Culture of Philadelphia - Art - Performing Arts

Performing Arts

In Philadelphia's early history the city was visited by outside theater troupes, but experienced some resistance from conservatives and Quakers who tried to restrict performances. The creation of the Southwark Theater in 1766 marked the permanent presence of theater in Philadelphia. Theatrical performances were banned during the American Revolution, but when the ban was repealed in 1784 theater returned and another theater, the Chestnut Street Theater, opened a decade later. Over the next century a number of other theaters opened in the city including the Walnut Street Theatre and the Forrest Theater. Philadelphia produced several major theater actors, including Edwin Forrest, John Drew, and several members of the Barrymore family. The Philadelphia Theater Company, founded in 1974 and specializes in new American plays, used to perform in the Plays and Players Theatre but moved into the Suzanne Roberts Theatre on the Avenue of the Arts in 2007. Other modern theaters include the Arden Theater Company, the Wilma Theater, Lantern Theater Company, and the University of the Arts' Merriam and Arts Bank theaters. The University of Pennsylvania puts on productions at the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, the Irvine Auditorium and the Iron Gate Theater. African American themed plays are put on at the Freedom Theater and the Bushfire Theater. Other theater companies include the Adrienne, the InterAct Theater Company, the Venture Company, and the Mum Puppet Theater. Every year the Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival performs three Shakespeare plays.

There are an estimated 120 theater organizations in the Philadelphia area. The Theatre Alliance of Greater Philadelphia was formed in 1990 form its predecessor, the Performing Arts League of Philadelphia, to promote local theater; since 1994, the organization has presented the annual Barrymore Awards for Excellence in Theater to theater productions in the area.

Dance became a part of Philadelphia with the beginning of the Philadelphia Dancing Assemblies in 1748 which remained popular into the 20th Century. Major dancing organizations include the Pennsylvania Ballet founded in 1963. The Pennsylvania Ballet performs in the Academy of Music and the Merriam Theater. The Philadelphia Dance Company (Phildanco) was founded in 1970 and specializes in modern dance. The Koresh Dance Company was formed in 1991 and performs choreography that mixes elements of ballet, jazz, modern dance, and other dance forms.