The tradition of producing four and later three plays per year continued into the mid-twentieth century, but in 1958, the organization disbanded due to lack of interest.

The group is run by an executive board that selects which plays to produce each year based on the proposals received from student-directors.

"[4] The Society's first student president was M. L. Dickinson, who also served as one of the several editors of the inaugural edition of Vassariana, the precursor to Vassar's weekly newspaper, The Miscellany News.

[5] Named for the term philalethea, meaning "truth-loving",[6] the Society was split into three distinct chapters, each with a specialized focus.

[9] Until the alumnae gymnasium—later Ely Hall—was built, the organization was headquartered in the Society Room on the second floor of the school's Calisthenium and Riding Academy.

[14] In 1890, when someone discovered that the term Philalethea was not proper Greek, the group changed its name to the more correct Philaletheis Society or Phil for short.

[9][14] The year 1908 saw the abolition of the chapters and their plays, which had ostensibly come to serve as a proving ground for undiscovered Vassar women who wanted to take part in the larger productions sponsored by the entire Philaletheis organization.

[20] In 1950, Philaletheis was identified by the Miscellany News as one of the "Big Five" organizations, a quintet of student groups "which include[d] nearly every extra-curricular activity which [took] place on campus".

[22] In 1958, however, the group's focus had shifted and it now stood primarily as an organization through which freshmen could try out theatre arts before moving on to the drama department for more serious dramatic work.

[30] In 1951, the board was vastly expanded to include managers of scenery, lights, sound, makeup, publicity, and a number of other fields.

[32] Once the organization split from student government, it was run by a seven-member board and accepted proposals for shows, ranging from musicals to one-act plays.