The Best Things You Can Possibly Do in Philly This Week and Weekend

This week in Philly: the Sixers season begins, The Great Gatsby on stage, a meaty Rocky celebration, lots of spooky stuff, and much more. Here’s the best of the best happening.

FESTIVALS

CultureFest!: Día de los Muertos

The Penn Museum hosts this all-day Day of the Dead festival featuring live performances, art activities, a marketplace, and an ofrenda competition. Included with museum admission. October 24th, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. at Penn Museum, 3260 South Street.

Philadelphia Film Festival

The Philadelphia Film Society hosts 11 days of award contenders, international standouts, bold indie films, and discoveries from emerging filmmakers around town. There are also world premieres from local filmmakers, special screenings and events, and plenty of chances to catch a film before it hits theaters — or before everyone starts talking about it. Don’t know where to start? Head over to The Philadelphia Citizen‘s preview for film critic Carrie Rickey’s picks. October 15th-25th at multiple locations.

Collective Futures

Philadelphia’s network of artist-run spaces, DIY venues, and community-based initiatives hosts this collaboratively organized project bringing together more than 40 independent spaces and organizations across the city t(hrough exhibitions, performances, workshops, and public programs citywide. Through November 15th, multiple locations.

Taste of the Philippines

Celebrate Filipino American History Month with live entertainment, food, and a marketplace at Cherry Street Pier. October 24th, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. at Cherry Street Pier.

Open Streets: West Walnut

The Best of Philly-winning event returns. Take to the streets as 18th from Locust to Chestnut, and Walnut Street from 15th to 19th streets will be closed to vehicular traffic. From 10 a.m to 5 p.m. on those days, the streets will be open to pedestrians, along with live entertainment (think music, dance troupes, strolling performers) and a kids’ zone with free activities. Sundays through October 25th, 10 a.m-5 p.m., 18th Street from Locust to Chestnut and Walnut Street from 15th to 19th.

Philly Flannel Fest

The fourth annual fall gathering takes over Germantown’s Braid Mill for an afternoon of live music and DJs, local food, wine and cocktails, and a marketplace of local makers. And yes, wearing your coziest flannel is strongly encouraged. The festival takes place indoors and outdoors, rain or shine, and tickets are required for this one. October 25th, noon-5 p.m. at the Braid Mill, 441 High Street.

FallFest at Shady Brook Farm

Yardley’s famous farm is once again decked out in seasonal sights and activities — including a light show, farm animals, wagon rides, pick-your-own produce, and an America 250-themed corn maze. Tickets available online. Through October 30th Shady Brook Farm, 931 Stony Hill Road, Yardley.

ON STAGE

The Great Gatsby

“Where’s the party, and can you take me there?” The Tony Award-winning musical brings F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Jazz Age classic to the stage in a spectacle of lavish parties, forbidden love, outsized ambition, and the tragedy lurking beneath all that glitter. October 20th-November 1st at the Academy of Music.

Carmina burana

Yannick Nézet-Séguin leads The Philadelphia Orchestra, the Philadelphia Symphonic Choir, and a cast of vocal soloists in Carl Orff’s electrifying choral work, built around medieval poems about love, lust, drinking, and fate. October 22nd-25th at the Kimmel Center.

Suddenly Last Summer

Opera Philadelphia stages Courtney Bryan’s first opera, based on Tennessee Williams’s one-act play of same name. (Bryan is a former Opera Philadelphia composer in residence, so this is a homecoming as well.) The Southern Gothic is co-written and directed by Daniel Fish, whose dark revival of Oklahoma! breathed new life (and controversy) into the Broadway standard. October 22nd-25th at the Forrest Theatre.

Broadway à la Nero

The Philly Pops pay tribute to their late founder, revisiting his Broadway medleys on a sweeping, orchestral scale. October 24th, 3 p.m. at the Kimmel Center.

The Addams Family: The Musical

Expect the whole creepy and kooky clan — Gomez, Morticia, Wednesday, Pugsley, Uncle Fester, etc. — plus plenty of songs, secrets, and beautifully dysfunctional family drama, just in time for spooky season! Through November 1st at Walnut Street Theatre.

Liberation

Philadelphia Theatre Company opens its season with the Philadelphia premiere of Bess Wohl’s 2026 Pulitzer- and Tony Award-winning play. Moving between the early 1970s and today, the story follows a daughter reconstructing a chapter of her late mother’s life through the women in her consciousness-raising group, exploring motherhood, marriage, work, identity, and freedom across generations. This is the play’s first production in the country following its Broadway run. October 9th–25th at Suzanne Roberts Theatre.

Witch

What if the devil showed up offering to make all your problems disappear? Adapted from the Jacobean tragicomedy The Witch of Edmonton, this sharp, darkly funny retelling mixes desire, desperation, and small-town suspicion into a fable about what people are willing to give up when hope starts running thin. September 30th-October 25th at Quintessence Theater.

SPOOKY STUFF

“Bloodletting & Burials” Tours at Betsy Ross House

This tour takes you back to the 1700s, where you’ll hear true tales of disease, death, and burial. But not before you take a spooky after-hours visit to the Betsy Ross House with Betsy herself sewing a coffin lining in her workshop. After stopping at several sites on your tour, you’ll end at Garden at City Tavern, where your ticket includes a specialty cocktail (Widow’s Tea or Blood Moon).Tickets available online. Saturdays in October, 5:30 and 6:45 p.m. at the Betsy Ross House.

Pocket Park After Dark

Roxborough’s Pocket Park gets a Halloween makeover for a night of local art, live music, and gloriously weird costumes. Browse work from local artists and makers, then settle in at 8 p.m. for an outdoor screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Dressing up is strongly encouraged, whether you’re channeling your favorite RHPS character or assembling a group look. Costume prizes include categories like “most outrageous” and “sweetest transvestite.” October 22nd, 5-10 p.m. in Roxborough’s Pocket Park, 6170 Ridge Avenue.

Coven: A Bewitching Circus Experience

The Philadelphia School of Circus Arts’ adults-only Halloween shows promise “aerial artistry, daring feats, mysterious rituals, and wickedly playful performances.” Costumes are encouraged. Note: If you’d like a tamer show, there’s a family-friendly one earlier in the day. October 23rd & 24th, 8:30 p.m. at the Philadelphia School of Circus Arts, 6452 Greene Street.

See Also: Halloween for Grownups: Pop-Up Bars, Spooky Soirées and More Philly Haunts

Spooky Mini Golf at Franklin Square

Franklin Square’s Philly-themed mini golf is transformed into spooky fun for the Halloween season with decorations, lights, fog and other fun surprises. Stick around for the fountain show and grab a drink at the “Boo-zy Bar” to round out your night.October 1st–November 1st at Franklin Square.

Boo at the Zoo

During weekends in October, the Zoo gets decked out for the season with festive displays (perfect for photo ops), treat stations, and fun activities (for the kids and the animals!). Bring your own bag and come in costume for a trick-or-treat safari. The zoo residents are getting in on the fun, too, so if you want to see them chowing down on some pumpkins, check out the feeding schedule on the zoo map. Plus, a “Trick-or-Tree House,” Home Depot’s “12-Foot Skellys,” costume contests, and more. Boo at the Zoo is included with admission, and members get in free. Weekends in October at the Philadelphia Zoo.

Halloween Hikes and Hayrides

Kids can get a little closer to nature while soaking up spooky-season vibes at the Schuylkill Center’s family-friendly fest that packs in hayrides, evening hikes in search of nocturnal creatures, crafts, s’mores around the fire, and more Halloween fun. October 23rd & 24th at the Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education, 8480 Hagys Mill Road.

Spooky Seaport Saturday

Head to Independence Seaport Museum in costume for family-friendly crafts and activities (like mini-sea-monster-making and a sea-creature scavenger hunt). Plus, hop onboard the Olympia to learn your pirate name and dress up! Activities are included with museum admission. October 24th, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at Independence Seaport Museum.

Spooktacular Science Day

Spooky science and family-friendly frights take over the Franklin Institute. Come in costume for photo ops, hands-on science, and more. October 24th, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at the Franklin Institute.

Mister John’s Music’s Halloween Block Party

Mister John’s Music hosts their annual Halloween block party with live music, drag storytime, raffle prizes, crafts, a costume contest, and more fun for the whole family. October 24th, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at 8th and Fulton streets.

Stenton’s Halloween Harvest Festival

Enjoy crafts, face-painting, pumpkin-painting, treats, and a visit from the Philly Goat Project goats all dressed up for the occasion. Pre-register online for the free event. October 24th, 1-3 p.m. at 4601 North 18th Street.

Fairmount Halloween Festival

Philly Art Center hosts its annual Halloween party with make-and-take art stations, baby music, and a costume parade throughout Fairmount with Positive Movement Drumline. RSVP online. October 25th, 2-5 p.m. (parade at 4 p.m.) at 2333 Fairmount Avenue.

See Also: Where to Celebrate Halloween With Kids in Philly

Halloween Nights at Eastern State Penitentiary

Fairmount’s historic prison has been divided into separate haunted house attractions — including the Machine Shop, The Crypt, and Big Top Terror. There’s also the Bloodline Lounge (for vampire-themed cocktails), a speakeasy, live dance performances by the Boogie Monsters in Pumpkin Plaza, a beer garden, s’mores, and more. October 2nd through November 7th at Eastern State Penitentiary.

MUSEUMS

“Marcel Duchamp”

The first major U.S. retrospective devoted to the artist in more than 50 years brings together more than 300 works spanning his career, from paintings and sculptures to film, photography, exhibition design and the famously unclassifiable readymades. The exhibit traces how Duchamp upended just about every assumption about what art could be — and helped change the course of modern art in the process. October 10th-January 31st at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Museum of the Philadelphian

Billed as “an unapologetic micromuseum about Philadelphia’s people,” this brainchild of Brian Adoff (the same guy who brought us Join Philly) begins its limited run inside his Fishtown studio. Finally, Philly’s bad behavior gets the museum treatment. It will be open Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays with free admission, but admission is very limited, so reserve your spot online. Read more in our preview. September 25th-November 1st at 454 East Girard Avenue.

“Noguchi to Asawa: Designing Postwar America”

How did Japanese American incarceration during World War II shape the look of modern America? The Barnes’s new exhibit explores that question through the work of six influential Japanese American artists and designers, tracing how their experiences influenced the objects, furniture, sculpture, and design that helped define the postwar American aesthetic. Through January 10th at the Barnes Foundation.

MORE THINGS TO DO

The Magicians Table

Ensemble Arts Philly hosts the Philadelphia premiere of London’s immersive experience featuring close-up magic, live music and performance, and handcrafted cocktails. The show unfolds around the fictional magician Dieter Roterburg, whose friends and fellow performers gather after his untimely death — only to find themselves pulled into his “final grand illusion.” Leave the kids at home for this one: Guests must be 18 or older. October 21st-November 21st at the Kimmel Center.

Sixers Season Tip-Off Fan Fest at Stateside Live!

The Sixers will take over Stateside Live! for a free fan fest built around the team’s season opener against the New York Knicks. Expect live entertainment, giveaways, partner activations, and appearances from 76ers ENT. The event will also feature a live broadcast from 97.5 The Fanatic. Street artist Nero will be on hand creating live-painted T-shirts based on his Sixers Blue Week series, while supplies last. Admission is free, but fans are encouraged to RSVP in advance. October 20th, doors at 6 p.m., game tips off at 7 p.m. at Stateside Live!

See Also: Sixers Plan Ticket Giveaway, Art Hunt, and More for “Blue Week” Ahead of Home Opener

Ignite Philly

What happens when you give someone five minutes, 20 slides, and absolutely no time to ramble? Find out at Ignite Philly, the fast-paced presentation night where speakers have just 15 seconds per slide to share an idea, tell a story, or make you see the world differently. Come for the ideas; stay for the surprises. October 21st, 7 p.m. at Johnny Brenda’s.

Twilight in the Gardens

The last Twilight in the Gardens of the year calls for funk, BYOB, and a little bug taxidermy. Spend an evening wandering Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens, where Mixed People brings new-age funk to the courtyard and teaching artist Avery Demarest leads a gloriously weird faux mounted bug craft workshop. October 23rd, 7-10 p.m. at Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens.

Meat Market Challenge

As part of Philly’s Rocky Season, Reading Terminal Market is inviting fans for the ultimate photo op: train with a frozen beef cut hanging on Filbert Street! Plus, Rocky-inspired treats and a Rocky look-alike contest. October 24th, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. at Reading Terminal Market.

Hoagie Throwdown

At an event that screams “only in Philly,” 20 local restaurants descend on Fishtown to vie for sandwich supremacy. Meanwhile, live pro-wrestling matches bring the drama in a full-size ring. There’ll also be local vendors and live entertainment. At the end of the day, everyone in attendance will vote on their favorite hoagie maker, and whoever gets the most votes will take home the championship belt. It’s “pure breadlam” — just check out our recap of last year’s inaugural event to see what we’re talking about! October 25th, noon-4 p.m. at Other Half Brewing.

Head of the Schuylkill Regatta

Now in its 56th year, the iconic fall race draws 8,000 rowers to Kelly Drive for a scenic 2.3-mile course ending at Boathouse Row. October 24th & 25th on Kelly Drive.

Yokai Family Weekend and Flea Market

Supernatural creatures and spirits from Japanese folklore take center stage at Shofuso’s annual Yokai event. Families can hunt for objects that inspired yokai myths throughout the Japanese garden, hear hourly kamishibai paper-theater stories, and make spooky origami to take home. There will also be a flea market stocked with donated Japanese goods, from clothing and books to toys and dishware, with proceeds supporting the Japan America Society of Greater Philadelphia. Tickets are available online. October 24th-25th at Shofuso.

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