In 2023, the treasured Rose Valley company, Hedgerow Theatre, celebrates a century of live theatre. To kick off the celebration, Hedgerow welcomes the Philadelphia premiere of celebrated playwright Ngozi Anyanwu and her semi-autobiographical coming-of-self-story, Good Grief, which runs Feb 8 - 26.
Anyanwu has been hailed by The New York Times as a playwright who “is developing new forms!” In this cosmic, hilarious, and heart-breaking contemporary work, the young Nkechi navigates the loss of her high school love in her childhood home in the Philly suburbs. The play traverses the liminal space between the past and the present while navigating the process of grief and loss with charm and poignancy.
“I am thrilled to produce Ngozi’s work in this truly milestone season,” notes Executive Artistic Director Marcie Bramucci. “I am excited for this play specifically, Good Grief - which explodes with heart and humor - to find its way home, for its Philadelphia Regional premiere. Hedgerow’s legacy of producing bold works dates back to our founding. Ngozi’s whole-hearted and cosmic play and uncanny individual voice root us firmly in that continued ambition.”
Good Grief will be co-directed by celebrated Philadelphia directors Zuhairah McGill & Phillip Brown, who also both perform in the play. McGill & Brown are fresh off an exciting partnership for The Royale at Lantern Theatre, which Zuhairah directed, and in which Brown stars.
Hedgerow Theatre is a resident repertory theatre dedicated to providing cultural enrichment, engaging entertainment, and training in theatre arts and management since 1923. As stewards of a nineteenth-century grist mill-turned-theatre building, Hedgerow is proud to present productions in an intimate 100-seat theatre. The company offers extensive educational programs through theatre school and touring programs, and provides performance, technical training, and theatre management opportunities for Resident Fellows in a close-knit and mutually supportive environment.
Playright Anyanwu has been hailed by The New York Times as a playwright who “is developing new forms!” In this cosmic, hilarious, and heart-breaking contemporary work, the young Nkechi navigates the loss of her high school love in her childhood home in the Philly suburbs.