June 03, 2025
Provided Image/Linda Johnson for Quintessence Theatre Group
Mount Airy's Quintessence Theatre will premiere a stage version of James Baldwin's famous novel 'Giovanni's Room' in June. The show follows a young American man who journeys to Paris with his girlfriend and falls in love with an Italian bartender named Giovanni.
In June, Philadelphia theaters are reimagining longtime classics, from stage versions of famous novels and poems to a musical merging "Gulliver's Travels" and basketball that was co-produced by Sixers President Daryl Morey.
In the coming weeks, Quintessence Theatre is premiering a production of James Baldwin's "Giovanni's Room" and Liberty City Arts has a show expanding on Amy Lowell's "The Sisters." Morey's show, meanwhile, brings an American basketball player to Jonathan Swift's fictional island of Lilliput to play on a team made up of its 6-inch tall residents.
Plus, those looking for a more interactive experience can check out "Space Opera" on three Saturdays, a unique show combining Dungeons & Dragons-style role play with live theater. For the classics, the Shakespeare in Clark Park crew is touring "All's Well That Ends Well" in local parks and Old Academy Players puts on A.R. Gurney's "The Dining Room."
Here are 11 shows hitting Philly stages in June:
June 5, 6, 14 & 21 | Shakespeare in Clark Park | Various locations
Considered one of Shakespeare's "problem plays," "All's Well" follows a poor physicians daughter named Helen as she attempts to win the love of a nobleman named Bertram. The free performances will be at the Abington Art Center, Valley Creek Park, West Goshen Community Park and McMichael Park.
June 5-29 | Pig Iron Theatre Co. | 1714 Delancey St.
In this original play, high school prodigies Temple, a scientist, and her brother Arturo, a musician, attempt to protect undiscovered technology from Ben Franklin that controls the weather. As they move beneath Philadelphia's landmarks, they're also caught between two secret societies each wanting to preserve Franklin's creations. Tickets start at $29.
June 5-29 | Theatre Exile | 1340 S. 13th St.
Chelle, a Black artist, applies for a grant to create a new monument when a confederate one is taken down by city officials in Baltimore. But as she attempts to follow through with it, she goes on a journey to before the Middle Passage, the sea voyage during the slave trade, and "out beyond the bounds of this planet." Tickets start at $40.
June 6-22 | Inis Nua Theatre Co. | 302 S. Hicks St.
This show follows Max, a young student who hides out in the school bathrooms after being challenged to a square go, aka an after-school fight, by the local bully. With the help of his best friend, he wrestles with his internal demons of masculinity, friendship and family before facing the outer ones in a coming-of-age comedy. Tickets start at $23.75.
June 6-28 | InterAct Theatre Co. | 302 S. Hicks St.
In the spring of 1962, young Faye joins the Nation of Islam. Meanwhile, her best friend Michael wants to pursue a romantic relationship, but they can't agree on religion or politics. The show follows the pair in the decades that follow, as life pulls them apart and puts them back together again and again. Tickets start at $38.
June 6-29 | Philadelphia Theatre Co. | 480 S. Broad St.
In this show co-produced by Sixers President Daryl Morey, a basketball player conveniently named Michael Jordan joins an international team of players who are only 6 inches tall from a "Gulliver's Travels" island. The musical follows Jordan as he leads his team on the court and in the postgame news conferences. Tickets start at $38.
June 7-22 | Quintessence Theatre | 7137 Germantown Ave.
Quintessence adapted James Baldwin's 1956 novel for the stage, which tells the story of a young American who journeys to Paris with his girlfriend. Once there, he finds a thriving queer community and meets and falls in love with an Italian bartender named Giovanni. Tickets start at $50.
June 10-29 | Wilma Theater | 265 S. Broad St.
An older woman and her friend reflect on a summer from long ago in this show, which takes place on a single day. The woman's younger self recently moved out to the countryside from the city to make her husband happy, but she found there was still darkness lingering. Tickets start at $52.
June 13 & 15 | Liberty City Arts | 20 N. American St.
In a stage version inspired by Amy Lowell's poem of the same name, a composer reimagines the work as an opera with the voices of three famous poets: Sappho, Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Emily Dickinson. The show unpacks themes such as identity, legacy and artistic lineage. Tickets start at $23.11.
June 13-29 | Old Academy Players | 3544 Indian Queen Ln.
In a single dining room in New England, 18 scenes from a number of different households — a mix of funny, sad and reflective — play out over the course of the production. The show by A.R. Gurney is a commentary on the dwindling middle class, and it was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 1985. Tickets are $25.
June 14, 21 & 28 | Obvious Agency | 302 Arch St.
Over three Saturdays in June, theatergoers can collaborate with the professionals in a performance that blends live performance with live-action role playing. In the "Space Opera," the choices of participants will help design a galaxy and the stories that unfold. Audiences can sign up for just one show, but they're encouraged to go to all three to see how their character and the universe evolve. Tickets start at $15 for watchers and $50 for participants.
