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Five diverse actors, in various garments by era, pose seriously like a wheel with their hands meeting in the center.

Applied Mechanics presents Run Ben Run

Manifest density

With its latest ensembled-devised show, Run Ben Run, Applied Mechanics combines American history, pop culture, art criticism, and more in an interactive experience at Christ Church Neighborhood House. Jill Ivey reviews.

Jillian Ashley Blair Ivey

Oct 12, 2026 Reviews 3 minute read

Title & author in brown & white, below a historical painting of an Indigenous man with a blue blanket over his shoulder

Native Americans and Pennsylvania, by Daniel K. Richter

Pre-American history

A timely expansion of Penn history professor Daniel K. Richter’s book Native Americans and Pennsylvania brings new scholarship to the history of Indigenous life in what is now Pennsylvania. Pamela J. Forsythe

Pamela J. Forsythe

Oct 11, 2026 Reviews 5 minute read

Voice of a Century: The Life and Artistry of Marian Anderson, by Anthony Tommasini

A masterful biography of an iconic American voice

Pianist, author, and New York Times music critic Anthony Tommasini’s new biography of Marian Anderson is page-turning triumph. Gail Obenreder reviews.

Gail Obenreder

Oct 09, 2026 Reviews 4 minute read

Holum, at left in earthy neutrals, strikes a dominant but skeptical pose while Jimenez, in a green suit, talks to her.

Quintessence Theatre Group presents Jen Silverman’s Witch

Then and now are the same world for women

Jen Silverman adapts the 17th-century tragicomedy The Witch of Edmonton into a sizzling modern-ish fable with all the same questions about womanhood, now onstage at Quintessence. Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer reviews.

Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer

Oct 06, 2026 Reviews 4 minute read

Cylinder & Barg sit straight-backed on a green couch, pacifiers in their mouths, snacks and toys on the coffee table.

Pier Players Theatre Company presents Kate Brennan and David Lee White’s Big Babies

Parents try to host a party

Big Babies, the latest world premiere from David Lee White and Kate Brennan, about a dinner party for parents of toddlers (and their wacky neighbors), is onstage at Pier Players Theatre Company. Walt Maguire reviews.

Walt Maguire

Oct 05, 2026 Reviews 3 minute read

13 actors of different races, genders, and ages, in 1930s garb, pose smiling with musical instruments across a large stage

The Arden presents Conon McPherson’s Girl from the North Country

Eugene O’Neill meets Bob Dylan

The Arden opens its 2026-27 season with Girl from the North Country, featuring a script by Conor McPherson and music by Bob Dylan. It feels like less than the sum of its parts. Josh Herren reviews.

Josh Herren

Oct 05, 2026 Reviews 3 minute read

On surreal but homelike furnished stage with cornstalks behind them, the three actors face the camera, avidly watching TV

The Wilma Theater presents DJ Hills’s Horsegirl & Cowdaddy

Transformation in the cornfields

Playwright DJ Hills’s Horsegirl & Cowdaddy gets its world premiere at the Wilma, exploring the power of transformation and the possibilities of putting down roots at home. Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer reviews.

Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer

Sep 28, 2026 Reviews 6 minute read

Sconiers, a Black woman with long brown hair flying around her and a flannel shirt, pivots dramatically, holding a script

Philly Fringe 2026: Theatre Contra presents The Whole Fcking Twilight Saga…in 60 Minutes*

A sillier take on Meyer’s vampires

Theatre Contra joins this year’s Fringe with an eight-person rendition of all five Twilight movies…performed in just one hour(ish). Adryan Corcione reviews.

Adryan Corcione

Sep 26, 2026 Reviews 3 minute read

kwon, wearing black, poses with Andrews, wearing white, partially obscured by soft, tall grasses that reach over their heads.

Philly Fringe 2026: FringeArts presents How does it feel to look at nothing

An immersive exploration of being

How does it feel to look at nothing, a world premiere from Holland Andrews and yuniya edi kwon in this year’s curated Fringe, is not quite an opera as billed, but it’s an ambitious, immersive, and visually stunning work. Krista Mar reviews.

Krista Mar