Blues diva Ma Rainey and her band have come to a Chicago studio to cut a record, but their artistic differences nearly stop the session before it starts. Full of unforgettable characters and the raw power of the blues, this 1920s installment of Wilson's groundbreaking cycle of plays confronts the issues of race, fame, and generational divides through the rhythms of the African-American South.
August Wilson (1945-2005) The most-produced African-American playwright of all time, August Wilson was a self-taught writer whose distinctive style combined poeticism and everyday slang. The plays of his remarkable Pittsburgh Cycle chronicled the black experience in America in every decade of the 20thcentury, winning two Pulitzer Prizes and redefining African-American storytelling for a generation of theatergoers.
August Wilson was always a font of stories. In addition to the 10 plays of his lauded Pittsburgh Cycle, there were books, essays and poems largely about the African-American experience.
Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater has announced the cast and creative team for Tony Award-nominated August Wilson’s Seven Guitars, directed by Tazewell Thompson (Arena’s Jubilee).
TheatreWorks Silicon Valley will resume in-person performances when it launches its previously announced 51st season, featuring eight plays and musicals presented October 2021 through August 2022, kicking off with the new indie folk-rock musical Lizard Boy.
From the Great White Way to the Silver Screen, these artists have careers that span both the stage and screen. Today we are delving into the Broadway careers of six performers who are nominated for the 2021 Academy Awards.
Which Marvel stars have been nominated for Tony awards? Which Marvel stars have produced shows on Broadway? What are some of their upcoming Broadway projects! Read on to find out!
August Wilson is best known as the author of the American Century Cycle, a series of ten plays including Gem of the Ocean, Joe Turner's Come and Gone, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, The Piano Lesson, Seven Guitars, Fences, Two Trains Running, Jitney, King Hedley II, and Radio Golf. These works explore the heritage and experience of African Americans, decade-by-decade, over the course of the twentieth century.
The Tony-nominated actor Thomas Jefferson Byrd was shot and killed in Atlanta on Saturday morning.
August Wilson authored Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Fences, Joe Turner's Come and Gone, The Piano Lesson, Two Trains Running, Seven Guitars, Jitney, King Hedley II, Gem of the Ocean, and Radio Golf. These works explore the heritage and experience of the descendants of Africans brought to North America, decade-by-decade over the course of the twentieth century, and together, they form a compilation entitled The American Century Cycle.
TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's Artistic Director Tim Bond and Executive Director Phil Santora announced today that the Tony Award-winning theatre will postpone the opening of its 51st mainstage season to March 2021, with eight plays presented through May 2022.
During this time when productions all over the world have been put on pause, we are coming together to celebrate plays that have left their mark on theater history.
BWW Reviewer Peter Nason chooses the greatest theatrical works (non-musical) from 1920-2020; see if your favorites made the list!
Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater has announced the company for August Wilson's Seven Guitars. Tazewell Thompson (Arena's Jubilee) will direct this Tony Award-nominated play. Set in 1940s Pittsburgh, seven lives are interconnected when old friend and blues singer Floyd Barton vows to turn his life around after a surprise windfall leaves him hopeful for a second chance.
Producers Harriet Newman Leve, Ellen DeGeneres, Portia de Rossi, Lily Tomlin and Jane Wagner have announced a 2020 Broadway bound production of Last Summer at Bluefish Cove.
Tony Award nominee and Elliot Norton Award winner John Douglas Thompson revives his Tony-nominated role in a staged reading of Jitney as a benefit for the Front Porch Arts Collective, Boston's newest Black theatre company. The reading will take place at the South End/Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA (527 Tremont St., Boston) on Monday, September 16 at 6:30pm. Single tickets are pay what you wish starting at $25 and can be purchased by visiting bostontheatrescene.com.
Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater announces partial casting of August Wilson's Jitney. Tony Award-winner Ruben Santiago-Hudson directs his 2017 Broadway production a?' recipient of the Tony Award for Best Play Revival. Set in the early 1970s, Jitney follows a group of men trying to make a living by driving unlicensed cabs, or jitneys.
Court Theatre, under the continuing leadership of Charles Newell, Marilyn F. Vitale Artistic Director, and Angel Ysaguirre, Executive Director, has announced casting for August Wilson's King Hedley II, directed by Resident Artist Ron OJ Parson. King Hedley II runs September 12 - October 13, 2019 at Court Theatre, 5535 S. Ellis Ave. The press opening is Saturday, September 21, 2019 at 7:30pm.
According to Deadline, additional casting has been announced for the upcoming Netflix adaptation of the August Wilson play Ma Rainey's Black Bottom.
Viola Davis, Chadwick Boseman, Glynn Turman, Colman Domingo and Michael Potts are set to star in the Netflix film adaptation of August Wilson's play Ma Rainey's Black Bottom.
American Blues Theater announces the addition of five new Ensemble members and one new Artistic Affiliate to the Blues family. Joining the Ensemble is director, designer and Associate Producer Elyse Dolan, who directed several works in past Ripped and Blue Ink festivals; designer Jared Gooding, lighting designer of Buddy - The Buddy Holly Story; actor Philip Earl Johnson, who is slated to appear in the upcoming Chicago premiere of Steven Dietz's On Clover Road; director Chuck Smith, director of the recent American Blues production of Pearl Cleage's Flyin' West; and actress and playwright Wandachristine, who won many awards for her solo performance Beauty's Daughter. Actor Zachary Stevenson has been named an Artistic Affiliate. Stevenson recently made his Chicago debut as 'Buddy Holly' in American Blues Theater's Joseph Jefferson Award-winning musical Buddy - the Buddy Holly Story, in which he also won a Jeff Award for Performance in a Musical.
August Wilson authored Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Fences, Joe Turner's Come and Gone, The Piano Lesson, Two Trains Running, Seven Guitars, Jitney, King Hedley II, Gem of the Ocean, and Radio Golf. These works explore the heritage and experience of the descendants of Africans brought to North America, decade-by-decade over the course of the twentieth century, and together, they form a compilation entitled The American Century Cycle.
Goodman Theatre celebrates the lives of "two strong, vibrant women dispensing joy and wisdom" (Chicago Tribune) in a major revival of Emily Mann's Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years. Directed by the Goodman's longtime Resident Director Chuck Smith, the production features Ella Joyce and Marie Thomas as the Delany centenarians, Bessie (1891 - 1995) and Sadie (1889 -1999), respectively. The sisters were discovered in 1991 when Amy Hill Hearth interviewed them for The New York Times. Following the article, the trio co-authored the book, Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years-a New York Times bestseller and heartfelt reflection of their family history and triumphs over prejudices in times of social unrest. Mann adapted it for the stage, first at McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton, New Jersey and then to Broadway, where it ran for 317 performances. Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years appears May 5 - June 10, 2018 in the Albert Theatre (opening night is Monday, May 14). Tickets ($20 - $75; subject to change) are now on sale at GoodmanTheatre.org/HavingOurSay, by phone at 312.443. 3800 or at the box office (170 North Dearborn). ComEd is the Major Corporate Sponsor, Conagra Brands Foundation is the Major Production Sponsor and ITW and PwC are the Corporate Sponsor Partners.
Theatre Forward and Chairman John Thomopoulous will lead a celebration to support American theatre at the annual Chairman's Awards Gala on Monday, April 9th at The Pierre New York. The works of Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award® winner AUGUST WILSON (Fences, The Piano Lesson, Jitney) will be honored this spring with the Legacy Award, Tony Award® nomineeDAVID YAZBEK (The Band's Visit, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Full Monty) will be honored with the Creative Achievement Award.
THEATRE FORWARD and Chairman JOHN THOMOPOULOUS will lead a celebration to support American theatre at the annual Chairman's Awards Gala on Monday, April 9th at The Pierre New York (2 East 61st Street at Fifth Avenue). The Chairman's Awards Gala supports the work of Theatre Forward, currently celebrating its 40th Anniversary season, which is dedicated to advancing American theatres and its communities through its Educating Through Theatre and Advancing Strong Theatre initiatives.
"Life is short, and it's up to you to make it sweet." - Sadie Delany (1889 -1999). Goodman Theatre revives Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years, Emily Mann's "warming theatrical event" (Variety)that celebrates the lives of "two strong, vibrant women dispensing joy and wisdom" (Chicago Tribune). Goodman Theatre Resident Director Chuck Smith's production features Ella Joyce and Marie Thomas as the Delany centenarians, Bessie (1891 - 1995) and Sadie (1889 -1999), respectively, as they trace their lives in a heartfelt reflection of their family history and triumphs over prejudices in times of social unrest.
The League of Chicago Theatres, Goodman Theatre, the University of Illinois at Chicago, Broadway In Chicago and competition organizer Derrick Sanders announce the three Chicago finalists for the 9th Annual August Wilson Monologue Competition: Nia Safro from Chicago High School for the Performing Arts (first place, performed Molly, Joe Turner's Come and Gone); Chisom Chima from Nicholas Senn High School (second place; performed King, King Hedley II); and Evan Simpson from Chicago High School for the Performing Arts (third place, performed Youngblood, Jitney). The top three Chicago finalists were awarded scholarships in the amount of $500, $250 and $100, respectively. The top two winning students will receive expenses paid to travel to New York City for the National Finals, where they will compete on May 7, 2018.
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