A scene from the play. Ngo stands in the kitchen smiling, wearing an apron with orange tulips on it, one hand on her chest.

1812 Productions presents Bi Jean Ngo’s In Search of the Kitchen Gods

A theatrical dish
Philly creator/performer Bi Jean Ngo’s world-premiere of In Search of the Kitchen Gods is an inviting, interdisciplinary exploration of her Vietnamese heritage. Josh Herren reviews.
Josh Herren

Josh Herren

Reviews 2 minute read
4 cast members: 3 teenagers and their dad, sit around a kitchen table in casual clothes, all responding to a phone Dad holds

InterAct Theatre Company presents Hilary Bettis’s 72 Miles to Go…

Beyond borders
This moving drama follows a Tucson family over the years as they live without their mother, who has been deported to Mexico. Kirsten Bowen reviews.
Kirsten Bowen

Kirsten Bowen

Reviews 3 minute read
Stage scene: 3 actors, a white man, a Black man, and a white woman, stand in a 70s kitchen. McCall holds a lamb in his arms

EgoPo Classic Theater presents Sam Shepard’s Curse of the Starving Class

Still a giant of the genre
EgoPo Classic Theater finally concludes its survey of Sam Shepard with his brutal, bitingly funny Curse of the Starving Class. Cameron Kelsall reviews.
Cameron Kelsall

Cameron Kelsall

Reviews 3 minute read
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the 3 actors in Regency costumes, a white woman, a white man, & a Black woman, sit in a row, with different expressions

Tiny Dynamite presents The Complete Works of Jane Austen, Abridged

The Bingster is back
Tiny Dynamite distills six of the English language’s best-loved novels—and then some—into this fun, fleet, and heartfelt tribute to Jane Austen. Alaina Johns reviews.
Alaina Johns

Alaina Johns

Reviews 3 minute read
In the center of a circle of about 12 dancers moving hand to hand, Greer stands on a box & sings. They wear modern clothes

Arden Theatre Company presents Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Into the Woods

An enchanting season finale
The Arden takes another trip Into the Woods, with delightful and poignant results. Cameron Kelsall reviews.
Cameron Kelsall

Cameron Kelsall

Reviews 4 minute read
A Grandma Moses work shows rolling hills crisscrossed by woods and farms, like a quilt, and 2 black horses in the foreground

The Brandywine River Museum of Art presents Dawoud Bey and Gatecrashers: The Rise of the Self-Taught Artist in America

Making their presence known
Two exhibitions at the Brandywine River Museum of Art demonstrate bold curatorial vision, with Dawoud Bey: Night Coming Tenderly, Black and Gatecrashers: The Rise of the Self-Taught Artist in America. Gail Obenreder reviews.
Gail Obenreder

Gail Obenreder

Reviews 5 minute read
Scene from the play. Finister & Owens stand at a table, Finister preparing food and Owens talking & drinking a glass of wine

The Wilma Theater presents Jackie Sibblies Drury’s Fairview

Never alone
Jackie Sibblies Drury’s Fairview, closing out the Wilma’s season, delves deep into themes of community and identity, and the power of live theater has never felt more immediate. Wendy Rosenfield reviews.
Wendy Rosenfield

Wendy Rosenfield

Reviews 3 minute read
Film still: Sandler walks through the gray-carpeted Sixers lobby, the Philly skyline visible through the window behind him.

Netflix presents Jeremiah Zagar’s Hustle

A shot at the Philly sports movie pantheon
The set of Hustle, the latest from star Adam Sandler, was hard to avoid during its extensive on-location Philly shoots. Now it’s out on Netflix, for fans of Sandler and the Sixers alike. Stephen Silver reviews.
Stephen Silver

Stephen Silver

Reviews 5 minute read
Book cover: 2 Black teen boys in a painted illustration, a train & crowded Ferris wheel behind them. The title appears above.

Kings of B’more by R. Eric Thomas

Baltimore, Bueller-style
R. Eric Thomas’s debut young-adult novel Kings of B’more is a witty, adventurous nod to Ferris Bueller that hits close to home, but may be hindered by its own genre tropes. Kyle V. Hiller reviews.
Kyle V. Hiller

Kyle V. Hiller

Reviews 3 minute read
Four Black actors in period costume stand soberly in a late 19th-century interior, long grasses at the side, & black backdrop

Quintessence Theatre Group presents Pearl Cleage’s Flyin’ West

Rediscovering Nicodemus
Quintessence’s Reclamation Repertory continues with Pearl Cleage’s Flyin’ West, a deeply relevant play for our ongoing conversations about redlining, gentrification, and reparations. Josh Herren reviews.
Josh Herren

Josh Herren

Reviews 3 minute read
Actor O’Donnell, a white woman with gray-brown curly hair, stands smiling against a black backdrop with her hand on her heart

The Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival presents Duncan Macmillan and Jonny Donahoe’s Every Brilliant Thing

Not a solution, but a start
Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival’s participatory production of Every Brilliant Thing has a message we need, from Center Valley all the way to Capitol Hill. Wendy Rosenfield reviews.
Wendy Rosenfield

Wendy Rosenfield

Reviews 3 minute read
Scene from the play: Bey, in a pink dress, sits on an exam table, with Ford next to her, wearing a white coat & stethoscope

Lantern Theater Company presents Lynn Nottage’s Fabulation, or the Re-Education of Undine

How much can we handle?
Lynn Nottage’s modern classic is a funny, fourth-wall-breaking work of art under the direction of Amina Robinson for Lantern Theater Company. Jill Ivey reviews.
Jillian Ashley Blair Ivey

Jillian Ashley Blair Ivey

Reviews 3 minute read
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Black stage with a blue-lit backdrop empty except for Erickson and Pujol, in short black costumes, facing each other in duet.

Bryan Koulman Dance presents its Summer 2022 Show

A grand and intimate experience
Bryan Koulman Dance Company marks its return to the stage with several works from its repertory and a world premiere performed by artists from the Philadelphia Ballet and PHILADANCO! Melissa Strong reviews.
Melissa Strong

Melissa Strong

Reviews 4 minute read
A side profile of Alford-Tate in a deep navy blue suit looks out into an audience, an illustrated landscape behind him

The Weekly Roundup, June 15-22

Celebrating Juneteenth in Philadelphia
Kyle V. Hiller rounds up Juneteenth events in Philadelphia, featuring offerings from Sistahs Laying Down Hands, Uhuru, the MoAR, AAMP, and many more.
Kyle V. Hiller

Kyle V. Hiller

Previews 3 minute read
The RestART logo: a collage of faces at left, and an orange slash at right, with "Restart: the arts are back" superimposed

The BSR Podcast: RestART with BSR, episode 1, Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture

The arts are back! Learn about the return
BSR is excited to team with the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance's RestART Initiative with this special podcast episode on Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture.
Darnelle Radford

Darnelle Radford

Podcast 1 minute read
A large photo of the writer’s dad, a white man with white hair, placed on top of a worn recliner chair and vintage typewriter

When home leaves you: a Father’s Day foray into holding on and letting go

Packing up my parents’ house
When Anndee Hochman’s parents moved to the Philly suburbs in 1965, it was a compromise. Almost 60 years later, the house holds a departed father’s heart. It’s time to say goodbye again.
Anndee Hochman

Anndee Hochman

Essays 5 minute read
Scene from the play. Richardson & Wyatt, two Black actors, face each other tenderly with hands joined, sitting on a small bed

Quintessence Theatre Group presents Alexandre Dumas fils’s Camille

A wilted tragedy
Despite a stylish physical production, Quintessence Theatre’s Camille lacks the passion of traditional melodrama and the perspective needed for a contemporary reinvention. Cameron Kelsall reviews.
Cameron Kelsall

Cameron Kelsall

Reviews 3 minute read
A woman dressed in a bright yellow dress with see-through sleeves, layers of necklaces, hair beads, and headdress

The Weekly Roundup, June 8-15

Blooming with block parties, Black Swan Revealed, and the Philly Flower Show
Getting in touch with West Park Arts Fest, ODUNDE, the Rail Park Block Party, and more this week. Kyle V. Hiller rounds up.
Kyle V. Hiller

Kyle V. Hiller

Previews 4 minute read
A dance group in dashiki dresses perform with musicians behind them on an outdoor stage on a sunny day.

Celebrating 45 years of the Philadelphia ODUNDE Festival

More than just a day
Crystal Sparrow speaks about the legacy of the ODUNDE Festival with Oshunbumi "Bumi" Fernandez-West as they celebrate its 45th anniversary.
Crystal Sparrow

Crystal Sparrow

Previews 3 minute read
Six dancers in various combinations white and black tops and bottoms pose, a ring of light cast over them

Dancing up close with Tommie-Waheed Evans and softly, as I leave you

Love, belonging, and Black experiences in dance
Melissa Strong previews Philadelphia Dance Projects' and Tommie-Waheed Evans's softly, as I leave you.
Melissa Strong

Melissa Strong

Previews 4 minute read
A view from above of the full DSO playing on a wooden stage, with the pianist out front.

The Delaware Symphony Orchestra presents Gershwin and Rachmaninoff

A smashing conclusion
A program of iconic works by Gershwin and Rachmaninoff, originally intended as the Delaware Symphony Orchestra’s season opener, made a smashing conclusion instead. Gail Obenreder reviews.
Gail Obenreder

Gail Obenreder

Reviews 5 minute read
Full orchestra performs in Verizon Hall with Nézet-Séguin conducting, and choir of about 60, plus 4 soloists, in the balcony

The Philadelphia Orchestra and the Philadelphia Symphonic Choir present Beethoven’s Ninth

Finding joy in troubled times
An energetic rendition of Beethoven’s Ninth opened with a new commission by Philadelphia Orchestra composer-in-residence Gabriela Lena Frank, a short but dramatic work of rich orchestral color. Linda Holt reviews.
Linda Holt

Linda Holt

Reviews 3 minute read