(PHILADELPHIA, PA) -- What if the friend who saves your life was just a figment of your imagination? Philadelphia Theatre Company (PTC) 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.
With warmth, wit, and compassion, Primary Trust follows Kenneth, a gentle soul who’s 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’s 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.
"Primary Trust is a story about the courage it takes to be seen," says PTC Co-Artistic Director Tyler Dobrowsky. "Eboni Booth’s writing is full of warmth and humanity. It’s funny and moving in equal measure, and under Amina Robinson’s direction, this play will resonate with anyone who’s ever had to start over."
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’s tender and wry exploration of how connection can change a life.
The cast includes Akeem Davis (Choir Boy at PTC, Barrymore Award winner, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Play in A Doll’s 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’s Waiter/Bank Customers, and David Ingram (Hope and Gravity at 1812 Productions) as Clay/Sam/Le Pousselet Bartender.
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).
The play earned widespread critical praise for its 2023 Off-Broadway world premiere at Roundabout Theatre Company, where it was heralded as one of the year’s most affecting new American plays. Praised by the Los Angeles Times for being “As tenderhearted as it is spryly comic and as poignant as it is ultimately uplifting,” Booth’s play is both a quirky comedy and a poignant reminder that we all need someone in our corner, even if they’re only in our head.
As part of its commitment to education and Philadelphia’s young people, PTC will present a student matinee of Primary Trust at 10:30am on 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’s education programs, visit the PTC website or email [email protected].
TICKETS: Single 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.
Please note: Primary Trust contains strong language and adult themes and is recommended for ages 12 and up.
PERFORMANCES: Tuesdays at 6:30pm; Wednesdays–Saturdays at 7:00pm; Sundays at 3:00pm; Wednesday matinee at 1:00pm on October 1; and Saturday matinees at 2:00pm on September 27 and October 4. Running time: 1 hour and 40 minutes, with no intermission
Black Theatre Night: Thursday, September 25 at 7:00pm, with special programming beginning one hour prior to the performance
Pre-Show Programming: Wednesday, October 1, at 1:00pm and Thursday, October 2, at 7:00pm, beginning one hour prior to each performance
Post-Show Conversation: Sunday, September 28 at 3:00pm, following the performance
Child Care Matinee: Saturday, October 4 at 2:00pm, beginning one hour prior to the performance
Audio-Described Performance: Saturday, September 27 at 2:00pm
Open-Captioned Performance: Sunday, September 28 at 3:00pm ASL-Interpreted Performance: Wednesday, October 1 at 1:00 p.m.
A complete schedule of performances and special event programming can be found at www.philatheatreco.org/primary-trust.
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.
Founded in 1974, Philadelphia Theatre Company (PTC) is a vital civic institution creating extraordinary theatrical experiences that reflect the essential issues and ideas of our time. Led by Co-Artistic Directors Taibi Magar and Tyler Dobrowsky and Managing Director Margo Moskowitz, PTC performs at the Suzanne Roberts Theatre on the Avenue of the Arts and has premiered more than 30 new works, while championing countless others through initiatives like the biennial Terrence McNally Award for early- career Philadelphia playwrights. These efforts have helped cement Philadelphia’s reputation as a national hub for new play development. Beyond the stage, PTC engages the community through dynamic education programs and civic partnerships. PTC is a proud member of the League of Resident Theatres (LORT), the national association of the country’s leading professional theatres.
