DOCSLIB.ORG

Broken Fences

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Broken Fences BROKEN FENCES WRITTEN BY Steven Simoncic DIRECTED BY Andre Barron PRODUCER Donald Russell ASSISTANT DIRECTOR Lockne O’Brien SCENIC DESIGN John Iacovelli LIGHTING DESIGN Derrick McDaniel SOUND DESIGN Joseph “Sloe” Slawinski COSTUME DESIGN Michele Young SCENIC PAINTER Hillary Bauman PROP MASTER Bettina Zacar GRAPHIC DESIGN Debora Roventini STAGE MANAGER Maurie Gonzalez PUBLICIST David Elzer ONLINE MARKETING Corryn Cummins Broken Fences was originally produced by Ballybeg Theatre Company, NY April 2013, Alex Levy Artistic Director. It was then an official selection of The Road Theatre Company’s Summer Playwrights Festival 4, July 2013, Scott Alan Smith Festival Director. This project is supported in part by grants from The City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission. The Road Theatre Company is a subsidiary of The Other Side of the Hill Productions, Inc., a 501-C3 Non-Profit Corp. head_a1 A NOTE FROM THE ARTISTICHEAD_A2 DIRECTORS Deartext Road block. Patrons: styles Whether vary. this is your first visit to the Road or you are a returning part of our theatre family, we welcome you to another exciting series of Road Repertory. This exciting experiment of running two shows at a time on a convertible set was such a hit for us last season, we decided to do it again. Thanks to the Summer Playwrights Festival, the Road has found itself with a true embarrassment of riches when it comes to new plays, and this first duo exemplifies our mission at its finest. Steven Simoncic’s exciting and provocative Broken Fences was a part of the Festival several summers ago, and we felt the time was right to present it to you now, directed by Andre Barron, who guided our hit production of Sharr White’s The Other Place last season. Broken Fences takes you to Chicago, and into the com- plicated world of neighborhood gentrification, a subject that fills the headlines of the LA Times these days, with neighborhoods that change, rents and mortgages that rise, longtime residents forced to move and new residents trying to find their place in an area caught in the middle. Mr. Simoncic inserts us into the yards, the hearts and the minds of those faced with the difficulty of this situation and shows us the faces of our shared humanity. How do families survive in this unstable landscape and remain true to themselves while going through tremendous change? Humor, hope and heartache share the stage in this compassionate study of a neighbor- hood in transition. Don’t forget to come back and see the wild dysfunctional family comedy/ drama The Mongoose, by Will Arbery, which runs in repertory with Broken Fences. These productions are prime examples of the Road’s mission to bring you the best new plays and the strongest new voices guaranteed to entertain, provoke and leave you talking about them afterwards. And don’t forget to check out the chance to be a part of the process with your “Thrive in 25” donations. As always, we appreciate your patronage and your continued support. Taylor Gilbert, Founder/Artistic Director Sam Anderson, Artistic Director AWARDS & ACCOLADES 2015 Bitter Lemons: One of the Top 10 Seasons of the Year L.A Times Critic’s Choice - The Other Place by Sharr White NoHo Fringe Festival -Best Stage Play (Drama) – Homefree by Lisa Loomer Huffington Post Top 10 L.A. Theatre Productions - The Other Place by Sharr White L.A Weekly “GO!” Homefree by Lisa Loomer The Other Place by Sharr White Stage Raw Top 10 The English Bride by Lucile Lichtblau Things Being What They Are by Wendy MacLeod Stage Scene L.A. Scenie Awards One of L.A.’s Top 8 Intimate Theatres Outstanding Drama (Intimate Theatre) – The Other Place by Sharr White Outstanding Comedy (Intimate Theatre) – Mud Blue Sky by Marisa Wegrzyn Direction of a Drama (Intimate Theatre) -Andre Barron, The Other Place Direction of a Comedy (Intimate Theatre) - Mary Lou Belli, Mud Blue Sky Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role - Drama (Intimate Theatre) Taylor Gilbert, The Other Place Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role - Comedy (Intimate Theatre) Carlyle King, Mud Blue Sky Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role - Drama (Intimate Theatre) Sam Anderson, The Other Place Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role - Drama (Intimate Theatre) Danielle Stephens,The Other Place Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role - Comedy (Intimate Theatre) Amy Tolsky, Mud Blue Sky Star-marking Performance in a Play - Alex Smith in Mud Blue Sky SAGE Award Best Performance in a Drama – Taylor Gilbert, The Other Place Broadway World Nominations Best Direction of a Play (Local) – Andre Barron, The Other Place Best Lead Female Performance in a Play (Local)–Taylor Gilbert, The Other Place Robby Award Nominations Nan Martin Award, Best Drama - The Other Place by Sharr White Michael Devereaux Award for Best Playwriting - Sharr White, The Other Place Martin Benson Award, Best Director of a Drama - Andre Barron, The Other Place Best Actress in a Drama - Taylor Gilbert, The Other Place Best Supporting Actor in a Drama - Sam Anderson, The Other Place Ticketholder Awards Best Production of 2015 - The Other Place, directed by Andre Barron, AWARDS & ACCOLADES Over two decades ago a group of theatre artists came together to form The Other Side of the Hill Productions, Inc. a.k.a. The Road Theatre Company. A non-profit corporation that produces theatre under the Actors’ Equity Association 99-Seat Plan. The Road Theatre Company has amassed an impressive list of awards throughout its 25-year history: • 2 Stage Raw - Recommended/Top 10 Production • 9 Los Angeles Drama Critics’ Circle Awards • 15 Los Angeles Stage Alliance Ovation Awards • 11 L.A. Weekly Awards • 39 Back Stage West Garland Critics Citations Awards • 5 Robby Awards • 67 Valley Theatre League Artistic Director Achievement Awards • 14 “Critic’s Choice”- Los Angeles Times • 24 “Pick of the Week/Recommended/Go”- L.A. Weekly • 19 “Critic’s Pick”- Back Stage West Additionally, The Road Theatre Company has received a spe- cial commendation from Council member Tom LaBonge and the City of Los Angeles for providing 24 years of theatre excel- lence in Council District 4; the Back Stage West Landmark Award for Sustained Excellence in Theatre; the prestigious Los Angeles Drama Critics’ Circle Margaret Harford Award for Sustained Excellence in Theatre and was recently cited as “one of the Best Companies of the Decade” by LA Weekly. For a complete list of our history of award-winning plays, visit RoadTheatre.org. R4 the COMPANY Kimberly Alexander Keelia Flinn Elizabeth Knowelden Albie Selznick Sam Anderson Arielle Fodor Shelby Kocee Kevin Shipp Steve Apostolina Mia Fraboni Jennifer Laks Danvir Singh Chelsea Averil Kris Frost Morgan Lauff Alex Smith Deana Barone Laura Gardner Jeff LeBeau Jacob Smith Andre Barron Monique Gelineau Barret Lewis Scott Alan Smith Al Bernstein Taylor Gilbert David Lorell Elizabeth Southard Verity Branco Michelle Gillette Andrew Manardo Amy Stoch DeJean Brown Carole Goldman Yani Marin Hannah Mae Sturges Courtney Buchan Zeljka “Z” Gortinski David B. Marling Ben Theobald Crash Buist John Gowans Erica Mathlin Amy Tolsky Cody Bushee Cynthia Gravinese Brianna McClellan Joey Vahedi Jennice Butler Lina Green Chuck McCollum Gwen Van Dam Anna Carini Don Grigware Matthew McCollum Kieren van den Blink Janet Chamberlain Chet Grissom Kevin McCorkle Michael Thomas-Visgar Lisa Cirrincione Kyle Hall TJ McNeill Geoffrey Wade Brian M. Cole Helen Harwell Jonathan Medina Miles Warner Joshua Wolf Coleman Ann Hearn Stephanie Michels Allan Wasserman Hallie Cooper Patricia Herd Tiffany Moon Lila Waters Mark Costello Richard Herd Deidre Moore Deverill Weekes John Cragen Liz Herron Zachary Mooren Bryna Weiss Todd Curran Stephen Tyler Howell Paris Mulkey Jessica Wierzba Meagan Daine Richard Hoyt-Miller Desma Murphy Tiffany Wolff Philip D’Amore Ann Hu Tom Musgrave Blake Young-Fountain Kathy Bell Denton Kara Hume Lisa Nathans Bettina Zacar Tony DeCarlo Kate Huffman Lockne O’Brien Ken Zavayna Susan Diol Suzanne Hunt Justin Okin Bernie Zilinskas Corey Dorris Barry Jenner Laurie Okin Whitney Dylan Carl J. Johnson Patrick Rieger Mark Elias Darryl Johnson Coronado Romero Stephanie Erb Donna Simone Johnson Donald Russell Dirk Etchison Scott Key Elizabeth Sampson Adam Farabee Ivy Khan June Sanders Aaron Fentress Carlyle King Julia Sanford Gina Ferranti Nora King Judith Scarpone Jennifer Finch Melissa Kite Hilary Schwartz Tom Fiscella Tom Knickerbocker Dean Scofield Taylor Gilbert, Artistic Director/Founder ARTISTIC STAFF Sam Anderson, Artistic Director Scott Alan Smith, Associate Artistic Director Meagan Daine, Managing Director Darryl Johnson & Kevin Shipp, Technical Directors ARTISTIC BOARD Chet Grissom CORPORATE BOARD Carlyle King Steven L. Boortz, Esq Marian Lawrence Ian Bryce Heather Moses Donna Simone Johnson Cara Eisenberg Stuart Spence Kevin Shipp Taylor Gilbert Judith Vida-Spence Ann Hearn about the ARTISTIC DIRECTORS Taylor Gilbert (Founder/ Artistic Director) Taylor recently played Juliana Smithton in the acclaimed pro- duction The Other Place by Sharr White at The Road. She is celebrating her 26th season as Founder and Artistic Director of The Road Theatre Company. Producing cred- its include more than 60 critically acclaimed productions for The Road Theatre Company. Directing credits include the award-winning In The Name of the People, Mooncalf, My Last Confession, The Chisholm Trail Went through Here and Slumber Party. As Co-Director (with Ken Sawyer): Hitler’s Head, Homefires. Awards: As a Producer, over 130 regional theatre awards, including: the Margaret Harford Award for Sustained Excellence in Theatre, the 2002 Los Angeles Stage Alliance Ovation Award (Best Production of a Small Play) for The Woman in Black and 2010 Certificate of Commendation from the City of Los Angeles for contributing 20 years of award-winning theatre to the community.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • American Players Theatre August Wilson's FENCES 2019 Study Guide
    American Players Theatre Presents August Wilson’s FENCES 2019 Study Guide American Players Theatre / PO Box 819 / Spring Green, WI 53588 www.americanplayers.org August Wilson’s Fences 2019 Study Guide Penumbra Theatre Company’s 2008 Fences Study Guide by Sarah Bellamy excerpted with permission. APT’s Fences Production Section written by Malek Mayo. Photos by Liz Lauren. Photo of Phoebe Werner by Hannah Jo Anderson. THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING SPONSORS FOR MAKING OUR PROGRAM POSSIBLE Associated Bank * Dennis & Naomi Bahcall * Tom & Renee Boldt * Ronni Jones APT Children’s Fund at the Madison Community Foundation * Rob & Mary Gooze * IKI Manufacturing, Inc. * Kohler Foundation, Inc. * Herzfeld Foundation * THANKS ALSO TO OUR MAJOR EDUCATION SPONSORS This project was also supported in part by a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts. American Players Theatre’s productions of Twelfth Night and Macbeth are part of Shakespeare in American Communities, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest. This project is supported by Dane Arts with additional funds from the Endres Mfg. Company Foundation, The Evjue Foundation, Inc., charitable arm of The Capital Times, the W. Jerome Frautschi Foundation, and the Pleasant T. Rowland Foundation. 2 Special Thanks to Penumbra Theatre Company Access to Penumbra's full study guide collection can be found at https://penumbratheatre.org/study-guides Penumbra Theatre Company occupies a very unique place within American society, and by extension of that, the world. Penumbra was borne out of the Black Arts Movement, a time charged by civic protest and community action.
    [Show full text]
  • Fences Study Guide
    Pacific Conservatory Theatre Student Matinee Program Presents August Wilson’s Fences Generously sponsored by Franca Bongi-Lockard Nancy K. Johnson A Study Guide for Educators Welcome to the Pacific Conservatory Theatre A NOTE TO THE TEACHER Thank you for bringing your students to PCPA at Allan Hancock College. Here are some helpful hints for your visit to the Marian Theatre. The top priority of our staff is to provide an enjoyable day of live theatre for you and your students. We offer you this study guide as a tool to prepare your students prior to the performance. SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDENT ETIQUETTE Note-able behavior is a vital part of theater for youth. Going to the theater is not a casual event. It is a special occasion. If students are prepared properly, it will be a memorable, educational experience they will remember for years. 1. Have students enter the theater in a single file. Chaperones should be one adult for every ten students. Our ushers will assist you with locating your seats. Please wait until the usher has seated your party before any rearranging of seats to avoid injury and confusion. While seated, teachers should space themselves so they are visible, between every groups of ten students. Teachers and adults must remain with their group during the entire performance. 2. Once seated in the theater, students may go to the bathroom in small groups and with the teacher's permission. Please chaperone younger students. Once the show is over, please remain seated until the House Manager dismisses your school. 3. Please remind your students that we do not permit: - food, gum, drinks, smoking, hats, backpacks or large purses - disruptive talking.
    [Show full text]
  • The 200 Plays That Every Theatre Major Should Read
    The 200 Plays That Every Theatre Major Should Read Aeschylus The Persians (472 BC) McCullers A Member of the Wedding The Orestia (458 BC) (1946) Prometheus Bound (456 BC) Miller Death of a Salesman (1949) Sophocles Antigone (442 BC) The Crucible (1953) Oedipus Rex (426 BC) A View From the Bridge (1955) Oedipus at Colonus (406 BC) The Price (1968) Euripdes Medea (431 BC) Ionesco The Bald Soprano (1950) Electra (417 BC) Rhinoceros (1960) The Trojan Women (415 BC) Inge Picnic (1953) The Bacchae (408 BC) Bus Stop (1955) Aristophanes The Birds (414 BC) Beckett Waiting for Godot (1953) Lysistrata (412 BC) Endgame (1957) The Frogs (405 BC) Osborne Look Back in Anger (1956) Plautus The Twin Menaechmi (195 BC) Frings Look Homeward Angel (1957) Terence The Brothers (160 BC) Pinter The Birthday Party (1958) Anonymous The Wakefield Creation The Homecoming (1965) (1350-1450) Hansberry A Raisin in the Sun (1959) Anonymous The Second Shepherd’s Play Weiss Marat/Sade (1959) (1350- 1450) Albee Zoo Story (1960 ) Anonymous Everyman (1500) Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf Machiavelli The Mandrake (1520) (1962) Udall Ralph Roister Doister Three Tall Women (1994) (1550-1553) Bolt A Man for All Seasons (1960) Stevenson Gammer Gurton’s Needle Orton What the Butler Saw (1969) (1552-1563) Marcus The Killing of Sister George Kyd The Spanish Tragedy (1586) (1965) Shakespeare Entire Collection of Plays Simon The Odd Couple (1965) Marlowe Dr. Faustus (1588) Brighton Beach Memoirs (1984 Jonson Volpone (1606) Biloxi Blues (1985) The Alchemist (1610) Broadway Bound (1986)
    [Show full text]
  • Member Association AFTRA / AEA / SAG Hassan El-Amin Height
    Member Association A.F.T.R.A. / A.E.A. / SAG Hassan El-Amin Height: 6’ Weight: 212lb Theatres Roles Directors Resident Ensemble Players August: Osage County Bill Fordham Jackson Gay Murder on the Orient Express Samuel Ratchett Sanford Robbins The Crucible Thomas Putnam Ben Barnes Lettice and Lovage Mr. Bardolph Steve Tague Woman in Mind Andy Jackson Gay Minor Fantastical Kingdom Bernard Mark Lamos Inherit the Wind Rev. Brown Sanford Robbins Fences Troy Maxson Cameron Knight The MountainTop Martin Luther King Jr. Walter Dallas From the Author Of Dax Jade King Carroll A Flea in her Ear Dr. Finache Mark Lamos Twelfth Night Antonio Maria Aitken God of Carnage Michael Novak Kate Buckley Clybourne Park Albert/Kevin Lee E. Ernst The Bells Jim Theresa Rebeck The Elephant Man Dr. Carr Gomm Sanford Robbins Dallas Theatre Center Christmas Carol Jacob Marley Joe Ferrell In the Beginning God / Ensemble Kevin Moriarty It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, It’s Superman! Perry White Kevin Moriarty Death of a Salesman Uncle Ben Amanda Dehnert Henry IV Northumberland Kevin Moriarty God of Carnage Michael Joe Ferrell King Lear Earl of Kent Kevin Moriarty The Odd Couple Roy Kevin Moriarty Fly (2013) Pirate Jeffery Seller A Raisin in the Sun Bobo Tre Garrett Clybourne Park Albert/Kevin Joel Ferrell Sherlock Holmes King of Bohemia Kevin Moriarty Les Misérables Priest Liesl Tommy Driving Miss Daisy Hoke Colburn Joel Ferrell The Kennedy Center August Wilson 20TH Century Fences Gabriel Kenny Leon Two Trains Running Hambone Isreal Hicks Jitney Booster Gordon Davidson The
    [Show full text]
  • Community in August Wilson and Tony Kushner
    FROM THE INDIVIDUAL TO THE COLLECTIVE: COMMUNITY IN AUGUST WILSON AND TONY KUSHNER By Copyright 2007 Richard Noggle Ph.D., University of Kansas 2007 Submitted to the Department of English and the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Kansas In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy ________________________ Chairperson, Maryemma Graham ________________________ Chairperson, Iris Smith Fischer ________________________ Paul Stephen Lim ________________________ William J. Harris ________________________ Henry Bial Date defended ________________ 2 The Dissertation Committee for Richard Noggle certifies that this is the approved version of the following dissertation: FROM THE INDIVIDUAL TO THE COLLECTIVE: COMMUNITY IN AUGUST WILSON AND TONY KUSHNER Committee: ________________________ Chairperson, Maryemma Graham ________________________ Chairperson, Iris Smith Fischer ________________________ Paul Stephen Lim ________________________ William J. Harris ________________________ Henry Bial Date approved _______________ 3 ABSTRACT My study examines the playwrights August Wilson and Tony Kushner as “political” artists whose work, while positing very different definitions of “community,” offers a similar critique of an American tendency toward a kind of misguided, dangerous individualism that precludes “interconnection.” I begin with a look at how “community” is defined by each author through interviews and personal statements. My approach to the plays which follow is thematic as opposed to chronological. The organization, in fact, mirrors a pattern often found in the plays themselves: I begin with individuals who are cut off from their respective communities, turn to individuals who “reconnect” through encounters with communal history and memory, and conclude by examining various “successful” visions of community and examples of communities in crisis and decay.
    [Show full text]
  • After Your Fences! FURNITURE J. B. TETTER's
    H.iii, •VBM&fNI KOWr ADVSHTIBS WOW « TOR III TBI I H' I 'ixrr " HATES I i •i.&o ram txas. OSSBATS. MI-A-LIOEl TOWARD NONE AND OHA.R.ITY FOR, A-LL." VOL I. LOWELL, KENT COUNTY. MICH., MARCH 31,1894. NO. 40 AT WlBfEOAR'S had one of the best peach farms in At tho head of one advertisement" HOMEJEWS. Kent couuly; but fulling health neces- wo see the names of Hooker, Hunt &- \ We Fit Your Feet! sitated his selling the homestead, since Co. Th^HH gentlemen have long We Guarantee Our Goods! Albert Jackson's Sufferings which time ho has waited from monthn since ptfoed to their rest, and others Over at Last. to weeks, and weeks to days for the have taken their places. Robert. You Take No Chances! sunimons to a future home. Since Hunter Jr.] was the proprietor of a- DEATH OF MRS. MARGARET E. MOOREsellin. g his farm he resided in the vil- general store. His ad. appears twice Yqu Bring the Feet, lage and bus braved four surgical ope- in the sahfe ^j^per; We Do the Rest. rations in his battle for life. All this N. P. Husled advertises his great •©"Even a Description of The Lowell Cheap Shi»e Nicely Fitted, will Look Well, time he has displayed great courage" variety of nursery tte&. Give us a Triali i curs for Trade, Weekly Star. and fortitude, without a murmur. In another columil ivtlie unnounce- ANOTHER PLEASANT SOCIAL EVENT. Mr. and Mrs. Jackson had no chil- ment of the "Wolverine String Band,"* CEO.
    [Show full text]
  • News Release
    NEWS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE AUGUST WILSON’S STUNNING “FENCES” IS AS TIMELY AS IT IS POWERFUL, JAN. 16-FEB. 6 TUCSON, Ariz. (Jan. 6, 2016): Arizona Theatre Company celebrates the new year with a great American classic in August Wilson’s stunning, Pulitzer-Prize winning play, Fences. A vivid, heartfelt exploration of the African-American experience set in the 1950’s, the story remains strikingly relevant today. Performances begin at the Temple of Music & Art, 333 S. Scott Ave., on Jan. 16 and run through Feb. 6. I. Michael and Beth Kasser are Arizona Theatre Company’s 2015-16 Season Sponsors. The Stonewall Foundation is the Production Sponsor. Perhaps the best known of Wilson’s plays and winner of the Tony Award for Best Play, Fences tells the gripping story of sanitation worker Troy Maxson, a star baseball player whose career was blunted by the racism prevalent in pre-Jackie Robinson America. Feeling his world rapidly changing, Troy builds a fence to protect what is familiar and hold off what threatens. Muscular and lyrical, filled with some of the greatest characters and scenes in American Drama, this August Wilson blockbuster shows what can happen when a strong man is robbed of his dreams. Fences, the searing story of a man who stepped up to the plate too many times only to go down swinging, is as American as baseball itself. Called “stunning, explosive and tender” (The Seattle Times), Fences is “August Wilson at his finest” (Boston Herald). “Time has enhanced the luster of the play and it stands apart thanks to its distinctive lyricism and theatricality and its unforgettable central character.
    [Show full text]
  • An Interview with American Playwright August Wilson
    AUGUST WILSON/ Tibbetts/ 1! AN INTERVIEW WITH AMERICAN PLAYWRIGHT AUGUST WILSON By John C. Tibbetts Interviews on 30 April and 3 May 2002 Raphael Hotel and Hallmark Corporate Headquarters, Kansas City MO TIBBETTS INTRODUCTION TO INTERVIEW: August Wilson was born Frederick August Kittel in 1945 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania’s Hill District, an area famous for the many black performers who began their careers there—Lena Horne, Erroll Garner, Ahmad Jamal, Earl (Fatha) Hines, and Billy Eckstine. The fourth child of six children of a baker and a cleaning woman (whose maiden name was Wilson), he was an avid reader and displayed early on a gift and a passion for poetry. But the world of theatre eventually claimed him, and he co-founded the Black Horizons Theatre in 1968 and turned to playwriting in earnest. He moved to St. Paul, Minnesota in 1978, where he began writing Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, a play about the struggle between black musicians and their white bosses in the 1920s, and Jitney, whose story was set at a taxi stand on the Hill. Wilson’s career was launched when his work came to the attention of Lloyd Richards, an experienced director and head of the Yale Drama School Thus began a creative partnership that has lasted to the present day. Ma Rainey debuted on Broadway in 1984 and was a sensational success. Despite the fact that there were many esteemed black playwrights working at the time—Amiri Baraka, Ron Milner, Richard Wesley, Ed Bullins, and Phillip Hayes Dean, to cite just a few—no African-American plays had hitherto been successful on Broadway.
    [Show full text]
  • Rescuing the Tragic Bully in August Wilson's Fences
    MYLES WEBER Rescuing the Tragic Bully in August Wilson’s Fences t the end of Fences (1985), the third entry in what would become August A-Wilsons ten-play cycle dramatizing the African American experience during the twentieth century, Gabriel Maxson attempts to instruct Saint Peter to open the gates of heaven and receive the soul of his recently deceased older brother Troy, the play’s self-absorbed bully of a protagonist. The surviving Maxson sibling, a brain-damaged military veteran bearing a metal plate in his head, believes “with every fiber of his being” that he is actually his Christian namesake, the archangel Gabriel; but without a mouthpiece for his trumpet, Gabe fails in three attempts to produce sound through the instrument. Having waited some twenty-odd years for this moment, though, the character refuses to accept defeat. “He begins to dance,” writes Wilson. “A slow, strange dance, eerie and life-giving. A dance of atavistic signature and ritual.” Once Gabriel finishes, claim the stage directions, the gates of heaven open “as wide as God’s closet” to receive Troy’s spirit. “Hence, the menacing Troy has been forgiven,” observed Ladrica Menson-Furr, “and will find a home in the spiritual realm.” By having a character summon a divine force to rescue the deceased protago­ nist—whether that force is truly Christian in nature or pagan and African as nu­ merous Wilson scholars have contended—the playwright seems to break with Aristotelian tradition, which would normally oblige the protagonist to endure, unhappily ever after, the consequences of his own hubristic error.
    [Show full text]
  • What's New in the Arts
    THE SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE SUNDAY• MARCH 28, 2021 E9 V IRTUALLY SPEAKING UCTV University of California Televi- sion (UCTV) is making a host of videos available on its website (uctv.tv/life-of-the-mind) during What’s new this period of social distancing. Among them, with descriptions ARMCHAIR TRAVEL courtesy of UCTV (text written by the UCTV staff): in DININGthe arts “Tales of Human History Told by Neanderthal and Denisovan DNA”: It’s well known that as Celebrating 50 years of Queen with 50 weeks’ worth of free clips anatomically modern humans THEATER dispersed out of Africa, they BY DAVID L. CODDON encountered and mated with The film adaptation of playwright other hominins such as Neander- Kemp Powers’ “One Night in thals and Denisovans. The ability e’ve all got a list of those bands we wish we’d seen in concert but never did. Miami,” for which he wrote the to identify and excavate extinct screenplay, earned Powers an At the top of mine would be Queen with Freddie Mercury. hominin DNA from the genomes Oscar nomination. Having really It’s hard to believe it’ll be 30 years this November since the passing of of contemporary individuals enjoyed it, I looked forward Mercury, he of arguably the most distinctive voice in rock ’n’ roll history. reveals considerable information eagerly to streaming a staged W about human history and how The 2018 biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody” was a diverting reminder of Mercury’s talent, reading of Powers’ new play those encounters with Neander- “Christa McAuliffe’s Eyes Were but a new clips show on Queen’s official YouTube Channel honoring the group’s 50-year thals and Denisovans shaped the Blue.” anniversary is a gift for fans that will keep on giving — for 50 weeks.
    [Show full text]
  • The Women of August Wilson and a Performance Study and Analysis of the Role of Grace in Wilson's the Piano Lesson
    University of Central Florida STARS Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 2009 The Women Of August Wilson And A Performance Study And Analysis Of The Role Of Grace In Wilson's The Piano Lesson Ingrid Marable University of Central Florida Part of the Theatre and Performance Studies Commons Find similar works at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd University of Central Florida Libraries http://library.ucf.edu This Masters Thesis (Open Access) is brought to you for free and open access by STARS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 by an authorized administrator of STARS. For more information, please contact [email protected]. STARS Citation Marable, Ingrid, "The Women Of August Wilson And A Performance Study And Analysis Of The Role Of Grace In Wilson's The Piano Lesson" (2009). Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019. 4150. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd/4150 THE WOMEN OF AUGUST WILSON AND A PERFORMANCE STUDY AND ANALYSIS OF THE ROLE OF GRACE IN WILSON’S THE PIANO LESSON by INGRID A. MARABLE B.A. University of Virginia, 2005 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts in the Department of Theatre in the College of Arts and Humanities at the University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida Summer 2009 © 2009 Ingrid A. Marable ii ABSTRACT In the fall of 2007, I was cast in the University of Central Florida’s production of The Piano Lesson. My thesis will examine my performance in the role of Grace, as well as understudying the role of Berniece under the direction of Professor Belinda Boyd.
    [Show full text]
  • TORCH Spring 09.Qxd
    TORCH • Spring 2009 1 TORCH magazine is the official publication of Lee LEE UNIVERSITY University, Cleveland, Tennessee. It is intended to inform, educate and give SPRING 2009 insight to alumni, parents VOL. 51, NO. 1 and friends of the university. TORCH It is published quarterly and mailed free to all alumni of the university. Other 4 Soon to be History 16 $400,000 + subscriptions are available As preparations are made for its razing this Thanks to all alumni who pitched in to help the by calling the alumni office summer, science alumni share their reflections alumni office top yet another milestone in the at 423-614-8316. on a building which steered their academic Annual Alumni Fund. TORCH MAGAZINE destiny while a student at Lee. Cameron Fisher, editor 22 A National Championship … and George Starr, sports editor 11 On the Honor Roll … Again Much More Bob Fisher, graphic designer Lee’s service learning benevolence program Since the Lee women’s soccer team won nation- CONTRIBUTING WRITERS continues to gain recognition, rubbing shoul- als, the honors, awards and recognitions for the Kelly Bridgeman, Michelle Boll- ders and even outshining Ivy League programs. team and the university continue to roll in. man, Brian Conn, Paul Conn, Rebekah Eble, Cameron Fisher, Whitney Hemphill, Harrison Keely, Christie Kleinmann, Ryan McDermott, George Starr, Joyanna Weber. PHOTOGRAPHERS Brian Conn, Cameron Fisher, Whitney Hemphill, Andrew Millar, George Starr, Sherry Vincent, Mike Wesson. TORCH welcomes and encourages Letters to the Editor, Who’s Where entries and other inquiries for consideration of publication. Submissions should be accompanied by the name, address, phone number and e-mail address of the sender.
    [Show full text]