer Series. Melissa Strong reviews.
Melissa Strong

Melissa Strong

Reviews 4 minute read
The IRC ensemble in 50s costumes, gathered around two mics, scripts, and a table of noise-making items.

Philly Fringe 2023: IRC presents Samuel Beckett’s All That Fall

Theater of the abs(heard)

All That Fall, a hilarious and unsettling jaunt to a train station in 1950s Ireland, is expertly staged by Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium in this year's Fringe, offering laughs right up to gut-punch finish. Emily B. Schilling reviews.
Emily Schilling

Emily Schilling

Reviews 3 minute read