The new series kicks off with shorts from Sam Tower/ Plant Me Here, The Naked Stark, John Rosenberg/ Hella Fresh, and Josh McIlvain/ SmokeyScout.

With Chestnut Hill’s Stagecrafters Theater, East Falls’ Old Academy Players, and Mount Airy’s Allens Lane Theater, there’s a surprising number of theaters in Northwest Philadelphia. Two of the newest companies,…

This month, Cliveden opens its historic grounds for a two-night engagement of new performing arts.

Theater, dance, circus, and a return to the stage after 12 years. Nice and Fresh January is supremely accessible performance art.

I was born in the late 1970s, so my childhood only just coincided with the days of the family slideshow. We never had one in my home, but I have memories…

This month features circus heroes Almanac, Philadanco alum Lauren Putty White, a short by SmokeyScout artistic director Josh McIlvain, and the return of prodigal playwright John Rosenberg.

SmokeyScout Productions’ Nice and Fresh performing arts series is like a mini Fringe Festival each month

Mike breaks down his picks into two categories: Fringe-tastic are those that embrace the festival, try new ways to story-tell and create an exciting audience experience. The Guide Image picks are picked solely on their image in the guide,

Every fan of the Philadelphia Fringe Festival has seen Josh McIlvain’s work—even if they haven’t seen his theatrical work. For the past few years Josh has edited the Fringe blog and…

And now, AMERICAN WISDOM, a mainstage collection of three of Josh’s one-acts, is a handshake between Philly and New York, featuring actors and directors from both sides of the ancient and abiding divide—and performing for one weekend in each city. What’s more, it was launched through an IndieGoGo campaign, representing McIlvain’s collaboration with his audiences.

Phindie has been a long-term champion of playwright John Rosenberg and his Hella Fresh Theater. There are pretty much no companies in Philadelphia focused on full seasons of original work, certainly none of the caliber reached in Rosenberg’s best plays, 2013′s Hannah and 2012′s Alp d’Huez.

Sebastian’s dance-music-theater creations draw from each art without being confined to easy definitions. This Saturday’s Sorry, I’m Just Human marks a culmination of two years of choreographic, musical, and theatrical experimentation.

SmokeyScout is named after artistic director Josh McIlvain’s cats: Smokey and Scout. The program of the November NICE AND FRESH thanks them, along with Moving Arts of Mount Airy (MAMA), the intimate,…

Fresh from the inaugural weekend of NICE AND FRESH, I’m heartened to report that SmokeyScout Productions (founded by Josh McIlvain and Deborah Crocker in 2008) now offers something new and…

What a pleasant corner of Philadelphia is Mount Airy. A suburban urban neighborhood: trees and grass yards but also sidewalks and train lines; driveways and quiet but also co-ops and…

Josh McIlvain’s RETURN OF CONFESSIONS OF A PLATE AND SHOE should be put in a time capsule and used by future generations as a how-to manual titled “How-to-produce-the greatest-show-ever.” Okay,…

California transplant John Rosenberg opened the Papermill Theater in an old (you guessed it) paper mill in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia in 2010. Since then, it’s been host a number of…

This year marks the 15th anniversary of the Live Arts Festival and Philly Fringe, and the 2011 edition looks bigger andbetter than ever. The Live Arts Festival features nine world premieres…

Amazingly, there is just one weekend left until Christmas, but that’s still plenty of time to get your fill of holiday theater. Here is the pick of this weekend’s festive…

The Live Arts and Philly Fringe has grown and moved mostly North and West from its Old City nexus, prices have gone up, and the roster of performances seems larger and harder…