Arts

More than 20 professional theater companies produce an enormous variety of events

Published

5 years ago

January 25, 2018

http://www.visitphilly.com/music-art/theater/

In the last quarter century, Philadelphia has witnessed a huge growth of professional theater activity, and more than 125 productions now originate in Philadelphia in a season. Philadelphia has become a vibrant, diverse and distinctive theater town.
More than 20 professional theater companies produce an enormous variety of events for all tastes and ages through a season running year-round. We have a particularly strong range of mid-sized companies that perform a wide repertory from avant-garde to musicals, from recent hit plays to original scripts, from classics to children’s theater. Numerous smaller theaters specialize in adventuresome work culminating each September during the Fringe Festival.
Read more: http://www.visitphilly.com/music-art/theater/
Follow us: http://facebook.com/visitphilly | http://twitter.com/visitphilly

FEATURED LISTINGS
Independence After Hours
A sneak peek at Philadelphia’s history
Through October 21, 2017 (select dates)
Prepare yourself for a V.I.P. night…Colonial style! Enjoy a delicious, three-course meal at historic City Tavern before heading out on an evening of adventure at Independence Hall.
VIEW MORE
2017 Fringe Festival
City-wide celebration of though-provoking progressive performing arts
September 7-24, 2017
For fans of new and experimental theater, the Fringe Festival presented by FringeArts features tons of must-see performances each September.
VIEW MORE
Prince Theater
Contemporary performance space for live entertainment and film
Home to the Philadelphia Film Society, the Prince Theater is a contemporary performing arts venue in the heart of Center City featuring live performances and film screenings.
VIEW MORE
Bastille Day Festival
at Eastern State Penitentiary
Wigs are welcome at this day-long reenactment of the French Revolution
July 15, 2017
Grab a pitchfork and storm the walls! Whether you’re a revolutionary or a royalist, there’s something for you in this celebration of all things French at Bastille Day at the Eastern State Penitentiary.
VIEW MORE
Hedgerow Theatre
Challenging theater in an 1840s gristmill
Hedgerow offers the opportunity to watch emerging actors grow under the mentoring experience of veteran actors and directors.
VIEW MORE
Philadelphia International Children’s Festival
A family-friendly theatrical extravaganza in University City
May 18-20, 2017
Philadelphia International Children’s Festival brings professional theater from across the globe, created specifically for children, to the Annenberg Center for Performing Arts at the University of Pennsylvania.
VIEW MORE
The Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre
Vivid and emotional stories by William Shakespeare
Always contemporary, always relevant, the Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre’s productions create the vitality of the play and reflect modern day hopes and fears.
VIEW MORE
ComedySportz
Philly’s longest-running comedy show
ComedySportz, Philadelphia’s longest-running comedy show, is improv comedy played as a sport, an interactive show with fans shouting out suggestions and even joining the “players” on the “field.”
VIEW MORE
First Person Arts Festival
The only festival of its kind dedicated to personal stories from everyday people
November 5-18, 2017
The only festival of its kind in the world, the 15th annual First Person Arts Festival is a celebration of people and the stories they have to share. Artists and everyday individuals from across the country take part in the annual event, sharing their personal experiences on stage.
VIEW MORE
Pennsylvania Ballet
More than 50 years of breathtaking performances
Captivating and inspiring, The Pennsylvania Ballet ranks as one of America’s foremost regional ballet companies. Each new season brings a combination of classical performances, world premieres and timeless traditions, including the beloved holiday performance of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker.
VIEW MORE
Juneteenth Festival
Annual festival in Historic Germantown celebrating African American freedom
June 17
Historic Germantown celebrates Juneteenth, the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States, with its seventh annual Juneteenth Festival on Saturday, June 17.
VIEW MORE
The Rotunda
Performance space and community gathering place
Built as a house of worship in 1911, The Rotunda is now a smoke-free and drink-free space for world, soul, hip-hop, rock, jazz and experimental music. When bands aren’t playing, the socially conscious venue hosts movie screenings, yoga classes, theater projects and art exhibits.
VIEW MORE
FringeArts
Permanent home for progressive performing arts on the Delaware River Waterfront
FringeArts, formerly known as the Philadelphia Live Arts Festival and Philly Fringe, now has a permanent home for the arts on the Delaware River Waterfront.
VIEW MORE
Wayne Art Center
The Main Line’s first art center
Established as the first art center on the Main Line, the Wayne Art Center comes complete with state-of-the-art studios, galleries and a gallery shop.
VIEW MORE
Hiway Theater
Historic home of independent cinema in the center of Jenkintown
For more than 100 years, the Hiway Theater has been a cultural fixture in the center of Jenkintown.
VIEW MORE
Read more: http://www.visitphilly.com/music-art/theater/
Follow us: http://facebook.com/visitphilly | http://twitter.com/visitphilly

AM LIVE FEATURED

Music Icon & Grammy Winner Speech Responds To The Capitol Insurrection (Single)

Published

2 years ago

January 23, 2021

MJ Savino

“This song had to be made to become proactive in shaping our collective future, because the rebellion that happened on January 6, 2021, in Washington D.C. was the curtain being pulled back on race, lies, and darkness in America,” Speech explains. “It’s obvious that about half of America is living in a fictitious bubble and are responding accordingly. That’s why I wanted to share facts about the lawlessness and hypocrisy that was occurring. We may be at the start of another Civil war and a lot of bloodshed.” -SPEECH

Atlanta, GA…Like millions of other Americans, Grammy Award-winning artist Speech of the legendary Afro-centric Hip Hop group Arrested Development watched in horror as a swath of die-hard Trump loyalists stormed the U.S. Capitol building in Washington D.C. As the dedicated MC he is, Speech put the pen to paper and spit out the single “A Different World,” an anthemic call-to-action that both preserve his artistic integrity and passion for socio-political issues.

“On the night of the terrorist attack that already killed five people, I did a YouTube post, I posted various things on social media, but none of it seemed adequate, especially from a music documentation perspective,” he said of the song’s evolution. “So, I went into the studio, pulled out my Beat Thang, sampler, etc. The jazz/boom bap energy for this song was intentional, meant to be a throwback energy from the ‘90s-type approach. In my opinion, those sensibilities lend themselves to reflection, grooves, and hope, while still showing the urgency of this moment. I also purposely rhymed with a higher pitch, cuz I wanted my emotions of helplessness, rage but also engagement to come through.” -SPEECH

“A Different World” follows Expansion Pt. 1, Speech’s first solo EP in 14 years, and will appear on his upcoming full-length album Expansion. As he flirts within the song’s breakdown, “This is a time for good-hearted people of all races that love Hip Hop to show the world a path to peace and truth! Plot, Plan, Strategize, Organize and Mobilize. Please spread the vibes. We aren’t helpless, we can make a different world.”

Watch the teaser video and get “A Different World” below on preferred platforms.

https://youtu.be/dK1M9YMisUI”A Different World” on preferred platforms
https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/speech3/a-different-world

Arts

Luke Perry, star of ‘Beverly Hills 90210’ and ‘Riverdale,’ dead at 52

Published

4 years ago

March 5, 2019

ART MUZO+

(CNN)Luke Perry, who played the beloved Dylan McKay on the hit coming-of-age series “Beverly Hills 90210,” has died.

Perry, 52, died Monday after suffering a massive stroke, his publicist Arnold Robinson told CNN.

“He was surrounded by his children Jack and Sophie, fiancé Wendy Madison Bauer, ex-wife Minnie Sharp, mother Ann Bennett, step-father Steve Bennett, brother Tom Perry, sister Amy Coder, and other close family and friends. The family appreciates the outpouring of support and prayers that have been extended to Luke from around the world, and respectfully request privacy in this time of great mourning. No further details will be released at this time,” a statement from Robinson read.

Born Coy Luther Perry III in Mansfield, Ohio, and raised in the small community of Fredericktown, Perry moved to Los Angeles to pursue acting soon after graduating from high school.

There he worked a series of odd jobs as he tried to break into the business.

The Big Apple beckoned in 1988 after he scored an appearance as Ned Bates on the soap opera “Loving,” which required him to move to New York City.

In 2013 during an appearance on the radio show “Sway in the Morning,” Perry said it took him 256 auditions before he scored his first gig.

“I just kept thinking, ‘You know, I just walked out of a room full of fools,'” Perry said of how he maintained the confidence to keep going. “Those people have no idea.”

The same year as his “Loving” appearance, Perry landed a role on another soap, this time portraying Kenny on “Another World.”

But it was his role as seemingly bad boy Dylan McKay on Fox’s “Beverly Hills 90210” in 1990 which shot Perry into the atmosphere.

The series was both wildly popular and also criticized because of its willingness to take on topics such as teens being sexually active.

“We have done some shows that dealt with pretty some touchy topics and people weren’t altogether happy with how we dealt with it,” Perry said during an appearance on “The Arsenio Hall Show” in the 1990s. “I thought we handled it pretty intelligently and we were willing to answer the questions we brought up.”

Perry’s character was so popular among fans that in 1991 an expected crowd of 2,000 at a Florida mall turned into a stampede of 10,000 when he appeared at an autograph signing.

Several people were hospitalized and the mall was forced to shut its doors after the chaos.

The actor famously left the show in Season 6, seeking to break away from the Dylan character, but returned in Season 9.

Perry also appeared on the big screen with roles in films including “Good Intentions,” “Red Wing” and “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” which later became a hit television series.

He made his Broadway debut in 2002 as Brad in “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.”

But it was the small screen that showed the actor the most love, with roles on “The Incredible Hulk,” “Jeremiah,” “Oz,” “Windfall” and “John from Cincinnati.”

More recently, Perry took on the role as Archie Andrews’ father Fred in the hit CW drama “Riverdale,” based on the characters from the Archie comics.

Perry married “Teen Wolf Too” actress Rachel “Minnie” Sharp in 1993 and the couple welcomed son Jack and daughter Sophie.

They divorced a decade later.

Perry is in director Quentin Tarantino’s upcoming film “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” which set for release in July.

CNN’s Chloe Melas contributed to this report.

Arts

Spike Lee wins Oscar Award

Published

4 years ago

February 27, 2019

ART MUZO+

Spike Lee’s first competitive Oscar win (for co-writing BlacKkKlansman) on Sunday night resulted in cheers, a standing ovation, and a jubilant leap into longtime friend and collaborator Samuel L. Jackson’s arms on stage at the Dolby Theatre. Inside the White House, though, his achievement led to the opposite reaction. On Monday morning, President Donald Trump tweeted that Lee’s speech was “a racist hit on your President.” Though Lee hadn’t mentioned Trump at all, he had wrapped up his acceptance speech with a plea for voters to “be on the right side of history” and “make the moral choice between love versus hate” at the 2020 presidential election — a statement that appears to have caused the president’s reaction.