Thursday, June 12, 2025

Philadelphia Theatre Company presents Mickle Maher, Merel van Dijk, and Anthony Barilla's Small Ball by Cameron Kelsall

Small Ball, a fairy-tale musical about pint-sized basketball players, still needs a major assist. Cameron Kelsall reviews.

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 05:59PM
Wednesday, June 11, 2025

BSR Classical Interludes, June 2025 by Gail Obenreder

Serafin Summer Music fills the air with a dozen performances this month, Dolce Suono returns to a 2012 performance, and Orchestra in the Garden blooms. Gail Obenreder previews.

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 01:39PM

The BSR Weekly Arts and Culture Roundup, June 12-18, 2025 by Kyle V. Hiller

Pride continues, spending three weeks in space, and dancing to reconnect with the earth. Kyle V. Hiller rounds up the week.

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 01:20PM
Tuesday, June 10, 2025

Philly’s trans and nonbinary artists push the gendered boundaries of dance by Melissa Strong

Both locally and nationally, dance is benefitting from increased visibility and representation of openly trans and/or nonbinary artists, but dance still clings to stereotypes of gender more …

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 04:57PM

Go behind the scenes of June theater on the BSR podcast with Square Go, Small Ball, and Glitter in the Glass by Darnelle Radford

Dive deep into three shows closing out the 2024-25 theater scene. Darnelle sits down with the artists behind Inis Nua's Square Go, PTC's Small Ball, and Theatre Exile's Glitter in the Glass.

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 02:53PM

SEPTA’s “doomsday” cuts would be devastating to Philly arts and culture by Alaina Johns

A “doomsday” budget that would slash SEPTA service by 45 percent and raise fares by more than 20 percent poses an existential threat to Philly’s cultural sector. But if we all speak up…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 01:50PM

The African American Museum in Philadelphia presents Demond Melancon: As Any Means Are Necessary by Pamela J. Forsythe

New Orleans glass bead artist Demond Melancon, a modern icon of the Mardi Gras tradition of Black Masking, a confluence of West African, Afro Caribbean, and Indigenous cultures, gets his fir…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 11:24AM
Monday, June 9, 2025

Quintessence Theatre Group Presents James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room, adapted by Benjamin Sprunger and Paul Oakley Stovall by Nat čermák

With exclusive rights to the first stage adaptation ever approved by the Baldwin estate, Quintessence Theatre Group delivers a steamy, affecting treatise on the politics of queer love and de…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 05:17PM

Theatre Exile presents R. Eric Thomas’s Glitter in the Glass by Krista Mar

R. Eric Thomas’s Glitter in the Glass gets its East Coast premiere at South Philly’s Theatre Exile in a hilarious and thought-provoking production directed by Ontaria Kim Wilson. Krista …

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 04:50PM

Inis Nua and Tiny Dynamite present Kieran Hurley and Gary McNair’s Square Go by Chhaya Nayyar

In their first collaboration, Inis Nua and Tiny Dynamite unite their popular pub-themed performance styles with the Philly premiere of Square Go, a about two Scottish teen boys facing a figh…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 02:44PM
Wednesday, June 4, 2025

BSR Book Week staff recommendations: Reading as resistance by Alaina Johns

In honor of our third annual BSR Book Week, the BSR team offers book recommendations on a theme: reading as an act of resistance. These books inspire us, help us focus and understand the wor…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 10:42AM
Tuesday, June 3, 2025

Kayala’s Southern Thai Kitchen: A Cookbook, by Nok Suntaranon with Natalie Jesionka by An Nichols

In Kayala’s Southern Thai Kitchen: A Cookbook, acclaimed chef Nok Suntaranon shares the flavors of her award-winning Kalaya restaurant with home cooks who want to try their hand at authent…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 04:51PM

The romantasy genre subverts women’s agency when we need it the most by Chhaya Nayyar

The new romantasy genre—a mashup of romance and fantasy wildly popular with women—is actually full of regressive themes that deny women’s agency and political stakes. Chhaya Nayyar con…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 11:52AM
Friday, May 30, 2025

Philadelphia: A Narrative History, by Paul Kahan by Pamela J. Forsythe

From the Delaware Valley’s earliest inhabitants to the “reform” movements and anti-urbanism of today, Philadelphia: A Narrative Historyis a window on the American experiment—especial…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 03:51PM

Mendell Station, by J. B. Hwang by Krista Mar

J.B. Hwang’s debut novel, out this July, follows a woman who upends her career as she grieves for her best friend, exploring female friendship and working-class lives in the early days of …

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 03:38PM

Theatres of the Body: Dance and Discourse in Antebellum Philadelphia, by Lynn Matluck Brooks by Kimberly Haas

In Theatres of the Body, professor, editor, author, and dance scholar Lynn Matluck Brooks dives into a history of Philadelphia, and the America it influenced, through the lens of dance in th…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 03:30PM

minato sketches, by Sharon White by Crystal Sparrow

Temple professor and multi-genre writer Sharon White’s latest work of fiction, minato sketches, takes the reader on a rich and poetic interior journey with a woman recovering from stroke. …

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 03:18PM

The Griffin Sisters’ Greatest Hits, by Jennifer Weiner by Emily Savidge

Jennifer Weiner’s latest novel follows two sisters from Philly who achieve pop-music stardom in the early 2000s that leads to an estrangement in the present day. It’s a relatable story o…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 03:10PM

Thomas Sully’s Philadelphians: Painting the Athens of America, by Peter Conn by Gail Obenreder

Notable historian, professor, and author Peter Conn reflects on Philly as the Athens of America in his illuminating and rewarding new book exploring the work of 19th-century portraitist Thom…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 03:00PM

Trans History: From Ancient Times to the Present Day, By Alex L. Combs and Andrew Eakett by Rachel Bellwoar

A new graphic novel from Alex L. Combs and Andrew Eakett tackles the vast, varied, and longstanding history of trans folks around the world, combatting the ongoing erasure of trans lives. Ra…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 02:52PM

Ida B. Wells: Journalist, Advocate, and Crusader for Justice, by Erica Armstrong Dunbar and Candace Buford by Constance Garcia-Barrio

Erica Armstrong Dunbar’s latest book (coauthored with Candace Buford) explores the life of another trailblazing Black woman of American history, Ida B. Wells, making her story accessible t…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 02:45PM

True Hospitality: Lessons Learned from Behind the Concierge Desk, by Jamie Cooperstein by A. Lewis

Debut Philly author Jamie Cooperstein started her career as a journalist before grasping an opportunity in the hospitality field, and she never looked back. Now she shares the journey to fin…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 02:37PM

Tomorrow Will Bring Sunday’s News: A Philadelphia Story, by Beth Kephart by Emma Riverso

Prolific local author Beth Kephart writes her first novel for adults with this heartfelt piece of historical fiction based on Kephart’s own family in WWI-era Philly. Emma Riverso reviews.

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 02:17PM

Downbeach, by Matt Overs by Rob Laymon

In this dark picaresque of pranks and capers set in 1980s Atlantic City, Matt Overs explores a gritty and earnest coming-of-age in a unique culture one short railway from Philadelphia. Rob L…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 02:09PM

Kidnapped at Sea: The Civil War Voyage of David Henry White, by Andrew Sillen by Constance Garcia-Barrio

In Kidnapped at Sea: The Civil War Voyage of David Henry White, author Andrew Sillen draws a vivid picture of maritime life the 1860s, through the lens of a real-life Black teenager captured…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 02:04PM

You Didn’t Hear This From Me: (Mostly) True Notes on Gossip, by Kelsey McKinney by Stephen Silver

Philly journalist and media entrepreneur Kelsey McKinney, founding host of the popular podcast Normal Gossip, has expanded her gossip empire with her first book. Stephen Silver reviews.

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 01:58PM

Milkweed and Honey Cake: A Memoir in Ritual Moments, by Wendy A. Horwitz by Anndee Hochman

Northwest Philly essayist Wendy A. Horwitz explores empiricism and transcendence, skepticism and ritual, moments and generations in her new collection, Milkweed and Honey Cake. Anndee Hochma…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 01:51PM

House of Jars: Poems, by Hester L. Furey by C.m. Crockford

A new book of poetry from Philly’s Frayed Edge Press imagines characters like William Carlos Williams, Robert Oppenheimer, Rachel Carson, and Gertrude Stein in meditations on art, destruct…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 01:41PM

A History of Philadelphia Sandwiches: Steaks, Hoagies, Iconic Eateries & More, by Mike Madaio by Neil Bardhan

In A History of Philadelphia Sandwiches, Mike Madaio slices deep into the true origins as well as the legends of one of the region’s most hallowed foods, from Cooper sharp to chicken cutle…

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 01:34PM
Thursday, May 29, 2025

Rebuilding Your Life After Trauma: A Coping Manual, by Aviva Perlo by Anndee Hochman

Aviva Perlo’s book brings real solutions, perspectives, research, and personal experiences to light for those forging new lives after real trauma. Anndee Hochman reviews.

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 02:21PM

Second Chance Dance presents The Tapestry of Time: Threads of Time Woven in Motion by Melissa Strong

Tapestry of Time, a recital and celebration of courage, celebrates dancers of all ages. Melissa Strong previews.

SOURCE: Broad Street Review at 12:00AM