Local theater is coming back to the Philly and South Jersey area this fall.

West Philly native and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, Quiara Alegría Hudes will have her regional premiere of Daphne's Dive open to in-person audiences from Sept. 10 through Sept. 26.

The play will be directed by Joel Guerrero, who told Broadway World he is excited to be part of a dynamic story centered on the Latino community in North Philly.

“It’s also my first chance to tell a story of Latin Americans in Philadelphia! As a Latin American who lives in Philly, I have always been drawn to telling our stories and experiences,” he said.

The North Philly resident also said he is a fan of Hudes and always wanted the opportunity to bring one of her plays to life.

“The opportunity to help tell one of Hudes stories has always been a personal desire of mine. She has proven through all of her work that she is an ultimate storyteller,” said Guerrero.

The upcoming show will highlight the diverse shades of Latinos by hiring actors of Afro-Latino descent and indigenous Latino Americans. Guerrero wants to show the audience that there is no set picture of what a Latino should look like.

“Many people think Latin equals brown. In actuality, the Latin community spans from the indigenous Latin Americans of Mexico and Puerto Rico to the Afro-Latino populations of the Dominican Republic and South America,” said Guerrero. “I hope the audience will embrace the show and its many faces of Latin culture.”

Daphne's Dive is centered around a North Philly corner dive bar where many of Daphne’s customers come in and talk about life, politics, and culture. The bar could easily fit in with the many local bars in North Philly where patrons connect with one another on a daily basis.

The play is lightly based on Hudes upbringing in West Philadelphia. Her mother was born and raised in Puerto Rico while her biological father is Jewish. 

Despite the partly Jewish roots, she describes herself as being raised by “two Puerto Rican parents,” since her step-father helped raise her.

Hudes is recognized for her in-depth storytelling through writing. She graduated from Yale University with a degree in music composition and also received an MFA in Playwriting from Brown University.

In 2012, Hudes received a Pulitzer Prize in Drama for her play, Water by the Spoonful. She also wrote the off-broadway play, In The Heights, for which she won a Tony award, and the screenplay adaptation for the movie. 

Hudes worked alongside Lin Manuel-Miranda again for his Netflix animation musical, Vivo, which is set to be released on Aug. 6, 2021.

Daphne’s Dive will be coming to Camden, and the South Camden Theatre Company is advising its audience to wear masks indoors due to the new Delta variant of COVID-19.

The show will run Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m., and on Sundays at 2:00 p.m.

To purchase tickets, visit its website.