Adventures in Theater History: Philadelphia
An exploration of the History of Theater in the City of Philadelphia - from Early Colonial times, through the Industrial Era, all the way into the 21st Century.
Recent Episodes
Episode 7: Two Paintings at The Met
April 9, 2021
An examination of two works by artist John Lewis Krimmel, as they relate to the history of theater …
Episode 6: Ricketts' Circus in the Capital City, Part Four
April 2, 2021
The final installment of our story about John Bill Ricketts, with more adventures about his equestr…
Episode 5: Ricketts' Circus in the Capital City, Part Three
March 26, 2021
The third in our four-part Adventure about John Bill Ricketts and his circus in Philadelphia, the t…
Episode 4: Ricketts' Circus in the Capital City, Part Two
March 26, 2021
The second of our four-part Adventure about John Bill Ricketts, the equestrian and showman, famous …
Episode 3: Ricketts' Circus in the Capital City, Part One
March 26, 2021
This is first section of our first deep dive, the initial Adventure in Theater History that the tit…
Episode 2: Early Philadelphia Theater in the 18th Century
March 26, 2021
In this episode, we do a broad overview of Philadelphia theater and its contribution to American dr…
Recent Blog Posts
Episode 7: Two Paintings at The Met
Image above: "Nightlife in Philadelphia—an Oyster Barrow in front of the Chestnut Street Theater", by John Lewis Krimmel; Metropolitan Museum of Ar…
Episode 6 - Ricketts Circus Comes to the End of Its Run
Above, the portrait of J.B. Ricketts by Gilbert Stuart, in the collection of the National Gallery. Inscription, lower left: "Portrait of Mr Rickarts Hors…
Episode 3 - Ricketts' Circus
Above and below we see two posters for Ricketts' Circus, during periods when he was resident in New York City in the 1790s (from the collection of the Ho…