With America’s return to Greatness under the leadership of one of its best-loved business leaders, Britain’s liberation from the tyrannical rule of the European Union, the long-awaited liberation of Aleppo, and the ascension of many beloved celebrities—no: heroes—to the glories of everlasting peace, the wonders of 2016 will be sorely missed. Sigh. But among all these historic joys, Phindie continued its march as the leading site for independent coverage of Philadelphia theater and arts.
Here are the articles published in 2016 which you loved the most.
Overall impressions
- Deb Miller’s Top Picks for the 2016 Philadelphia Fringe Festival by Debra Miller
- Phindie Loses a Contributor: Remembering Allison Rickert, writer, editor, and mensch by Henrik Eger
- A TASTE OF THINGS TO COME (BCP): Delicious flavors by Lisa Panzer
- The Best in Philadelphia Theater, 2015 by Neal Zoren
- Dear White People: TWO TRAINS RUNNING is not a play about race by Trish McFadden
- K.O. DelMarcelle: Maintaining versatility with an eye on the future by Debra Miller
- George Balanchine’s THE NUTCRACKER (PA Ballet): Showcasing the next great talents by Eri Yoneda
- S&M, Sexual Politics, and SMOKE from a Female Perspective: An interview with Theatre Exile’s Deborah Block by Debra Miller
- SENSE AND SENSIBILITY (People’s Light): An epic production of an Austen classic by Debra Miller
- Sex Public and Private: Artist lovers bring STORY OF MY EYE to the Fringe by Christopher Munden
Theater reviews
Reviews of Philadelphia theater remain Phindie’s chief contribution to local arts reporting. Here were our most popular of 2016.
- A TASTE OF THINGS TO COME (BCP): Delicious flavors by Lisa Panzer
- SENSE AND SENSIBILITY (People’s Light): An epic production of an Austen classic by Debra Miller
- MACBETH (Philly Shakes): Blood should have blood by Christopher Munden
- STUPID FUCKING BIRD (Arden): A sidesplitting and insightful reinvention of Chekhov by Debra Miller
- SPINE (Inis Nua): A funny and poignant paean to libraries by Debra Miller
- OSCAR WILDE: FROM THE DEPTHS (Lantern): A love that dared not speak its mind by Kathryn Osenlund
- 1776 THE MUSICAL (Media): Rollicking romp through history by Lisa Panzer
- 1776: THE MUSICAL (Media): Not your textbook history production by Emily Kluver
- FUNNYMAN (Arden): Comedy on the brink of tragedy by Debra Miller
- AS YOU LIKE IT (Lantern): As you’ve never seen it! by Debra Miller
Interviews
Phindie provides in-depth coverage of local arts with interviews of creators and practitioners.
- K.O. DelMarcelle: Maintaining versatility with an eye on the future by Debra Miller
- S&M, Sexual Politics, and SMOKE from a Female Perspective: An interview with Theatre Exile’s Deborah Block by Debra Miller
- Sex Public and Private: Artist lovers bring STORY OF MY EYE to the Fringe [Zach Trebino and Jenni Messner] by Christopher Munden
- How Commedia dell’Arte Maestro Antonio Fava influenced my teaching and my life: Interview with Craig Tavani by Henrik Eger
- Sixty Years of Philadelphia Theater: Interview with playwright Walt Vail by Henrik Eger
- Chatting with the Lantern’s Charles McMahon about his new play on Oscar Wilde by Debra Miller
- A Little Bird Who Fucks Everything Up: Interview with Haygen Brice Walker, the new enfant terrible of Philadelphia by Henrik Eger
- A Fringe Staple Gets Personal: Talking JUNK with Brian Sanders by Christopher Munden
- The Taliban Shuffle, WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT, and other wartime dance crazes: Interview with writer Kim Barker by Trish McFadden
- Sailing into Success at GayFest! Interview with HARBOR playwright Chad Beguelin by Henrik Eger
- EXCLUSIVE In-depth interview with Sir Tom Stoppard about his life and work by Christopher Munden
Features
- Deb Miller’s Top Picks for the 2016 Philadelphia Fringe Festival by Debra Miller
- Phindie Loses a Contributor: Remembering Allison Rickert, writer, editor, and mensch by Henrik Eger
- The Best in Philadelphia Theater, 2015 by Neal Zoren
- Dear White People: TWO TRAINS RUNNING is not a play about race by Trish McFadden
- Arts in Sacred Places: Grand opening of the Philadelphia Design Center by Debra Miller
- We Are All Chelsea Manning: Inis Nua actors on what THE RADICALISATION OF BRADLEY MANNING means to them by Henrik Eger
- Black Theater and How It Can Heal A Community: An historic town hall meeting in Philadelphia by Henrik Eger
- What Can The Wilma Do With $10 Million? by Christopher Munden
- Mike Durkin’s Annual Fringetastic Fringe Picks for the Fringe! by Michael Durkin
- I Know Something I Can’t Tell: Phoebe Schaub Has a SECRET SHOW at the Painted Bride by Debra Miller
Dance
- George Balanchine’s THE NUTCRACKER (PA Ballet): Showcasing the next great talents by Eri Yoneda
- A Fringe Staple Gets Personal: Talking JUNK with Brian Sanders by Christopher Munden
- OVO (Cirque du Soleil): Acrobatic insects and a life-affirming egg by Debra Miller
- CINDERELLA (PA Ballet): Enchanting ballet magic by Eri Yoneda
- REVOLUTION (PA Ballet): Revolution for our mind by Eri Yoneda
- HATCH (Birds on a Wire): The expressiveness and diversity of contemporary dance by Debra Miller
- LES BALLETS JAZZ DE MONTRÉAL (Dance Affiliates): Daring, dazzling dancers take your breath away by Eri Yoneda
- EZRALOW DANCE (Dance Affiliates): Showcase of groovy and unpredicted imagination by Eri Yoneda
- SUMMER SERIES 2016 (BalletX): Lost in the unreal moment by Eri Yoneda
- SHOW NO SHOW (Gabrielle Revlock & Aleksandr Frolov): Moving relationships by Christopher Munden
- From Spain, with Love: Angel Corella and PA Ballet’s Don Quixote by Christopher Munden
From the archives
All of the above lists feature our articles published in 2016. Here are the previously published pieces which remained popular in the last year.
- Sex on Stage in FEST (FringeArts) and KEIN APPLAUS FÜR SCHEISSE (American Realness [NYC]) by Julius Ferraro
- A Brief History of Early Publishing in Philadelphia by Christopher Munden
- Literary Legacy: A History of Philadelphia Writers by Christopher Munden
- Nudity or Crudity: a conversation with Mary Tuomanen about THE BODY LAUTREC by Julius Ferraro
- An overview of the Philly theater scene by Christopher Munden
- One of the oldest taboos in history: Interview with Dan Hodge on The Rape of Lucrece by Henrik Eger
- In the Swing: A Brief History of Baseball in Philadelphia by Christopher Munden
- J Hernandez: Feeling the Love in Philadelphia! by Debra Miller
- Absolutely Fabulous Off-Broadway Rep: MY BIG GAY ITALIAN WEDDING and MY BIG GAY ITALIAN FUNERAL by Debra Miller
- Meta-morphing Kafka’s Gregor: Interview with director Rebecca Wright in THE METAMORPHOSIS, (Quintessence) by Henrik Eger