Die-Cast
Immersive, Music, Performance Art, Theater
In a private club, members celebrate the nation's birthday by cosplaying their favorite Americana icons. But the real American myth isn't your Founding Father Fetish. It's the Cowboy. The Capitalist. The Confederate.
Choose your fantasy.
Americana Cosplay is a rowdy, immersive performance that explores how America reinvented itself after the Civil War, and how those inventions became the stories we still tell ourselves today. Exploring the years 1870 through 1890, this darkly funny new work traces the birth of many of the symbols we now mistake for timeless traditions: the lone gunslinger, the self-made industrial titan, gun culture, self-optimization, and a nostalgic longing for an America that never truly existed.
Step inside a members-only club where history is something you can wear, perform, and manipulate. Wander through backroom business deals, political assassinations, Wild West showdowns, gothic tales of forbidden love, and yes - even a little TikTok line dancing. Along the way, you'll discover that national myth is a performance, tradition is a choice, and fantasy has a cost.
Just in time for America’s birthday. Yay!
Expect the dynamic text work, original music, and evocative staging that Die-Cast has brought to our previous sold-out Fringe shows. We have two years of Fringie Awards under our belts. Our past Fringe shows have been hailed as "Weird and Wonderful" (Philadelphia Gay News) "Everything I wanted a Fringe show to be" and "Thrilling and Immediate" (Broad Street Review), and "One of my favorite Fringe shows to date" (NoProscenium)
Bring some cash or Venmo for booze to enjoy during and after the show. But like most site-specific spaces, seating is limited.
September 17, 2026 9.00pm
320 Arch St
General Admission: $25
September 18, 2026 9.00pm
320 Arch St
General Admission: $25
September 19, 2026 9.00pm
320 Arch St
General Admission: $25
September 20, 2026 3.30pm
320 Arch St
General Admission: $25
About the Artist
Die-Cast is an artist collective that believes in radical collaboration. Our work has a focus on kinesthetic awareness, physical dynamism, and ensemble-first performance. We invite audiences into intimate and experimental performances in non-traditional spaces.
Die-Cast was created by Thom Weaver and Brenna Geffers in 2017 and has grown to a 15-person collective. We have created more than two dozen pieces since our founding. Our work has been created for a 350-acre open-air gallery, a fully immersive Virtual Reality piece, in historic museums and galleries, and even on a ship. That was pretty neat.
We have toured our work to:
WildWinds Performance Labs, Texas
The International Tennessee Williams Festival, Cape Cod
The New Currents Media Festival, Santa Fe
Miami Art Week, Miami Beach
ComicCon, New York City
Festivals in New York, Baltimore, Denver, Connecticut, Philadelphia, Seattle, and more.
NOTABLE MOMENTS INCLUDE:
- Winner of the Juried Prize of $20, 000 for the "No Vacancy" Public Works Festival during Art Week Miami 2020.
- Awarded the 2023 Research Fellowship from the August Wilson Archives, granting unprecedented access to Wilson’s personal files to create a new piece.
- Awarded the Network of Ensemble Theater's 2022 Exchange grant to develop new work with artists on the neurodivergent spectrum.
- Awarded the "Fringie Award" for Best Immersive work for the 2022 and 2024 Philadelphia FringeArts Festivals.
- First performance art collective to be awarded the Elizabeth Murray Residency for visual artists.
- Nominated for the prestigious 2019 Harvey Award for Best Adaptation of A Graphic Novel. Fellow nominees were films by Marvel Studios, Amazon Studios, and Netflix Studios. (We lost to Into the Spiderverse. Which is fair)
Accessibility & Content Considerations
Contact the Fringe Festival Box Office for up to date accessibility information.
This event is appropriate for ages 18+
Adult Language
Covid-19 Safety policy
This event does not require masks to be worn
Copyright © 2026 Philadelphia Fringe Festival
140 N. Columbus Blvd.
(at Race St.)
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Directions
Tickets: 215.413.1318
Admin Office: 215.413.9006
