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<\/p>\noriginally published: 08\/23\/2025<\/p>\n
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(PHILADELPHIA, PA) — What if the friend who saves your life was just a figment of your imagination? Philadelphia Theatre Company (PTC)<\/strong><\/a> opens its 51st season with the Philadelphia premiere of Primary Trust, the acclaimed play by 2024 Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Eboni Booth. Performances run September 19 through October 5, 2025.<\/p>\n With warmth, wit, and compassion, Primary Trust follows Kenneth, a gentle soul who\u2019s spent two decades working at a used bookstore and enjoying happy hours at the local tiki bar with his closest companion Bert, who exists only in his imagination. When the bookstore closes, Kenneth must navigate finding a new job and build relationships with real-life people. In Booth\u2019s masterfully observed portrait of small-town life, change comes in the form of a bank teller position, a friendly waiter, and the possibility that even the most solitary among us can start again.<\/p>\n “Primary Trust is a story about the courage it takes to be seen,” says PTC Co-Artistic Director Tyler Dobrowsky. “Eboni Booth\u2019s writing is full of warmth and humanity. It\u2019s funny and moving in equal measure, and under Amina Robinson\u2019s direction, this play will resonate with anyone who\u2019s ever had to start over.”<\/p>\n The PTC production is helmed by Amina Robinson, a two-time Barrymore Award winner and Associate Professor of Acting and Musical Theater at Temple University, whose directing credits span Wilma Theater, Arden Theatre Company, Theatre Horizon, Lantern Theater Company, and Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, as well as productions in Los Angeles and New York. Robinson, celebrated for her ability to craft intimate, emotionally resonant performances, brings her distinct vision to Booth\u2019s tender and wry exploration of how connection can change a life.<\/p>\n The cast includes\u00a0Akeem Davis (Choir Boy at PTC, Barrymore Award winner, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Play in A Doll\u2019s House at Arden Theatre Company) as Bert, and PTC newcomers Newton Buchanan as Kenneth, Taysha Marie Canales (2018 F. Otto Haas Emerging Theatre Artist and three-time Barrymore Award-nominee) as Corrina\/Wally\u2019s Waiter\/Bank Customers, and David Ingram (Hope and Gravity at 1812 Productions) as Clay\/Sam\/Le Pousselet Bartender.<\/p>\n Advertise with NJ Stage for $50-$100 per month, click here for info<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n The creative team includes David P. Gordon (Scenic Designer), Liudi Wang (Costume Designer), Aly Docherty (Lighting Designer), Larry Fowler (Sound Designer), and Jamel Baker (Stage Manager).<\/p>\n The play\u00a0earned widespread critical praise for its 2023 Off-Broadway world premiere at Roundabout Theatre Company, where it was heralded as one of the year\u2019s most affecting new American plays.\u00a0\u00a0Praised by the Los Angeles Times for being \u201cAs tenderhearted as it is spryly comic and as poignant as it is ultimately uplifting,\u201d Booth\u2019s play is both a quirky comedy and a poignant reminder that we all need someone in our corner, even if they\u2019re only in our head.<\/p>\n As part of its commitment to education and Philadelphia\u2019s young people, PTC will present a student matinee of Primary Trust at 10:30am\u00a0on September 30. In advance of the performance, PTC teaching artists will lead free in-school workshops to help prepare students for the production. For more information about PTC\u2019s education programs, visit the PTC website or email education@philatheatreco.org<\/strong>.<\/p>\n TICKETS:<\/strong>\u00a0Single tickets start at $30, including applicable fees. Tickets are available at www.philatheatreco.org. They may also be purchased by phone at (215) 985-0420 or in person at the Suzanne Roberts Theatre, 480 S. Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19146.<\/p>\n Please note: Primary Trust contains strong language and adult themes and is recommended for ages 12 and up.<\/p>\n PERFORMANCES:<\/strong>\u00a0Tuesdays at 6:30pm;\u00a0Wednesdays\u2013Saturdays at 7:00pm;\u00a0Sundays at 3:00pm;\u00a0Wednesday matinee at 1:00pm\u00a0on October 1; and\u00a0Saturday matinees at 2:00pm\u00a0on September 27 and October 4.\u00a0Running time: 1 hour and 40 minutes, with no intermission<\/p>\n Black Theatre Night: Thursday, September 25 at 7:00pm, with special programming beginning one hour prior to the performance<\/p>\n Pre-Show Programming: Wednesday, October 1, at 1:00pm\u00a0and Thursday, October 2, at 7:00pm, beginning one hour prior to each performance<\/p>\n Post-Show Conversation: Sunday, September 28 at 3:00pm, following the performance<\/p>\n Child Care Matinee: Saturday, October 4 at 2:00pm, beginning one hour prior to the performance<\/p>\n Audio-Described Performance: Saturday, September 27 at 2:00pm<\/p>\n Open-Captioned Performance: Sunday, September 28 at 3:00pm\u00a0ASL-Interpreted Performance: Wednesday, October 1 at 1:00 p.m.<\/p>\n A complete schedule of performances and special event programming can be found at www.philatheatreco.org\/primary-trust<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n PTC would like to thank their Primary Trust honorary producers, whose generosity makes their work possible and powers their mission: Gayle and David Smith, and Cookie and Jerry Riesenbach. PTC would also like to thank our 2025\/26 season sponsors who make the art possible and power our mission. Support is made possible through The Suzanne Roberts Cultural Development Fund, David and Nancy Colman, Glenn Gundersen, Sally Katz and David Price, Dale Penneys Levy & Richard Levy, Daryl and Ellen Morey, The Ann B. Ritt Charitable Foundation, Daniel M. Ritt, The Shubert Foundation, and Center City Film & Video.<\/p>\n