{"id":278962,"date":"2026-09-04T13:40:10","date_gmt":"2026-09-04T13:40:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/278962\/"},"modified":"2026-09-04T13:40:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-04T13:40:10","slug":"ben-franklin-disappears-in-phillys-wild-new-immersive-show-run-ben-run","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/278962\/","title":{"rendered":"Ben Franklin disappears in Philly\u2019s wild new immersive show \u2018Run Ben Run\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s a meeting of the Bens\u2014or more so Ben Franklin, Ben Affleck, Benedict Arnold, Ben Vereen, Ben Lay and Bad Bunny<\/a> this fall.<\/p>\n

Philadelphia immersive theater company Applied Mechanics<\/a> has joined forces with Christ Church Preservation Trust for a satire on the stories America \u201ctells about itself.\u201d Set to run Oct. 6 to 18 at Christ Church Neighborhood House, the world-premiere production will feature drag, choreography, pastiche, and an original script to take a look at the question: What exactly do we mean when we talk about American \u201cprogress\u201d?<\/p>\n

According to a release, the plot follows the Bens, who have been assembled on a movie set to recreate John Gast\u2019s infamous 1872 painting \u2018American Progress<\/a>\u2019, an allegorical vision of westward expansion and Manifest Destiny. But there\u2019s a problem: their star, Ben Franklin<\/a>, has disappeared. With the production suddenly without its most recognizable founding father, the remaining Bens must figure out how to finish the film\u2014and, in the process, decide what kind of American story they are actually trying to tell.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re so excited to share this show about fame, failure, absent mentors and the myth of American Exceptionalism with Philadelphia audiences,\u201d says director and creator Rebecca Wright. \u201cIt\u2019s fanciful and silly and absurd, but it grows out of our sincere grappling with the myth of American Progress and our own very personal relationships with art and failure, fame and inspiration.\u201d<\/p>\n

The timing and location are also meaningful. During the country\u2019s 250th anniversary, the production takes place just steps from Christ Church, a venue Franklin himself attended, and near Christ Church Burial Ground<\/a>, where Franklin is currently buried.<\/p>\n

In signature Applied Mechanics fashion, ‘Run Ben Run<\/a>‘ unfolds all around its audience instead of just in front of them. The grounds will be transformed into a movie set inspired by ‘American Progress’, complete with rolling prairie, wagon beds, telegraph wires, and buffalo heads. Rather than sitting in a traditional theater seat and watching the action from a distance, audiences will find themselves at the center of all of the action.<\/p>\n

Previews start Oct. 6, opening night is Oct. 9 and the show will run until Oct. 18. Tickets start around $15 and are on a sliding scale. For more information, visit appliedmechanics.us<\/a><\/p>\n

MORE: Jennifer Weiner invests $30K in next generation of Philly writers<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\tKeywords<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\tRun Ben Run,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t Applied Mechanics,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t Ben Franklin,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t Philadelphia theater,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t immersive theater,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t Philly theater,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t Christ Church,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t America 250,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t Philadelphia arts\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s a meeting of the Bens\u2014or more so Ben Franklin, Ben Affleck, Benedict Arnold, Ben Vereen, Ben Lay…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":278963,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[4000,116793,43235,101073,73727,69,80747,71,70,48275,53659,116792],"class_list":["post-278962","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-philadelphia","tag-america-250","tag-applied-mechanics","tag-ben-franklin","tag-christ-church","tag-immersive-theater","tag-philadelphia","tag-philadelphia-arts","tag-philadelphia-headlines","tag-philadelphia-news","tag-philadelphia-theater","tag-philly-theater","tag-run-ben-run"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/278962","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=278962"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/278962\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/278963"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=278962"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=278962"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=278962"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}