PAFA presents Layers of Liberty: Philadelphia and the Appalachian Environment

The world’s oldest mountains get a gallery at last

PAFA’s new Layers of Liberty exhibition, a rare close-up on Appalachian art, continues a trend of museums exploring our complicated, often greedy relationship with the natural world. Gail Obenreder reviews.

Gail Obenreder

Jul 16, 2024 · Reviews · 5 minute read

BalletX presents its 2024 Summer Series

Three world premieres mark BalletX’s last show at the Wilma

BalletX says goodbye to the Wilma stage with its 2024 Summer Series, featuring eclectic world-premiere choreography by Stina Quagebeur, Loughlan Prior, and choreographer-in-residence Amy Hall Garner. Camille Bacon-Smith reviews.

Camille Bacon-Smith

Jul 15, 2024 · Reviews · 5 minute read

The Barnes Foundation presents Matisse & Renoir: New Encounters at the Barnes

The OGs of their genres

A new exhibition from the Barnes draws on the best of the foundation’s extensive collection of works by Matisse and Renoir and places them in conversation with each other. K.A. McFadden reviews.

K.A. McFadden

Jul 02, 2024 · Reviews · 4 minute read

Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival presents The Merry Wives of Windsor

Shakespeare did it first

Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival brings a thrillingly modern tenor to The Merry Wives of Windsor, which comes to life with musical verve and comic effervescence. Kiran Pandey reviews.

Kiran Pandey

Jul 02, 2024 · Reviews · 4 minute read

Anne-Marie Mulgrew and Dancers Company and Yu.S.Artistry present Two Worlds

Contemporary dance, worlds apart

A split bill from Anne-Marie Mulgrew and Dancers Company and Yu.S.Artistry titled Two Worlds offered strikingly different styles of contemporary dance, from folklore and fantasy to urgent real-world tragedy. Melissa Strong reviews.

Melissa Strong

Jul 02, 2024 · Reviews · 4 minute read

Philadelphia Dance Projects presents Lily Kind’s I’ve got a tape I wanna play

As much fun as you can have in an hour of dance

Lily Kind brought her puckish humor to the Philadelphia Dance Projects with a new hour-long show, I’ve got a tape I wanna play, which builds on the star quality and choreographic elements of her previous work. Camille Bacon-Smith reviews.

Camille Bacon-Smith

Jul 01, 2024 · Reviews · 3 minute read

The Mütter Museum presents its Postmortem Project exhibition

Exhuming the past, examining the future

With its Postmortem Project exhibition, the Mütter Museum continues a fraught but necessary process to evaluate and present its collections in line with modern medical, legal, and ethical standards. Pamela J. Forsythe reviews.

Pamela J. Forsythe

Jun 25, 2024 · Reviews · 6 minute read

Drexel University presents Modern Ritual: The Art of Mary McFadden

A “design archeologist” arrives at Drexel

Globetrotting fashion designer Mary McFadden’s archive is now housed at Drexel’s Robert and Penny Fox Historic Costume Collection, and its first exhibition there offers a tantalizing glimpse of her world. Wendy Univer reviews.

Wendy Univer

Jun 25, 2024 · Reviews · 5 minute read

National Liberty Museum presents In Pursuit: Artists’ Perspectives on a Nation

An all-American sculptural showcase

Seven artists and two guest curators offer gorgeous and searing expressions of their American experiences in a satisfying and thought-provoking exhibition at Independence Mall’s National Liberty Museum. Emily B. Schilling reviews.

Emily Schilling

Jun 24, 2024 · Reviews · 4 minute read

AAMP Presents IMPRINT: Dox Thrash Black Life, and American Culture

Remembering a revelatory Philadelphia artist

Dox Thrash, the Georgia-born artist who settled in Philadelphia and invented a whole new method of printmaking, gets an important new show at AAMP. Pamela J. Forsythe reviews.

Pamela J. Forsythe

Jun 24, 2024 · Reviews · 5 minute read