Theater

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Diorio, a tall Black drag queen in a gold 18th-century gown, snaps flamboyantly in sync with dozens of singers around her.

ArtPhilly’s What Now festival presents Andrea Clearfield and Cookie Diorio’s Long Live the Queen: A Herstory of Drag

“The light of limitless love is a possibility”

The inaugural Art Philly: What Now festival brought composer Andrea Clearfield and multidisciplinary drag artist Cookie Diorio together for an exciting, genre-defying new work. Krista Mar reviews.
Krista Mar

Krista Mar

Reviews 4 minute read
The three actors crouch worriedly behind a table with fantastical, neon-lit science gadgets.

Pig Iron Theatre Company presents Dan Rothenberg and Robert Quillen Camp’s Franklin’s Key

A spectacular romp for families celebrating 250

After a successful premiere last year, Pig Iron revives Franklin’s Key, a fantastical, Philly-centric, family-friendly stage adventure about a pair of teens on a quest for Ben Franklin’s biggest secret. Walt Maguire reviews.

Walt Maguire

Reviews 3 minute read
Three white actors in their 20s in casual clothes lean or sit on a dresser close together, looking portentously at the viewer

Playhouse West Philadelphia presents Stephen Belber’s Tape

A 1990s drama holds up in the post-truth era

Playhouse West Philadelphia, an acting school that stages plays and other events, offers a darkly funny production of the 1996 play Tape, with hazardous morals that resonate in our current era. C.M. Crockford reviews.
C.M. Crockford

C.M. Crockford

Reviews 4 minute read
Greer & Childs, in matching gold & blue-checked satin outfits, sing together as Greer plays a ukelele.

People’s Light presents Jennifer Childs and Scott Greer’s Two Outta Three

Exploring the constant evolution of artists and parents

At People’s Light, long-married actors Jennifer Childs and Scott Greer consider what it means to become empty nesters in their new original show, Two Outta Three. Cameron Kelsall reviews.
Cameron Kelsall

Cameron Kelsall

Reviews 3 minute read
BSR pod the Great Privation

The BSR Podcast: Dive into June theater with The Great Privation at Theatre Exile and Franklin's Key at Pig Iron

Go behind the scenes of two exciting early summer productions

Darnelle Radford dives into June 2026 theater with a pair of interviews featuring directors Ontaria Kim Wilson and Dan Rothenberg, and actor Jameka Monet Wilson.
Darnelle Radford

Darnelle Radford

Podcast 2 minute read
Murphy holds a 19th-century lantern while Rayne, in a long gray cape, touches her shoulder. They look outward anxiously.

Theatre Exile presents Nia Akilah Robinson’s The Great Privation (How to Flip Ten Cents into a Dollar)

A surreal and soulful look at Philly, 200 years ago and today

At Theatre Exile, The Great Privation (How to Flip Ten Cents into a Dollar) toggles between Philadelphia’s problematic past and imperfect present. Cameron Kelsall reviews.
Cameron Kelsall

Cameron Kelsall

Reviews 3 minute read
Charéce-Hall and Cynda Purnell, two Black women, sit together on a taupe couch on a black stage, talking seriously.

ArtPhilly’s What Now festival: Theatre in the X presents Carlo Campbell’s Acknowledge Me

A community on the Semiquincentennial

A new play by Philly artist Carlo Campbell at Theatre in the X helps to kick off the inaugural ArtPhilly What Now: 2026 festival, but it needs more work to create a dramatic whole from community voices. Krista Mar reviews.
Krista Mar

Krista Mar

Reviews 3 minute read

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Three Black men in 1930s garb carouse around a small round table with a white lace cloth.

Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival presents August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson

A perfect staging of a play America needs

James Ijames helms a new production of August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson at Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, and the show is worth the trip to Center Valley for anyone in the Philly area. An Nichols reviews.
An Nichols

An Nichols

Reviews 4 minute read
On a surreal stage with red striped walls, rows of yellow lights, and fog, actors cavort in front of a large curtained bed

What did Philly audiences and theaters learn from the 2026 Citywide James Ijames Pass?

Tracking an experiment in multi-theater marketing

As three Philly theaters programmed works by James Ijames in the 2025-26 season, they decided to join forces to attract new audiences. Did it work? Wendy Univer finds out.
Wendy Univer

Wendy Univer

Features 7 minute read
The three young male actors, in casual contemporary clothes, are caught jumping into the air in dramatic poses.

Arden Theatre Company presents Dear Evan Hansen

Watching through a window

The Arden’s regional premiere of Dear Evan Hansen flattens the musical’s complicated story. Cameron Kelsall reviews.
Cameron Kelsall

Cameron Kelsall

Reviews 4 minute read