By Bess Wohl
Directed by Taibi Magar
Produced in association with Baltimore Center Stage
October 9 – 25, 2026
“An Extraordinary Must-See”
— The Washington Post
“An Unadulterated Pleasure. Powerfully Moving and Funny. When These Women Talk, We Want to Hear Every Word.”
— The New York Times
Before movements had hashtags, before conversations moved online, women gathered in living rooms, community centers, and rec halls to tell the truth about their lives.
Set in a small-town Ohio rec center in the early 1970s, LIBERATION follows a group of women who come together for a consciousness-raising meeting—unsure what to expect, but certain they need one another. As stories unfold about work, marriage, motherhood, race, desire, and ambition, the room becomes a place of courage, laughter, conflict, and possibility.
Moving between past and present, the play asks what those gatherings made possible—and what they left unfinished. What does freedom really look like? Who gets to claim it? And what do we inherit from the generations who came before us?
Funny, intimate, and deeply human, LIBERATION reminds us that change begins when people come together. This is where stories are shared. This is where ideas are challenged. This is where we gather.
Three Things to Know: 2026/27 Season
Bess Wohl is a playwright and filmmaker. Her plays have been produced on and off Broadway, regionally, and internationally and her feature film debut, BABY RUBY, starring Noémie Merlant and Kit Harington, premiered at the 2022 Toronto Film Festival and was released by Magnolia Pictures. She also wrote for the Apple TV+ series, “Extrapolations,” created by Scott Z. Burns.
Second-wave feminism was a period of feminist activity that began in the early 1960s. It lasted roughly two decades and aimed to increase women’s equality by building on the feminist gains of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Read more about how this movement inspired LIBERATION and its recent Broadway run.
LIBERATION made its Broadway debut at James Earl Jones Theatre, bringing Bess Wohl’s deeply personal and politically resonant story to one of the most prominent stages in American theatre.
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Sunday, October 11, 2026 at 3PM
Join PTC Co-Artistic Director Taibi Magar and a local organizer for a conversation on the history of the women’s liberation movement in Philadelphia — and how that history speaks to Bess Wohl’s Liberation, PTC’s current production. Together, they’ll explore the movement’s roots in our city, its unfinished work, and what it means to stage this story here, now.
Special Programming beginning one hour prior to the performance.
Thursday, October 15, 2026 at 7PM
Join us for a night of reflection and reimagining that explores the legacy of the Combahee River Collective, whose groundbreaking 1977 statement on Black feminism and intersectionality expanded the fight for liberation beyond the movement depicted on stage.The evening will feature a poetry performance and a discussion about How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective with a local scholar. We’ll close with a freedom dreaming activity, imagining the futures we’re fighting for.
Special Programming beginning one hour prior to the performance.
Saturday, October 17, 2026 at 2PM
Arrive early and step into the world of the play before the curtain rises. Browse local vendors, enjoy live music in the lobby, and settle in for a reading of an original short story by a local author, exploring the bonds between mothers and daughters.
Special Programming beginning one hour prior to the performance.
Saturday, October 24, 2026 at 2PM
Arrive early and step into the world of the play before the curtain rises. Browse local vendors, enjoy live music in the lobby, and connect with local activist organizations working on issues connected to the themes of the show.
Special Programming beginning one hour prior to the performance.
Sunday, October 18, 2026 at 3PM
Join us for a multigenerational discussion about what it means to inherit a fight — and what it costs to keep fighting it. In the spirit of consciousness-raising groups, panelists — local organizers, scholars, and storytellers — will explore what’s been won, what’s been rolled back, and what’s still unfinished. How do we hold space for the anger, exhaustion, and hope that come with doing this work decade after decade — and how do we pass it forward without losing what came before?
Special Programming beginning immediately after the performance.
Saturday, October 17, 2026 at 2PM
This performance offers live audio description for patrons who are blind or have low vision. Through a wireless headset, audience members receive a spoken account of the visual elements of the production, including actions, costumes, and scenery.
Advanced Reservation Highly Recommended for Headset Use.
Sunday, October 18, 2026 at 3PM
This performance includes open captioning, displaying the spoken dialogue, sound effects, and other audio elements in real time on a screen visible from select seating areas. The open captioning machine will be located at the front of the right side Orchestra section. For the best viewing experience of the captions, we recommend seating in Rows C–D of the right Orchestra.
Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 1PM
This performance features live American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation by certified interpreters. Reserved seating is available to ensure optimal sightlines to the interpreters.
Run Time
Approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes, including one 15-minute intermission.
Age Recommendation
Ages 16+
Contains strong language, mature themes, and nudity.
Content Advisory
Please be advised: This production contains adult language, nudity, and brief references to abuse/assault. The performance also includes the use of herbal cigarettes and theatrical haze effects.
Phone Advisory
Phone Advisory
To protect the privacy of our performers and ensure a distraction-free theatre experience, this event will be phone-free. Upon arrival, phones will be secured in Yondr pouches that will be unlocked at the end of the performance. You will maintain possession of your phone at all times.
If you are using your device to access captioning or audio description services, you will be asked to cover your device’s cameras with the provided options, or you may check out a device from our front-of-house team.
Anyone seen using a device during the performance will be required to leave the theatre immediately without a refund. We encourage you to bring a debit or credit card for any purchases inside the theatre.
Thank you for helping us create a distraction-free experience for all audiences.
If you have questions about the phone-free policy for this production, please contact the Philadelphia Theatre Company Box Office at 215-985-0420 or email boxoffice@philatheatreco.org
Questions?
VIDEO
CAST
PTC: Debut. Off-Broadway: Three Men on a Horse, TACT NYC; The Lover, Soho Playhouse. Regional: Intimate Apparel, A Wrinkle in Time, As You Like It, Stick Fly, Rabbit Hole, Arden Theatre; Barcelona, Twelfth Night, Birthday Candles, Hurricane Diane, Trip to Bountiful, Vinegar Tree, People’s Light; Dance Nation, Big Love, Wilma Theater; Ironbound, Simpatico Theatre; Blackbird, Theatre Exile; Fool for Love, EgoPo. TV/Film: “Mare of Easttown,” HBO; “Fleishman Is in Trouble,” FX/Hulu; “Beautiful Catastrophe”, RB Productions (award-winning short, TIFF). Upcoming: Harvey (Nurse Kelly), People’s Light.
PTC: Debut. Regional: Holes, Our Town, Indecent, After the Revolution, Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike, Mud Blue Sky, Enemy of the People, Folks at Home, Baltimore Center Stage; Angels in America (HH Ensemble Win), The Bedwetter, Indecent, All the Way, The Great Society, Arena Stage; Eureka Day, Occupant, Roz and Ray, Last Night of Ballyhoo, Brighton Beach Memoirs (HH Award), After the Revolution, Theater J; Easy Women…, Fiddler on the Roof, Signature Theatre; If I Forget, Hand to God, Studio Theatre; Love’s Labor’s Lost, Folger Theatre; The Joy That Carries You, Diary of Anne Frank, Olney Theatre Center.
PTC: Debut. Off-Broadway: The Worst Cafe in the World, Big Telly/1st Irish Fest. Regional: Little Shop of Horrors (Seymour), Peter Panto, A Christmas Carol, People’s Light; The 39 Steps, Virginia Theatre Festival; Fun Home, New Light Theatre; 10 Dates with Mad Mary, The Playboy of the Western World, Inis Nua Theatre; Head Over Heels, Theatre Horizon; Into the Woods, Arden Theatre Co. Affiliations: Company Member, People’s Light. More: annafayelieberman.com; @annaliebz.
PTC: Debut. Regional: Miz Martha, Wilma Theater; Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged, Gretna Theatre; The Hobbit, Red Riding Hood, Arden Theatre; Our Town, Fun Home, New Light Theatre; NOSEJOB, Lightning Rod Special; The Climb, InterAct Theatre; Macbeth, Delaware Shakespeare; Wine in the Wilderness, Philadelphia Artists’ Collective; Richard III, Theatre in the X; Peter and the Starcatcher, Theatre Horizon; The Gap, Azuka Theatre; Coriolanus, Shakespeare in Clark Park. Awards: Barrymore Award nominee. Education/Training: University of the Arts; Headlong Performance Institute. More: CieraGardner.com; Instagram: @always.ciera.
PTC: Debut. Off-Broadway: The Appointment, Lightning Rod Special (“Best of 2019” – The New York Times, Vulture, Time Out NY; “Best of 2023” – The New Yorker); White Feminist, Ars Nova. Regional: Baby Everything, FringeArts; White Feminist, Wilma Theater; Z-Space, UMS Ann Arbor, Good Good Comedy; Nosejob, Philadelphia Fringe; Don’t Dress for Dinner, Lantern Theater; This Is the Week That Is, 1812 Productions; Stinky Cheeseman, Arden Theatre. International: Baby Everything, Cheeks, White Feminist, Edinburgh Fringe; White Feminist, Sick of the Fringe, London. Awards: Barrymore nominee; Haas Finalist; three-time Jilline Ringle Grant recipient.
PTC: Debut. Regional: A Summer Day, The Good Person of Setzuan, Twelfth Night, Heroes of the Fourth Turning (Drama League Nomination), Dance Nation, Blood Wedding (Barrymore Nomination, Leading Performance), Rapture, Blister, Burn (Barrymore Award, Supporting Performance), Wilma Theater; The Real Thing, The Comedy of Errors, Tartuffe, Travesties, Othello, Lantern Theater; additional credits at Arden Theatre, Inis Nua Theatre, InterAct Theatre Company, Center City Stage, Delaware Theatre, Theatre Exile, Theatre Horizon, Act II Playhouse, Media Theatre, and On the Rocks. Affiliations: Wilma Hothouse Acting Company Member. More: campbellohare.com; @redhandedjill14.
PTC: Debut. Regional: A Raisin in the Sun (Ruth Younger), Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival; The Garbologist (Marlowe), Montgomery Theater; The Woman Question (Eliza Grier), People’s Light; TJ Loves Sally 4Ever (Pam), Theatre Horizon. Awards: Jilline Ringle Solo Performance Grantee, 1812 Productions; StoryChangers Award, Philadelphia Women’s Theatre Festival; Brian Morgan Theatre Award; Graduate Research Fellowship, Villanova University. Education/Training: B.A., Temple University; M.A., Villanova University. Academia: Adjunct Professor, Rowan University. More: noelledianejohnsonactor.com; Instagram: @noelledianejohnson.
PTC: Debut. Off-Broadway: The Originalist (Brad), 59E59 Theaters. Regional: The Originalist, Arena Stage; The Great Society (Bobby Kennedy), Asolo Rep; Hamlet (Claudius), Asolo Rep; An Enemy of the People (Hovstad), Pittsburgh Public Theatre; The Wickhams: Christmas at Pemberley (George Wickham), City Theatre; The Seagull (Trigorin), Quantum Theatre; Moon for the Misbegotten (James Tyrone), Quantum Theatre; The Glass Menagerie (Tom), Bridge Street Theatre. TV/Film: “Scandal” (Chase Coleman, dir. Matt Byrne); Knight to D7 (Brady, dir. Nathan Scoggins). More: @BrettAllenMack.
CREATIVE
Broadway: Liberation; Grand Horizons (Tony Award nomination). Off-Broadway: Liberation, Roundabout Theatre Company; Camp Siegfried, Small Mouth Sounds, Make Believe, Continuity, American Hero, Touched, In, Cats Talk Back; Pretty Filthy (original musical). International: Barcelona, West End. Film/TV: Baby Ruby (writer/director), premiered at TIFF; “Extrapolations,” Apple TV+. Awards: GLAAD Media Award nominee; Susan Smith Blackburn Prize finalist; Drama Desk, Drama League, Lucille Lortel, and Outer Critics Circle recognition. Affiliations: Associate Artist, The Civilians; Ars Nova Play Group alumna; Judith Champion Fellow, Manhattan Theatre Club. Education/Training: Harvard University; Yale School of Drama.
PTC: Debut. Off-Broadway: Off Peak, 59E59 Theaters. Regional: A Wrinkle in Time, The Hobbit, Pinocchio, Arden Theatre; Eureka Day, City Theatre; The Children, Northern Stage; The Heart Sellers, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park; Twelfth Night, Pittsburgh Public Theater; DANCEFLOOR, The Voxel; The Thanksgiving Play, Dorset Theatre Festival. Awards/Affiliations: 1/52 Project Grantee; USITT Prague Quadrennial Featured Emerging Designer; Theatre Communications Group Rising Leader of Color. Education/Training: B.F.A., Carnegie Mellon School of Drama. More: sashaschwartzscenic.com.
PTC: Debut. Regional: Holes, Our Town, Indecent, After the Revolution, Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike, Mud Blue Sky, Enemy of the People, Folks at Home, Baltimore Center Stage; Angels in America (HH Ensemble Win), The Bedwetter, Indecent, All the Way, The Great Society, Arena Stage; Eureka Day, Occupant, Roz and Ray, Last Night of Ballyhoo, Brighton Beach Memoirs (HH Award), After the Revolution, Theater J; Easy Women…, Fiddler on the Roof, Signature Theatre; If I Forget, Hand to God, Studio Theatre; Love’s Labor’s Lost, Folger Theatre; The Joy That Carries You, Diary of Anne Frank, Olney Theatre Center.
PTC: The Duat, The Garbologists, Sweat. Regional: Dear Evan Hansen, Radio Golf, Into the Woods, School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play, Ragtime, The Bluest Eye, Gem of the Ocean, Arden Theatre; Half-God of Rainfall, Kiss, Kill Move Paradise, Wilma Theater; Selling Kabul, InterAct Theatre Company; Tempestuous Elements, Arena Stage. Education/Training: M.F.A., University of Maryland, College Park. Academia: Costume Shop Manager, Swarthmore College. More: levonnelindsaycostume.com.
PTC: Debut. Off-Broadway: Primary Stages, LCT3, New York Theatre Workshop, Lucille Lortel Theatre, Ensemble Studio Theatre, National Black Theatre, INTAR Theatre, WP Theater. Regional: Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Old Globe, Geffen Playhouse, La Jolla Playhouse, Round House Theatre, Goodman Theatre, South Coast Repertory, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Hartford Stage, Pittsburgh Public Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage, Syracuse Stage, Barrington Stage Company, Studio Theatre, Signature Theatre, Geva Theatre, Boston Court Pasadena, Miami New Drama, Berkshire Theatre Group, Indianapolis Repertory Theatre. Education/Training: M.F.A., Yale School of Drama. Academia: Director of Sound Design, USC.
PTC: Debut. Off-Broadway: Primary Stages, LCT3, New York Theatre Workshop, Lucille Lortel Theatre, Ensemble Studio Theatre, National Black Theatre, INTAR Theatre, WP Theater. Regional: Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Old Globe, Geffen Playhouse, La Jolla Playhouse, Round House Theatre, Goodman Theatre, South Coast Repertory, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Hartford Stage, Pittsburgh Public Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage, Syracuse Stage, Barrington Stage Company, Studio Theatre, Signature Theatre, Geva Theatre, Boston Court Pasadena, Miami New Drama, Berkshire Theatre Group, Indianapolis Repertory Theatre. Education/Training: M.F.A., Yale School of Drama.
PTC: Debut. Regional: Kinky Boots, Lend Me a Soprano, Beautiful (Wig Designer), Olney Theatre Center; Cinderella (Wig Designer), Baltimore Center Stage; The World Goes ’Round (Wig Designer), Everyman Theatre. Other: Performer and Hair/Makeup Designer, Screaming Queens Productions LLC and BlackRock Center for the Arts. Education/Training: Theatrical Hair and Makeup, Howard University. Peterson has over 15 years of experience in makeup artistry, hair/wig design, and costuming. More: Gastonblue.com.
PTC: Debut. Regional: The Age of Innocence, JaJa’s African Hair Braiding, POTUS!, Arena Stage; Holes, John Wilkes Booth: One Night Only, Baltimore Center Stage; Measure for Measure, Julius X, Twelfth Night, Folger Theatre; Come From Away, Sister Act, Little Shop of Horrors, Ford’s Theatre; Sally & Tom, Round House Theatre; Jonah, Paradise Blue, Octet, The Scenarios, Downstate, The Colored Museum, Studio Theatre; Frankenstein, Kunene and the King, King Lear (Helen Hayes nomination), Shakespeare Theatre Company. Affiliations: Resident Fight and Intimacy Director, Mosaic Theater Company; SAFD, IDC, SDC. More: sierrayoung.org;
Underwriters
Rhonda & David Cohen
The Ann B. Ritt Charitable Foundation
Honorary Producers
Gayle & David Smith
Shel & Karen Thompson
Vibhat Nair & Jing Wang
Steven Engelmyer & Lisa Wershaw
Community Partners
LIBERATION is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Dramatists Play Service.