John Jarboe News

The Wilma Theater is set to celebrate its annual fundraising event, Fete 2019, honoring former Managing Director James Haskins, who in March departed the Wilma after 13 seasons of leadership to helm the renowned Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis as their new Managing Director. For Fete 2019, the Wilma seeks to recognize and celebrate Haskins for the indelible impact of his 20 years of service to the Philadelphia cultural community, having served a number of leadership roles at arts organizations throughout the city before landing at the Wilma in 2006. Philanthropists and arts leaders throughout the city will gather for an evening of gourmet fare and drink, and performances from local favorites. Tickets and sponsorships are on sale now for Fete 2019, which will be held at the Wilma on June 10, 2019 beginning at 5:30pm.

Cake, coffin, gavel, choir, composers, live musical trolling! On the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the much lauded homo-poet Walt Whitman's birth, a group of Philly queers and misfits known as The Bearded Ladies Cabaret gathers to put this ancestor and his legacy on trial. Should Whitman be canceled? Can he be? Come with friends, complaints, heroes and villains alike. All are welcome. Presented by La MaMa, the New York premiere performances will take place in the Ellen Stewart Theater (June 20 - 29).

For Whitman's 200th birthday, The Bearded Ladies Cabaret are throwing a birthday funeral unlike anything that the queer poet ever experienced. Part of the 'Whitman at 200' celebration, CONTRADICT THIS! A BIRTHDAY FUNERAL FOR HEROES, directed by The Bearded Ladies' Artistic Director and Founder John Jarboe, comes to Cherry Street Pier (121 N. Columbus Boulevard, Philadelphia) from May 28 to June 2, 2019. Reviewing press are invited to the May 31 show at 7:30PM.

Cake, coffin, gavel, choir, composers, live musical trolling! On the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the much lauded homo poet Walt Whitman's birth, a group of Philly queers and misfits known as The Bearded Ladies Cabaret gathers to put this ancestor and his legacy on trial.

LGBTQ+ artists from NYC, Philadelphia, Paris, Italy, and South Korea will participate in the STONEWALL 50 AT LA MAMA at the Tony Award-winning La MaMa ETC (66 E. 4 St.) from May 23-June 30 as part of WORLD PRIDE, it has been announced by company's artistic director Mia Yoo. 

American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University announces February and March 2019 programming at OBERON, its club-style theater space for cutting-edge performance and a thriving incubator for local and emerging artists. Upcoming events include A.R.T Breakout, Live @ OBERON, and Afterglow @ OBERON series, A.R.T. presentations, and independently produced events.

LA MAMA continues its 57th season this Winter and Spring with a roster of singular artists from around the globe as they present new works, both USA and World Premieres alike, on such topics as social inequality, immigration, racism and homophobia, it has been announced by Mia Yoo, La MaMa's Artistic Director.

First Person Arts (FPA) announces their 17th Annual First Person Arts Festival line-up with headliners:. The festival will take place from November 4-November 17 in various parts of the city, and features 11 different performances that highlight personal journeys, accounts of social activism and extreme adventure! The 2018 First Person Arts Festival is focused on overcoming. Dive into real, personal experiences that include: the challenges of life after incarceration, coming out (again and again and again), gathering the pieces and rebuilding your life after divorce, and many more stories of strength, determination, and the power of the human will. The event line up is as follows:

Opera Philadelphia – “one of the most creative and ambitious companies in this country” (New York Times) – is set to take the opera world by storm once again, as it looks forward to O18, the second installment of its pioneering Festival O, with the “spirit ... not to follow taste but to lead it” (Philadelphia Inquirer). Festival 018comprises five operatic happenings – two world premieres, two new productions, and a three-part cabaret event – at multiple venues across the city from September 20-30, and features two superstar opera divas: coloratura soprano Brenda Rae and mezzo-soprano Stephanie Blythe, co-stars of Opera Philadelphia's acclaimed spring 2017 production of Rossini's Tancredi. Rae headlines a new production of Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor from celebrated director and designer Laurent Pelly that anchors both the O18 festival and the company's year-round Opera at the Academy series. Blythe (aka Blythely Oratonio) takes the stage at Philadelphia's Theatre of Living Arts (TLA) for a three-night, three-part cabaret takeover titled Queens of the Night, along with self-described “drag queen king” Dito van Reigersberg (aka Martha Graham Cracker). It all leads up to a reprise performance of Dito & Aeneas: Two Queens, One Night, Opera Philadelphia's 2017 cabaret-play spectacular, which was hailed as “smart and bubbly in all the right places” (Philadelphia Inquirer). The two divas even perform together on the TLA stage, when Rae makes a special guest appearance opposite Blythe, comedically echoing the tragic lovers of Tancredi. 

Opera Philadelphia is set to take the opera world by storm once again, as it looks forward to O18, the second installment of its pioneering Festival O.

American Repertory Theater at Harvard University (A.R.T.), under the leadership of Terrie and Bradley Bloom Artistic Director Diane Paulus and Executive Producer Diane Borger, and Afterglow Festival are pleased to announce that tickets are now on sale performances in Afterglow @ OBERON. Featuring playwrights, cabaret performers, and solo artists, the series is curated by Quinn Cox, founder of Provincetown's annual Afterglow Festival. Past performers in the series, formerly known as Glowberon, include Joey Arias, Erin Markey, Johnny Blazes, and Lady Bunny.

On the heels of having won the 2018 Regional Theater Tony Award, LA MAMA Experimental Theatre Club (ETC) announces its 57th season of productions, according to Mia Yoo, the company's artistic director. The season includes over 50 U.S., NYC and world premiere productions.

A variety of party-starting performers are bringing their talents to FringeA-Thon, an epic, outdoor dance marathon and fundraiser for FringeArts -Philadelphia's premiere contemporary performance presenter. With different dancers, DJs, performers, trainers, musicians, and more featured hourly, there's never a dull moment at this outrageous, 12-hour party. It all goes down at the Piazza at Schmidt's Commons on June 16th. Tickets are $35 for adults, free for children under 12 and can be purchased at fringeathon.com.

American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.), under the leadership of Terrie and Bradley Bloom Artistic Director Diane Paulus and Executive Producer Diane Borger, is pleased to announce its 2018/19 programming, including subscription offerings, A.R.T. Breakout, Live @ OBERON, and Afterglow @ OBERON.

Philadelphia's Bearded Ladies Cabaret returns to The Wilma Theater with You Can Never Go Down the Drain after their New York City run at La MaMa and Joe's Pub at the Public Theater. Mr. Rogers always said: no matter how bad things are, 'You can never go down the drain.' Using and abusing iconic songs from the children's show, John Jarboe, Artistic Director of Philadelphia's Bearded Ladies Cabaret, puts this idea to the test. For this performance, expect a goldfish funeral, gay romps into the land of make-believe, and some earnest questions about irony. You Can Never Go Down the Drain runs for ten performances between June 20th to July 1st at The Wilma Theater.

When Opera Philadelphia's inaugural Festival O launched the present season, the opera world responded with a standing ovation, welcoming it as 'one of the most enjoyable additions to the fall calendar in years'

When Opera Philadelphia's inaugural Festival O launched the present season, the opera world responded with a standing ovation, welcoming it as "one of the most enjoyable additions to the fall calendar in years"

La MaMa presents the return of Series of One, a platform for provocative, challenging solo performances centered on storytelling and personal narratives. The four courageous artists this year are Blake Sugarman, John Jarboe, Marina Celander and Megan Metrikin. They exemplify La MaMa's mission of continuing to create adventurous and engaging art that allows audiences to experience the dynamism of a single performer no distractions.

Philadelphia's Bearded Ladies Cabaret returns to New York City with their brand new show, You Can Never Go Down the Drain: A Musical Children's Program for Adults in 2018, presented by La MaMa. Mr. Rogers always said: no matter how bad things are 'you can never go down the drain.' Using and abusing iconic songs from his children's show, Philadelphia's Bearded Ladies Cabaret put this idea to the test. For this workshop performance, expect a goldfish funeral, gay romps into the land of make-believe, and some earnest questions about irony. You Can Never Go Down the Drain runs for just four performances between February 3-9 at La MaMa's First Floor Theater.

Dito van Reigersberg, best known for his work with Pig Iron Theatre Company and as his alter-ego, cabaret queen Martha Graham Cracker, is set to star in Jonathan Tolins' one-man comedy Buyer & Cellar. van Reigersberg replaces previously announced John Jarboe after Jarboe's departure to join Arden Theatre Company's production of Kander & Ebb's Cabaret.