16th Street Theater

6420 16th St., Berwyn, 708-795-6704, 16thstreettheater.org

Under the artistic director Ann Filmer’s cultivation, this theatre has been slowly and steadily building a reputation for excellence since 2008. Its six-show Equity season regularly regales local audiences with outstanding work, including Michael Sidney Fosberg’s Incognito, Marilyn Campbell’s The Beats, and world premieres from Rohina Malik (Unveiled), Arlene Malinowski (All Kinds of Crazy), and Will Dunne (The Ascension of Carlotta). Filmer, sometimes with savvy casting assistance from the actor Stephanie Diaz, consistently draws top local talent. Her best trick? Holding the top ticket price at an eminently reasonable $18.