Phylicia Rashad

A Post-Run Look and Interview Questions: “Giovanni’s Room” at Quintessence Theatre in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Closed Sunday, July 6, 2025)

After a successful run, including two extensions, “Geovanni’s Room” at Quintessence Theatre, the show closed on Sunday, July 6, 2026. Although the adaptation could have had a third extension, contractual considerations made that impossible. On May 28, Quintessence Theatre Group in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania brought a literary classic to life in the world premiere of James Baldwin’s “Giovanni’s Room,” adapted by…

Broadway Review: “Purpose” at the Hayes Theatre (Currently On)

Currently running at the Hayes Theatre, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’s “Purpose” joins the important pantheon of plays about families, dysfunctional families in particular. These plays, including Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’s recent “Appropriate,” focus on the behavior patterns and the social practices that undermine and often destroy the integrity of family systems. Sometimes there is confession, forgiveness, and redemption in these narratives. Far too often…