SUMMER SCREENING SERIES Aug. 12 (7pm-8:30pm)

Join VietLead and the University of Pennsylvania Asian Alumni Network for ourscreening of VietLead's award-winning documentary series Taking Root, as part of VietLead's Taking Root Summer Screening Series commemorating the 50th Anniversary of Southeast Asian refugee resettlement in the United States.

Taking Root is a community-produced documentary series that amplifies the untold stories of Vietnamese, Cambodian, and Laotian refugee Philadelphians who resettled in the city after the Wars in Southeast Asia (commonly known as the “Vietnam War"). Through 12 firsthand accounts, the series explores how imperialist violence shaped intergenerational trauma, challenges the erasure of Southeast Asian refugee histories, and positions these communities as agents of change in Philadelphia. Watch the trailer and learn more by visiting https://www.takingrootdocumentary.com/.

All ticket proceeds will go to support VietLead's mission and vision of building Vietnamese and Southeast Asian leadership in Philadelphia! Learn more by visiting https://www.vietlead.org/

Performances — $30

BOX OFFICE: (267) 457-2851 Location: The Louis Bluver Theatre @ The Drake

written & performed by Khalil Munir

Co-Produced by Azuka Theatre and Simpatico Theatre Oct. 22-Nov. 2, 2025

Through a tour-de-force tap performance, live music, and impassioned storytelling, Khalil shares his true tale of growing up and beating the odds in Philadelphia. This triumphant story of hope reveals the transformative power of art to change lives.

Performances — PWYD

BUY TICKETS ONLINE
BOX OFFICE: (215) 563-1100 | boxoffice@azukatheatre.org Location: The Louis Bluver Theatre @The Drake

by Amy Berryman

INTERACT THEATRE COMPANY
October 31 - November 22, 2025

After returning from a year-long Moon mission, Cassie, a NASA botanist, finds herself in a remote cabin in the woods, where her estranged twin sister, Stella, a former NASA architect, has found a new life with her Earth Advocate fiancé, Bryan. As the sisters attempt to pick up the pieces of the rivalry that broke them apart, they grapple with perhaps the single biggest question that confronts humanity: is saving Earth still a possibility or should we commit ourselves to colonizing another planet?

Performances — $20-$40

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BOX OFFICE: (215) 568-8079 | boxoffice@interacttheatre.org Location: The Proscenium Theatre @ The Drake

by S. An-sky

Open Theater Workshop Nov. 13-16, 2025

The Dybbuk by S. An-sky (written 1913-1916) is a gothic romance between two young lovers, a mythological tale about a broken promise, and a folkloric snapshot of Jewish life in the Pale of Settlement as interpreted by writer and ethnographer An-sky. Incorporating klezmer music, Yiddish folk dance, and shadow puppets based on traditional paper cutting, this community-focused production of the rarely staged Russian-Yiddish play will be the culmination of an innovative, year-long creative process that began with a series of free theater workshops hosted by Philadelphia's Open Theater Workshop.

Directed by Sarah Billings Puppet direction by Madeline Shuron Dramaturgy by Sophie Koester Produced by Daniel Korn

Performances — $35 (PWYC tix available)

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BOX OFFICE: https://opentheaterworkshop.org/

Location: The Louis Bluver Theatre @ The Drake

by Ian Kershaw

An Inis Nua & Tiny Dynamite co-production November 26 - December 14, 2025

It’s 4:40 a.m., and time has quite literally stopped — at least for everyone except singletons Tom and Sara and the long-married Forshaws. In the quiet of the very early morning, four neighbors reach out to each other across space, time, and loneliness to find that their universe is bigger than they knew. Told by a single narrator (beloved Philadelphia performer Brett Ashley Robinson), this magical, romantic, and soul-stirring story glows with the enchantments of the holiday season. The Greatest Play in the History of the World is “a hymn to the joys of love and science fantasy…one of the most charming and dopamine-rich shows you could ever hope to see.” (The Theatre Times)

Performances — $21- Senior; $33 - Standard

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BOX OFFICE: (215) 454-9776 Location: The Louis Bluver Theatre @ The Drake

by Chris Davis

WRITTEN & PERFORMED BY CHRIS DAVIS Dec 8 - Jan 4, 2026

You know the Nutcracker the ballet, but what if the ballet was performed by only one man? If the daughter Marie, little boy Fritz, creepy uncle Drosselmeyer, the mice, the Sugar Plum fairy, were all channeled through one actor. Chris Davis is proud to bring you One-Man Nutcracker, a re-telling of the original E.T.A. Hoffman Nutcracker Story and the Ballet.

Back for its third year at the Drake, One-Man Nutcracker is a fun show for families and friends to celebrate the holiday season.

"...a witty and irreverent take on the classic holiday ballet." - WHYY

"This is 60 minutes of pure joy. Chris Davis has given us a true holiday gift."

- Judy Cohen, Stage Reviews

“Imagine the holiday classic, The Nutcracker, a two-hour ballet masterpiece, condensed into just one hour. Then, imagine that instead of a company of over 100 ballerinas…there's just ONE.”

– 6ABC Action News

"Condenses the two-hour classic into a ballet power hour." - Thinking Dance

"It's smart. It's funny. In the words of the show itself, it's better than CGI."

- Broad Street Review

Performances — $15-$35

BUY TICKETS ONLINE

BOX OFFICE: realchrisdavis.com Location: The Prosenium Theatre @ The Drake

Produced by Chaz T. Martin Jan 22- Feb 1, 2026

Philly’s most genre-breaking and -bending comedy acts returns for 2 weekends of 18 shows all under 1 roof! It’s more than just standup, more than just improv, and more than just sketch—it’s a good time, guaranteed!

Performances — $12

BUY TICKETS ONLINE BOX OFFICE: varietypackhq@gmail.com (Tickets available starting Dec. 1, 2025) Location: The Louis Bluver Theatre @ The Drake

by Phaedra Michelle Scott

INTERACT THEATRE COMPANY
February 6 - March 1, 2026

Two contemporary families: one white, descended from the original owners of the Civil War era plantation, and the other Black, descended from the people who were enslaved on the same plantation. Due to legally and morally questionable events from the Civil War era, the rightful heir to the land is murky, forcing the present-day families to consider a sequence of events in 1864-65 that will help them arrive at an equitable path forward. PLANTATION BLACK’s innovative structure evokes the way history repeats itself, and the (sometimes) random ways we learn about our national and personal history. Before each performance, a cast member spins a wheel bearing the names of all the scenes in the play, and the show begins at a randomly selected point in the story.

Performances — $20-$40

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BOX OFFICE: (215) 568-8079 | boxoffice@interacttheatre.org Location: The Proscenium Theatre @ The Drake

by Dan Kitrosser

THEATRE ARIEL
March 12-29, 2026

A World-Premiere Comedy

Marsha Blovotnick is angry. She's angry at the world. She's angry at her ex-wives. And she's very angry at her sister, who just invited herself over for Shabbat dinner. Then a mysterious Ancient Ancestor arrives bearing a pot of magic soup. Could this marvelous broth be the cure for what enrages her? Could it mend her relationships? Could a bowl of "Jewish penicillin" just possibly... heal the world? Be sure to catch this world-premiere production from a hilarious, award-winning Philly playwright!

Performances — $36 - Standard; $18 - Student/Industry

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BOX OFFICE: (610) 667-9230 | info@theatreariel.org Location: The Louis Bluver Theatre @ The Drake

by David Ireland 

INIS NUA THEATRE COMPANY March 18 - April 5, 2026

When twenty-something Stevie meets forty-something Martha in a Belfast cafe, it’s lust at first sight. But soon their irresistible (if unlikely) fling begins to deepen into something more. That is, until his mother and older sister find out and their disapproval threatens Stevie and Martha’s chance at real love. Can’t Forget About You is both a spicy rom-com and a sharply insightful look at generational conflict in post-Troubles Belfast. This “rude, ribald and … raucously funny” (The Guardian) comedy asks what a family and a nation can forget on the way to a brighter future.

Performances — $14- Senior; $36 - Standard

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BOX OFFICE: (215) 454-9776 Location: The Proscenium Theatre @ The Drake

by Royall Tyler

PHILADELPHIA ARTISTS’ COLLECTIVE April 9-26, 2026

"The Contrast" was America’s first comedy and an indisputable hit in its time! The sentimental Maria is unhappily engaged to Dimple, a dandy whose recent European tour has given him expensive tastes and a tendency to flirt with her friends. They all seem on track for a life of misery until Colonel Manly and his salt-of-the-earth waiter Jonathan arrive in town to disrupt this disreputable plot. Fresh from the American Revolution, this 1787 gem is a comedy of manners that helped define what American manners were to become.

Performances — $18- Student/Industry; $35 - General

BUY TICKETS ONLINE BOX OFFICE: info@philartistscollective.org Location: The Louis Bluver Theatre @ The Drake

by Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay

INTERACT THEATRE COMPANY
World Premiere, comissioned as part of the Philly Cycle!

April 17 - May 10, 2026

When a mysterious and fatal epidemic starts to haunt their shop, three generations of a Lao family in South Philly clash over what’s best for the well-being of their matriarch. This modern American family includes Lao, Vietnamese and Cambodian characters, who must navigate a dramatically shifting local and national cultural political scene while advocating for greater political representation.

Developed in partnership with Laos in the House, VietLead and the Cambodian Association of Greater Philadelphia.

LEARN ABOUT The Philly Cycle HERE

Performances — $20-$40

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BOX OFFICE: (215) 568-8079 | boxoffice@interacttheatre.org Location: The Proscenium Theatre @ The Drake

by Chaz T. Martin

Co-Produced by Azuka Theatre and Simpatico Theatre May 7-24, 2026

Set in a future where American citizens face government-assigned classifications, Martin’s new play is a thrilling story of identity, loyalty, and survival. A Homeland Security agent goes off the grid, seeking the help of the elusive Mr. Warren, but instead finds his charming wife. Allie. When a violent interruption thrusts their polite interrogations into hyper speed, both realize they’re in more danger than they thought. Old party lines and identity politics collide in a suspenseful tale that challenges who we can—or should—trust.

Performances — PWYD

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BOX OFFICE: (215) 563-1100 | boxoffice@azukatheatre.org Location: The Louis Bluver @ The Drake

by Robbie Gordon & Jack Nurse

INIS NUA THEATRE COMPANY May 27 - June 14, 2026

Five very different women have joined a community-center soccer team with the same goal: winning the Homeless World Cup for Scotland. Jo is hungry for the trophy. The B needs a fresh start. Noor juggles school, family, and talent. Lorraine is looking for purpose. Single-mom Sammy wants to make her boys proud. And together, they go further than any of them could alone. With all the euphoria, agony, and breakneck speed of a football match, this “electric…compassionate, hilarious, and honest” (Theatre Scotland) play is all about what’s possible when we’re on the same team — just in time for the 2026 World Cup!

Performances — $14- Senior; $36 - Standard

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BOX OFFICE: (215) 454-9776 Location: The Proscenium Theatre @ The Drake