August Wilson's Entire 10-Play Century Cycle Now Available In Full To Stream
By: Pat Cerasaro Jul. 28, 2015
Relive the epic cycle by August Wilson!
Live recordings of the entire century cycle comprised of 10 plays by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson is now available to hear in full, now through August 26.
Of note, plays included in the cycle are 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.
Participants include frequent Wilson collaborators Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Phylicia Rashad and Stephen McKinley Henderson in addition to performances by Chadwick Boseman, S. Epatha Merkerson, Taraji P. Henson, Clarke Peters, Ebony Jo-Ann, Chuck Cooper, Alexis Holt, Leslie Uggams and more.
Additionally, check out my InDepth InterView with Ruben Santiago-Hudson from earlier this year for more on August Wilson, available here.
The official description of the August Wilson Greenspace century cycle is as follows: "ugust Wilson's celebrated 10-play cycle captures 100 years of African American life during each decade of the 20th century. The cycle begins in the early 1900s, when wounds from slavery and the Civil War were still fresh, and closes in the 1990s, when even a large and increasingly influential black middle class would not escape persistent racial tensions.
In the fall of 2013, close to 100 theater artists from across the globe convened at The Greene Space at WNYC in Lower Manhattan to record, for the very first time, all 10 plays in August Wilson's American Century Cycle - a magnum opus in the American theater. Dr. Indira Etwaroo, Executive Producer, in partnership with the August Wilson Estate, led by Constanza Romero, Wilson's widow, brought together many longtime Wilson collaborators and interpreters, including Tony Award-winner Ruben Santiago-Hudson, the project's Artistic Director, and Associate Director and Tony Award-nominee Stephen McKinley Henderson. Audio will only be available through August 26, 2015."
More information on the August Wilson American Century Cycle is available at the official site here.
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