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No dog days for the stage
Your August guide to Philadelphia-area theater
Cameron Kelsall
We here at Broad Street Review are preparing to take our annual summer hiatus for the first two weeks of August, but theater in the Philadelphia region never takes a break. Although you might not see reviews of every production opening next month as we take some much-needed time off, we want to highlight the vibrancy of the performing arts that enriches our region all year long. And what better way to beat the dog days than escaping into a comfortable, air-conditioned auditorium (or a summer evening park) to get lost in a spectacular show?
Once in Wilmington
Whether you like modern works, musicals, or Shakespeare, you’ll be spoiled for choice throughout the month around the city. I’m especially looking forward to catching New Light Theatre’s upcoming staging of Once, running August 8 through 17 at Delaware Theatre Company. I’ve been enchanted by the work since I first saw it on Broadway more than a decade ago, and fell in love with it anew when the Arden staged the local premiere back in 2018. The Wilmington-based New Light has consistently punched above its weight in terms of production. The company also partners with a local charity for every show, and Once will benefit RISE, which assists with refugee and immigrant resettlement within the Wilmington community. A great musical and a worthy cause—what more could you want?
Shakespeare and Stoppard in Center Valley
Lovers of the Bard can still head up to the Lehigh Valley for the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, where Hamlet and Timon of Athens are on stage through August 3. The Prince of Denmark’s saga runs in repertory with Tom Stoppard’s still-irresistible Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, adding some levity to what can be a rather grim story. Intrepid theatergoers can often catch both productions on the same day (here’s our review of the rep). The company includes many familiar Philly names—Ian Merrill Peakes, Akeem Davis, Grace Gonglewski—with New York-based actor Biko Eisen-Martin in the title role.
Timon of Athens is the latest entry in the festival’s “Extreme Shakespeare” series, which attempts to replicate how the Bard’s plays were staged in the Elizabethan era. The company of actors work without a director, learning their roles independently and devising a production among themselves. Timon will be played by Philadelphia veteran Greg Wood, who recently appeared in the Broadway revival of Othello opposite Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal.
AstroQuest and Theatre in the X
My science-fiction obsessed husband has his eye on AstroQuest, an all-improv comedy presented at SideQuest Theater. Comedy fans can also catch Paul Slade Smith’s Theatre People, or The Angel Next Door at Act II Playhouse in Ambler. A farce about a playwright’s disastrous attempt to adapt a popular novel for the stage, it promises to deliver backstage humor on a metatheatrical level.
Toward the end of the month, Theatre in the X returns for its 12th season of bringing free professional productions to the West Philadelphia community. Over the years, I’ve been impressed by the diversity of their programming, from a musically satisfying Dreamgirls to an urgent staging of Antoinette Nwandu’s Pass Over. This year, they’re doing Jeff Stetson’s Fraternity with a cast that includes some of the city’s best actors: Brian Anthony Wilson, Walter DeShields, Carlo Campbell, and Steve Wright. Performances take place in Malcolm X Park—don’t forget to bring your own chair!
September brings the juggernaut of the Philadelphia Fringe Festival and the proper start of the local theater season, but the late summer still offers plenty to enjoy in and around the city. Between your trips to the beach or the ballpark, make sure to see a show!
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