ABOUT THE GREAT PRIVATION:
In 1832, a mother and daughter keep vigil at a grave by The African Methodist Episcopal Church in South Philadelphia. Today, at a summer camp on the same grounds, a new, yet not entirely different mother and daughter sing camp songs and try to keep the daughter from getting expelled. As the mother in each generation tries to protect her family, both the living and the dead, timelines collide and secrets and souls become buried and revealed. What Talkin’ Broadway called “Joyous. A Lesson for our times.” The Great Privation (How to flip ten cents into a dollar) is a darkly comic play about our nation’s long practice of harming Black bodies in the name of scientific progress, our responsibility to time, the importance of truth, and the role joy plays in living with a history we cannot change.
Robust, questing, enlivening - The New York Times
Groups of 6 or more can purchase tickets at 20% off with a group sale. Student group pricing is also available at $15 per weekday ticket and $20 per weekend ticket. Please contact the Box Office at boxoffice@theatreexile.org or 215-218-4022 for more information.
Written by Nia Akilah Robinson
May 28, 2026 — June 14, 2026
Directed By: Ontaria Kim Wilson
Opening Night:
Theatre Exile, 1340 S. 13th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147
90 minutes including
Honorary Producers: Susan and Edward Hoffman
Associate Producers: Gayle and David Smith
Community Partner: TBD
SHOW DATES
Press Releases
MEET THE TEAM
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ONTARIA KIM WILSON - DIRECTOR
Ontaria Kim Wilson is a multi-hyphenated artist based out of Philadelphia, PA. She holds an MFA in Directing and she is an Assistant Professor of Acting and Directing at DeSales University.
Credits
Half God of Rainfall (Wilma Theatre);Rennie Harris Puremovement; Eve and Teddy Pendergrass (Choreographer/ Dancer); Moreno (Interact Theatre); Les Blancs (Egopo Classic Theatre); Blood At The Root (Temple University)
Alien Nation (Williamstown Theater Festival); Wine In The Wilderness (Egopo Classic Theatre); School Girls or The African Mean Girls Play (Arden Theatre); Fences (PA Shakespeare Festival); The Ways of White Folks (Egopo Classic Theatre); American Fast (Interact Theatre); Ramayana (Egopo Classic Theatre); For My Man (TV ONE); Les Blancs (Egopo Classic Theatre)
;As You Like It (Shakespeare In Clark Park); The Ways of White Folks (Egopo Classic Theatre);From Okra To Greens A Different Type of Love Story (Temple University); If Pretty Hurts Ugly Must Be A Muhfucka (Temple University); The Proposal (Temple University)
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MELODY WONG - PRODUCTION STAGE MANAGER
A graduate of Temple University (BA, MEd). Melody is happy to be back for another season at Theatre Exile.
Credits include: Camp Siegfried, Case for the existence of God, Abandon, The Light, Wolfplay at Theater Exile, American Fast with InterAct, Dreamgirls with Theater in the X, In Search of the Kitchen Gods with 1812 Productions, Group!, Janet Wide Awake and Ok Trenton with Passage Theatre. Transworld, Publik Private with Playpenn.
Other companies include: Power Street, PAPA, Kimmel Center, Opera Philadelphia, Bearded Ladies Cabaret, Ballet X, Modero Dance Co. Asian Arts Initiative.
Certified Advanced Actor Combatant with Fight Directors Canada and SAFD. Member of Chinatown Dragon boat team. Philadelphia Suns Volleyball and Lion Dance. Part of the NO ARENA Coalition.