2021-2022 Season

Wedding Band

Our 525th Production

By Alice Childress
Directed by Vanessa Ballard and Carla Childs
November 5th, 6th, 7th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 19th, 20th, 21st, 2021
Friday and Saturday at 8:00 p.m., Sunday at 2:00 p.m.

Set in Charleston, South Carolina in 1918, Wedding Band is an unsparing tale about the consequences of a decade-long romance between a black seamstress and a white baker. Julia and Herman have loved each other devotedly, enduring harsh disapproval from whites and scorn from blacks. As they confront the impossibility of ever living a normal married life, and as Herman falls ill, Julia gradually reaches out to forge affirming bonds of solidarity with her community.


Vernal Rites

Our 526th Production

By Rob Rosiello
Directed by Nancy Ridgeway
January 14th, 15th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 28th, 30th, 2022
Friday and Saturday at 8:00 p.m., Sunday at 2:00 p.m.

Bloody hand prints, ripped up floorboards, and a missing matriarch. Time keeps the best secrets and eventually buries the truth in an unmarked grave, forever lost to the ages because the truth has a way of always finding its way home. Set in the quiet community of Provincetown, MA, during the annual return of the whales, the Cook family struggles to cope with the guilt of a lifetime of secrets that are percolating to the surface with the return of Charlie Cook, the son who'll stop at nothing to reveal the truth of the tragedy that happened many years ago.


The Unexpected Guest

Our 527th Production

By Agatha Christie
Directed by Loretta Lucy Miller
March 4th, 5th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 18th, 19th, 20th, 2022
Friday and Saturday at 8:00 p.m., Sunday at 2:00 p.m.

When a stranger runs his car into a ditch in dense fog in South Wales and makes his way to an isolated mansion, he discovers a woman standing over the dead body of her wheelchair-bound husband, a smoking gun in her hand. She admits in a dazed and unconvincing manner to having just murdered her husband. The unexpected guest offers to help her concoct a cover story. After the detectives question members of the family and staff, a tangled web of lies, family secrets, and chilling motives are revealed. The greatest mystery of all: who actually committed the crime.


Ginger Agnew's review at B Sharp's Studio 6: "The Unexpected Guest is a Welcome Visitor at Old Academy Players"


In compliance with the mandates of the City of Philadelphia:
Persons entering the theater will be required to show proof that they have completed their COVID-19 vaccination and a photo ID. Completing vaccinations means that they have completed the series of any vaccine that has been approved or authorized by either the Food and Drug Administration or the World Health Organization to prevent COVID-19. At this time it does not mean that you need to have received a booster dose. Any person who is unable or unwilling to show proof will not be permitted into the theater.

The Fantasticks

Our 528th Production

By Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt
Directed by Annie Hnatko
April 22nd, 23rd, 29th, 30th; May 1st, 6th, 7th, 8th, 2022
Friday and Saturday at 8:00 p.m., Sunday at 2:00 p.m.

The Fantasticks is a funny and romantic musical about a boy, a girl, and their two fathers who try to keep them apart. The narrator, El Gallo, asks the audience to use their imagination and follow him into a world of moon­light and magic. The boy and the girl fall in love, grow apart, and finally find their way back to each other after realizing the truth in El Gallo's words that, "without a hurt, the heart is hollow."


Ginger Agnew's review at B Sharp's Studio 6: "The Fantasticks Delivers a Time to Remember at Old Academy Players"


In compliance with the mandates of the City of Philadelphia:
Persons entering the theater will be required to show proof that they have completed their COVID-19 vaccination and a photo ID. Completing vaccinations means that they have completed the series of any vaccine that has been approved or authorized by either the Food and Drug Administration or the World Health Organization to prevent COVID-19. At this time it does not mean that you need to have received a booster dose. Any person who is unable or unwilling to show proof will not be permitted into the theater.

Old Ringers

Our 529th Production

By Joe Simonelli
Directed by Terri Fries Bateman
June 17th, 18th, 19th, 24th, 25th, 26th, 2022
Friday at 8 p.m.; Saturday at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.; Sunday at 2 p.m.

Meet Diane, Vera, Rose and Kathy Ann, best friends whose friendship buoys them through life's ups and downs. But when retirement and an economic downturn present their own challenges, they scramble to find a creative solution. One hilariously wrong phone call and encouragement from their accountant drives them to a bold new business venture. Mix in a serious-minded daughter and a local cop, and you've got a winning recipe for love and laughter in this farcical yarn.


2022 Summer One-Act Bonanza

Directed by friends of Old Academy
July 15th, 16th, 17th, 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 2022
Friday and Saturday at 8:00 p.m., Sunday at 2:00 p.m.

Every summer we feature new comedies, new directors and original scripts from our talented members. Join us for a fast-paced evening of short plays designed to put a smile on your face.


In compliance with the mandates of the City of Philadelphia:
Persons entering the theater will be required to show proof that they have completed their COVID-19 vaccination and a photo ID. Completing vaccinations means that they have completed the series of any vaccine that has been approved or authorized by either the Food and Drug Administration or the World Health Organization to prevent COVID-19. At this time it does not mean that you need to have received a booster dose. Any person who is unable or unwilling to show proof will not be permitted into the theater.