The BSR Weekly Arts and Culture Roundup, May 29-June 4, 2025

James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room
May 28-June 22
Sedgwick Theater, 7137 Germantown Avenue

Quintessence Theatre Group brings the world premiere of James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room to the stage. The adaptation of the literary classic is an exclusive offered to Quintessence from Baldwin’s estate, and the story follows a young American who travels to Paris with his girlfriend to deliberate their future magic, but discovers a vibrant queer community and falls in love with Giovanni, an Italian bartender at a local gay bar. The discovery leads to newfound desire and passion that sets off a series of fatal, tragic accidents.

Philadelphia Death & Arts Festival
May 29-June 1
Laurel Hill Cemetery West, 225 Belmont Avenue, Bala Cynwyd
Laurel Hill Cemetery East, 3822 Ridge Avenue, Philadelphia

This new performance and educational festival makes its debut at the historic Laurel Hill Cemetery this week. Looking to transform the way we engage with aging, dying, and grief, the artist-led festival features performances by five local artists—including experimental musician and cellist Mel Su, choreographer Shavon Norrison, interdisciplinary artist DonChristian Jones, and performers Eiko Otake and mayfield brooks. The festival also holds educational workshops, panels, and advocacy opportunities led by leaders in the end-of-life care field like death midwife Narinder Bazen, scholars from the Collective for Radical Death Studies, and ecotherapist and Lenape language keeper Krista Nelson.

Joiri Minaya: Venus Flytrap
May 29-June 1
Bartram’s Garden, 5400 Lindbergh Boulevard

BlackStar presents Venus Flytrap, a four-day performance series and summer installation happening at Bartram’s Garden in Southwest Philadelphia. Installed by Joiri Minawaya and curated by Dessane Lopez Cassell, Venus Flytrap examines legacies of freedom, extraction, and ecology to reveal hidden stories of labor and anti-colonial resistance buried in the grounds of Bartram’s Garden. The performances use custom textile elements and movement to unearth the impacts of colonialism and make way for deeper reflections.

Glitter in the Glass
May 29-June 22
Theatre Exile, 1340 South 13th Street

Theatre Exile closes its season with the east coast premiere of history-satire-speculative fiction-blending play Glitter in the Glass by R. Eric Thomas. The story follows Chelle, a mid-career Black artist who receives a major grant to design a new monument after the removal of a Confederate statue across from her childhood home. As pressure mounts, Chelle is thrown into a journey that stretches back before the Middle Passage and spirals beyond the boundaries of Earth itself. Opening night is June 5, and an artist talk with Thomas is happening on June 18.

East Kensington Spring Festival
Sunday, June 1, 3pm
Philadelphia Brewing Company Courtyard, 2440 Frankford Avenue

Eight-piece Cumbia Klezmer punk band and cultural project Mariposas Galácticas, Persian funk band Hodgepodge, and Darling Damselfly—a band that wants listeners thinking about humankind’s relationship with the planet in hopes of saving it—come together for an afternoon of sounds to get you dancing and thinking.

Shir Livne presents MOM*
Sunday, June 1, 6:30pm
Cooper Poynt’s Waterfront Park, 801-811 Delaware Avenue, Camden

As part of the Philadelphia Contemporary Circus Festival, MOM* shines a light on the inner thoughts of potential mothers, stepmothers, bio-moms, and children of mothers. Through a solo performance, circus artist Shir Livne presents absurdist takes on motherhood through circus, storytelling, and pages upon pages of fiery teenage journals.