The potential for a “cinematic universe” lies in the surprising amount of continuity between the plays. The Marvel Cinematic Universe, James Bond series, and burgeoning DC universe are the most well-known series to extend continuity over multiple decades, but this might be the first series of dramas rather than action-adventure movies to do so. Given the lower budgets, it’s perhaps less financially ambitious, but given the limited appeal to a mass audience – the original Broadway productions ran for an average of just over five months each, with four of them running for only two months – it may be more ambitious. As long as Netflix has positioned itself as the home for passion project dramas that might not get made otherwise, I would expect the remaining eight adaptations to be released under their banner, unless one of the other streaming services (Amazon, Hulu, Apple), makes an offer too attractive to refuse.
It’s true that Viola Davis has already played major roles in both adaptations so far, though so has Josh Brolin in two different Marvel properties, not to mention various actors who played multiple roles in the James Bond series, so there are precedents. The exceptions are far fewer than the rules of the same person portraying the same role across multiple films, and here’s where the Pittsburgh Cycle alludes to such possibilities:
Whether or not it emerges as anything resembling a cinematic universe depends on whether or not the producers extend that continuity to casting, and if so, to what extent. All the recurring characters save one appear in plays set more than 25 years apart, so reinforcing the continuity would come down to either aging or de-aging the same actor for roles in both applicable adaptations, or casting actors with a strong physical resemblance to one another. I can’t think of any African-American father-son or mother-daughter acting pairs who bear a strong enough resemblance to pull this off.
The History
August Wilson’s Pittsburgh Cycle, AKA The August Wilson Century Cycle or The American Century Cycle, is one of the most awarded series of plays. All ten entries were nominated for Best Play at the Tony Awards, with “Fences” winning. Seven were nominated for Drama Desk award for Outstanding New Play, with “Fences” and “The Piano Lesson” winning. And five were nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, again with “Fences” and “The Piano Lesson” winning.
Each play chronicles the African-American experience in a different decade of the twentieth century, though they were not written or produced in chronological order. The order in which they were written and originally produced is as follows:
The order of their original Broadway productions is the same with one exception: “Jitney”, while being the first entry written, was the last to open on Broadway, having been performed regionally and off-Broadway before opening in 2017, more than a decade after Wilson’s death in 2005, and thus being eligible at the Tony Awards for Best Revival of a Play (which it won).
The chronological order of the plays and the years in which each takes place is as follows:
The Players
It’s worth noting that August Wilson plays have been a launching pad for many great African-American actors, including:
Not only that, but established actors have also been starred in August Wilson plays. Those still living include:
I say all of this because of the trend so far of casting actors in the films who have a background with August Wilson’s plays. Denzel Washington & Viola Davis reprised their Tony-winning roles and Stephen McKinley Henderson reprised his Tony-nominated role in “Fences” for the film. Glynn Turman reprised the role of Toledo in “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” that he’d previously played in regional theatre, with Colman Domingo (who directed a regional production of “Seven Guitars”) and Michael Potts (who starred in “Jitney” on Broadway) plus the aforementioned Viola Davis all starring in the film. Samuel L. Jackson, who originated the lead role in “The Piano Lesson” at Yale, returns in a new role almost forty years later.
In addition to George C. Wolfe, other theatre luminaries have been tipped to direct future installments, such as Kenny Leon, who directed “Gem of the Ocean” and “Radio Golf” on Broadway, and Debbie Allen, best known as an actress, dancer, and choreographer but also a prolific TV director with over 100 credits. In a departure from Wolfe and Washington, other names tipped to direct have roots in independent filmmaking, including Oscar-winner Barry Jenkins, potentially slated to direct “The Piano Lesson”, Ava DuVernay, and Ryan Coogler.
It will be a sticking point for some, but it must be said that the Pittsburgh Cycle in general is fairly male dominated. Each play has multiple male supporting roles, while half of them have only one female speaking role. Half or more of the protagonists are males in their 30s, which would benefit any number of up-and-coming African-American actors looking for that first Oscar nomination. There’s John David Washington, whose performance in this year’s “Malcolm and Marie” will extend him some goodwill toward an almost certain nomination for “The Piano Lesson”. The aforementioned Holland and Mackie are likely to be cast at some point. If Ryan Coogler directs one, count on him casting Michael B. Jordan in a significant role.
The Future
We’re two down and eight to go in the series, with “The Piano Lesson” next up and currently set to film this summer. The following is a summary of each play, its adaptability to the screen, and its roles that have been or could be nominated for awards. “The Piano Lesson” excepted since it’s already been confirmed, the order that follows is somewhere between an expectation and a wish list.
“The Piano Lesson”
Award-nominated roles:
Plot: A brother and sister argue over whether or not to sell the family’s heirloom piano. Berniece wants to keep the piano, carved with the faces of their enslaved ancestors, while Boy Willie wants to sell the piano to buy the land in which their ancestors toiled as slaves.
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Drama Desk award for Best Play, and later adapted into a TV movie for Hallmark Hall of Fame, its credentials alone move it near the top for film treatment. It’s one of the more widely recognized titles in the series, and one of the more uplifting.
The play read very stagey, so I struggled to see how it would translate to the screen when I sat down to watch the TV movie. There was a lot of carryover from the stage. August Wilson adapted his own play for the TV movie. Lloyd Richards returned to direct. Four cast members reprised their Broadway roles (Charles S. Dutton, Carl Gordon, Tommy Hollis and Lou Myers). Yet, it was a tight 90 minutes with strong performances all around, appropriately modulated for the camera. It is monologue heavy, so it never completely escapes its stage roots. Likewise, part of the story deals ambiguously in the supernatural, which is easier on stage than in the all-too-literal medium of film, where it can become silly if not done right. Making it fire on all cylinders will be no small feat, which is why I’m very much hoping that the talk of getting Barry Jenkins to direct comes to fruition. I, for one, would never have known that “Moonlight” was based on a play or that “If Beale Street Could Talk” was considered impossible to adapt.
The roles of Boy Willie and Berniece are the only two to be nominated for awards in both incarnations, and they’re absolutely the kind of meaty roles that Oscar nominations are made of.
It’s worth noting that the role of Berniece was in the Featured category at the Tony Awards but Lead at the Emmys. At first, the former seemed correct, with Dutton’s aggressive, gregarious, physically imposing performance dominating the first half. In the second half, Alfre Woodard’s outwardly brittle Berniece gets her own moments to shine. Long story short, Boy Willie owns the first half and Berniece the second, so if the film is closer to the TV movie than the play, Lead placement should be justified.
I was surprised to find that the one supporting role up for awards was that of the rather passive and shy best friend, Lymon. When all the supporting men have monologues, as they do here, then it really does come down to performance. The same can’t usually be said for the Oscars, who award supporting actors and actresses as often as not for having the best lines. Avery is a new preacher who wants to marry Berniece. Uncle Doaker is the peacekeeper, steady and down-to-earth but with an unwavering moral character — the kind of role Morgan Freeman could play in his sleep. The character who stands apart the most is Uncle Wining Boy, a wily, wayward, cavalier and rather irresponsible jazz musician, and undoubtedly the role earmarked for Samuel L. Jackson. Watching the TV movie, I could picture Jackson doing everything that the character does. That said, his character is tangential to the central conflict, and most of his monologues from the play were cut for the TV version. It serves a streamlined story, but if an Oscar campaign for Jackson is part of the plan, some of that material will have to find its way back in there. Barry Jenkins at the helm would be a good sign since he’s directed two Oscar winning performances so far for genuinely supporting roles.
“Joe Turner’s Come and Gone”
Award-nominated roles:
Plot: Released from the eponymous Joe Turner’s chain gang after seven years, Herald Loomis arrives with his 11-year-old daughter at Seth & Bertha Holly’s boardinghouse, trying to find the wife who left while he was in prison.
Along with “Fences” and “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”, “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” is the only other entry in the series to have run more than once on Broadway. The play keeps all of the action happening under one roof, and effectively sets up various characters withholding information from those who would be affected by it, creating and sustaining various tensions all under the same roof. It’s one of the more complex plays, though, taking into account spiritual encounters
Herald Loomis, played by Delroy Lindo in the original production, is the most intense character and has the most to do, though the slow reveal of what makes him tick and the ensemble nature of the play probably consigns the role to supporting (Lindo was nominated for a Tony in the Featured Actor category). Lindo is an actor rarely matched for intensity, so it was easy to picture him in the role; as to who would take it up now, if they’re not averse to using actors from outside of the U.S., perhaps Daniel Kaluuya might be appropriate? I was surprised that the roles of Mattie and Molly, which exist mostly as a contrast to one another, were both nominated for the Tony in the original production. Bynum Walker, a spiritual fixer who “binds people together”, is the most verbose character, with several long monologues; the character’s description in the play brought to mind Stephen McKinley Henderson. The role of Bertha Holly, the warm and patient wife of crotchety Seth Holly, won the Tony in the original production; she has one notable monologue and one or two smaller ones. With Samuel L. Jackson returning in a different part than the one he originated in “The Piano Lesson”, perhaps they’d bring back Angela Bassett, who originated the small but important role of Martha Pentecost, in the larger role of Bertha. Would it be considered too ‘cute’ to have her real-life husband Courtney B. Vance – a Tony nominee himself for the original production of “Fences” – play her on-screen husband here? Knowing Hollywood, we’d be more likely to see a reunion here of Bassett and Laurence Fishburne.
“Jitney”
Award-nominated role:
Plot: Jim Becker fights to keep his unlicensed taxicab business open while his estranged son, recently released from prison after twenty years, tries to reconcile with him. Meanwhile, malicious gossip Turnbo tries to drive a wedge between driver Youngblood and his girlfriend Rena.
The freshest in memory on Broadway and one of the most popular, “Jitney” tops a lot of lists for which adaptation should come next. It has explosive drama and a surprising amount of humor. For me it was a fast read, and given that the few full-length stage versions I’ve seen pop up on YouTube are not much more than an hour, that pace might be true to life.
The Broadway production received only one acting nomination, for the role of Becker, and it’s easy to see why. His character has the world on his shoulders and has the biggest acting moments, centering on his reunion with his son. Fathers and sons have been a mainstay of drama and literature since the beginning, and it’s a relationship subject that resonates with the Academy. The role was nominated in the Lead category at the Tony Awards, but the ensemble is pretty evenly weighted and with Becker absent for parts of the play, it’s hard to say whether it would be pushed to Supporting at the Oscars, the fraud being somewhat arguable. In Supporting, it’s a potentially winning role. Someone else had suggested Delroy Lindo; that would work.
Post Moonlight, André Holland played the role of Youngblood, a young cabbie trying to make a future for himself and his girlfriend. There’s a solid trend of bringing actors back in the roles they played on stage, though four years ago Holland was already 37 playing a character who’s supposed to be in his late 20s. If they don’t bring him back in that role, they could bring, him back in the smaller but no less pivotal role of Becker’s estranged son, Booster.
Incidentally, the play also won a Tony for its incidental music. With its late 70s setting, I’m curious what kind of score we’d be in for.
“Gem of the Ocean”
Award-nominated role:
Plot: Aunt Ester, the 285-year-old “washer of souls”, helps a young man, Citizen Barlow, to find his future and his salvation, while outside, tensions flare at the mill after a worker loses his life over the theft of a bucket of nails.
If I could, I would move this one to the top of the list because it has, arguably, the most cinematic potential. It withholds and reveals character and plot information the way a good screenplay does. It has a protagonist with a redemptive arc. It has a clear villain. While mostly relayed secondhand in the play, the events that drive the plot — a standoff, death, protests, arson, arrest, escape, chasing, shooting — are inherently more cinematic than so many monologues. The centerpiece of the play — a ritual in which Barlow makes a metaphysical journey on the titular ship to the mythical City of Bones — lends itself to a sequence of Barlow physically participating in the ritual inside a house intercut with his mental and spiritual journey on another plane of existence.
On the page, Aunt Ester reads as warm, wise, friendly, gentle, strong, and a little mischievous. Even though her character doesn’t have an arc, she has the monologues and a strong climactic scene. It could be a winner in the right hands. Curiously enough, the only other character that stood out for me, as well as having the next most monologues, was the villain: Caesar Wilks, a brutal, self-justifying and unforgiving African-American police constable who presents as a latter day Javert from “Les Miserables”. For some reason, I pictured Keith David, though he’s arguably too old for the role now. Plus, since Caesar is about 52 and his sister, Aunt Ester’s protege Black Mary, is in her late 20s, they may choose to make his character somewhat younger.
Perhaps because the character is said to be 285 years old, though somewhat ambiguously — it’s implied that Aunt Ester/Ester Tyler is a name passed down through a succession of spiritual high priestesses — I envisioned 96-year-old Cicely Tyson in the role, though sadly it wasn’t meant to be. Many want Phylicia Rashad to reprise her Tony-nominated performance for the film, though they’re more likely to get a film actress. If Oprah Winfrey still wants to win an acting Oscar, this could be the role. All that said, I remember reading an interview where Viola Davis expressed an interest in playing the character (though of course I haven’t been able to find it since), and the role would be a departure from the steely performances for which she’s known. Still, having appeared in the first two, if she’s made her interest known, it’s as good as calling dibs.
“Seven Guitars”
Award-nominated roles:
Plot: Beginning with the funeral of the main character, aspiring blues guitarist Floyd “Schoolboy” Barton, the play traces the events of the last week of his life – when he was released from prison to find he had a hit record and an offer of a recording contract – leading to his untimely demise.
The flashback structure is a well-worn storytelling device, used more often on the screen (big or small) than the stage. The setup here reminds me a little of “American Beauty”: it begins with the main character being dead, for reasons we’re not made privy to, then traces the events leading up to his death, setting up the conflicts that could end tragically and the people in his orbit who might have reason to kill him. Strangely, it also shares a plot element in common with last year’s “Soul”, though given the difference in themes, intention, and target audience, what was met with criticism in “Soul” will likely get a pass here.
It’s interesting that the lead role, originally played by the underrated Keith David, is one of the only principals never to get any awards traction, while four supporting roles received Tony nominations, with the role of Vera – Floyd’s ex-girlfriend who he tries to win back – also netting a Drama Desk nomination and Theatre World Award for Viola Davis and the role of Canewell – Floyd’s friend who’s in love with Vera – netting Ruben Santiago-Hudson a Drama Desk nomination and Tony win. Louise, Vera’s aunt who has a soft spot for Floyd, and Hedley, a crazy old man and one of a long line of apparently mentally impaired characters in Wilson’s oeuvre, were the other two Tony-nominated roles.
“King Hedley II”
Award-nominated roles:
Plot: At the height of the Reaganomics years, Hedley, recently released from prison, sells stolen refrigerators to raise the money to open his own video store, as his mother Ruby’s unwholesome old flame, Elmore, returns.
If you think the title of this decades-later spin-off of “Seven Guitars” sounds like a Shakespearean tragedy, you’d be correct. “King Hedley II” is most noted for being the bleakest of the ten plays and for the fiery monologue that won Viola Davis her first Tony award:
This entry also holds the distinction of being the only one to receive Tony nominations in each of the four acting categories. If it were to repeat that feat at the Oscars, it would almost certainly receive a Best Picture nomination by default, and Director, too. But given the bleakness of the story, it would likely have to settle for a Best Supporting Actress win, both as a nod to the film itself and because it’s got the famous monologue that’s the stuff awards are made of.
“Radio Golf”
Award-nominated roles:
Plot: Ivy League educated Harmond Wilks supports a gentrification project in pursuit of his ambition to become Pittsburgh’s first black mayor, but encounters local resistance when the plan includes demolishing Aunt Ester’s house.
This was the last of the ten plays to be written, following “Gem of the Ocean”, and the last chronologically. Both this and “Gem of the Ocean” are in some ways a little more uplifting than most entries, which doesn’t earn the respect of highbrow critics but does tend to earn the affection of the public and the AMPAS. It also has probably the clearest main character arc, following a protagonist who struggles to figure out the right thing to do, and what price he’s willing to pay to do it. He’s not quite the Capra-esque everyman that Will Smith strives to play, but it comes the closest, plus he’s an appropriate age for the part, so if he wanted to be involved at all in one of these adaptations, it would be this one.
Curiously, the only roles that netted awards love are the two characters who represent one side of that argument: Sterling (the same character from “Two Trains Running”) and Old Joe, who want to save Aunt Ester’s house. That said, the hero caught between a rock and a hard place and the wife who’s sacrificed too much for too long to turn back should offer enough material for the actors to at least be considered in their respective categories.
“Two Trains Running”
Award-nominated roles:
Plot: With his restaurant about to be bought out and demolished, Memphis Lee fights City Hall for a fair price. Meanwhile, Sterling Johnson, just out of jail for bank robbery, returns to the neighborhood to try and make a life for himself.
As Pulitzer Prize nominee, the interest level would be enough to keep this one from the bottom. As a film adaptation to be positioned for awards, it would struggle. If the maxim of film is “show, don’t tell”, this drama, more than even the others, exemplifies telling rather than showing. There are a few plot threads that run throughout, with the inciting incidents nearly all taking place outside of the restaurant and relayed back at the restaurant secondhand. This offers the opportunity to “open up” the play by showing the events firsthand – Memphis at City Hall, a wake and funeral for local celebrity ‘Prophet Samuel’, rallies, a confrontation, and a break-in or two. At the same time, this entry is the least plot-driven in the series, with the setting serving as a hub where characters come to relay information. Perhaps with the play set against the backdrop of the rising Black Power Movement in the late 60s, I was expecting something more explosive and less meditative.
The ensemble is pretty equal, and nearly every character has a monologue or two save for Hambone and, unfortunately, Risa, the lone female character. I was surprised to find the role of Risa was Tony-nominated since the character is largely reactive. We meet her some time after a dramatic act of self-harm, implying a traumatic backstory that never arrives. Older regular Holloway gets the longest monologues, waxing philosophical throughout, and resulted in a Tony nomination for the late Roscoe Lee Browne. Laurence Fishburne won a Featured Actor Tony as Sterling, a man just out of jail for bank robbery who becomes interested in the Black Power movement. He’s frank and unconventional, leading other characters to think he’s off. His part is monologue light compared to Holloway and Memphis, the latter of whom is ostensibly the lead but would likely falter if pushed in the Lead category. Still, as a character who stands out from the others, perhaps it could carry over in the form of a Supporting Actor Oscar nomination. If not, then figure on the actor playing either Holloway or Memphis getting a Supporting nomination as a nod to the cast and possibly said actor’s career. Perhaps this is where Ernie Hudson or Keith David could be included in the films?
One other thing: two characters in this play visit Aunt Ester, their encounters relayed secondhand. If the creative powers decide to depict this firsthand, they would have to decide whether to cast the same actress in “Gem of the Ocean”, thereby confirming that it’s the same character, or cast someone else, confirming that the name is passed down to different individuals.
Closing Thoughts
Between theatre, film, music, and television, the film industry lags the furthest behind in terms of diversity. From #OscarsSoWhite to this year’s the Best Picture, Drama nominees at the Golden Globes, there’s still a long way to go. With the Oscar success of “Fences” and the likely success of “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”, this project promises to be a means of seeing more people of color recognized in the film industry, from up-and-comers to celebrated industry veterans, theatre pros to rising filmmakers.
Streaming has made dramas more accessible to audiences who wouldn’t venture out to their local movie theater and pay to see something that challenges them. Hopefully many more will come to appreciate not only the creative talents of those involved in bringing Wilson’s work to the screen, but also to appreciate the work of Wilson himself and the gift that he gave us in The Pittsburgh Cycle.
Links
https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/august-wilson-4362
‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’ Brings August Wilson To The Screen With Class | KPBS
August Wilson’s Uncompromising Vision “For Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” | The New Republic
AWMC | The Plays (huntingtontheatre.org)
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