BWW EXCLUSIVE: Ruben Santiago-Hudson Talks Fine Arts Center Gala, New TV Series PUBLIC MORALS, Williamstown Premiere Of PARADISE BLUE & More

By: Pat Cerasaro May. 06, 2015

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Today we are talking to a Tony Award-winning actor, playwright and director all about his many current and upcoming endeavors, the charismatic and versatile Ruben Santiago-Hudson. Besides working on both sides of the footlights as an actor and director, Hudson also has several film and television projects in the ether and recently released - among them, 2015 Academy Award-winning film SELMA, a new TNT TV series executive produced by Stephen Spielberg titled PUBLIC MORALS, a brand new follow-up to his acclaimed multi-award-winning play LACKAWANNA BLUES, new directing gigs and more. Most importantly, Hudson shares details about presenting a special award to Phylicia Rashad at the Global Concepts Charter High School's Ruben Santiago-Hudson Fine Arts Center later this week and what the first-ever Legacy Award signifies. Furthermore, Hudson reflects on his iconic collaborations with legendary playwright August Wilson and his ongoing work in keeping the legacy of Wilson's plays alive through star-studded live performances of his many notable properties, including 2013's unprecedented presentation of all 10 plays in Wilson's canonical century cycle, all of which are currently scheduled for airings on NPR and soon available online in full. All of that and much, much more in this chat with a highly respected multimedia notable!

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More information on the Global Concepts Charter High School's gala event at the Ruben Santiago-Hudson Fine Arts Center honoring Phylicia Rashad with the Legacy Award on May 8 is available at the official site here.
Recounting the first time he worked with Phylicia Rashad and his relationship with the Broadway and Hollywood icon, Hudson remembers, "I can't quite remember the first time that I actually met Phylicia, but the first time that we worked together was in GEM OF THE OCEAN on Broadway. We are giving her the very first Legacy Award this year at the Ruben Santiago-Hudson Fine Arts Center and that bears my name as well as my passion and compassion for the arts in teaching and introducing kids to the transformative power of the arts - I wanted to give them a safe place to go and express themselves away from the violence, police cross-hairs, gang-banging and crime of the streets. I want them to have a place to express themselves as loudly and violently and passionately and joyously as they possibly can, so when the Global Concepts Charter High School approached me because they wanted to introduce the arts into their curriculum and they wanted somebody that had enough influence who could give them a name and help them raise the money to do it, we met and they courted me for a while and I really loved their mission and the people behind it - they had extraordinary integrity and passion, I thought. So, I joined them and we joined forces to start this arts center that is connected to the high school. It is so beautiful - a 122-seat state of the art theater, dance studio, editing lab, arts gallery; it's a gorgeous little place and I am so proud of it. So, when I told Phylicia about it, she said, 'If I can ever do anything, just let me know,' and, so, I said, 'I'm going to honor you this year with my first Legacy Award.' Each year I plan to give an award to somebody who, by their example and their integrity, sets the bar for all of us. So, Phylicia is the first to receive the Legacy Award and I am absolutely delighted that she will be the very first."

So, could a potential re-teaming with Rashad be in the works? Hudson opines, "As always, it would be a damn honor to work onstage or on TV or film with Phylicia. I consider her like my sister and I always look forward to sharing a work of art together with her. I am sure down the line we will be doing some things together. I have to say that I also admire her daughter, Condola, who I did STICK FLY together with on Broadway a few years ago. So, you know, it's all in the family!"
Discussing the August Wilson cycle and his initiative to make them all available to as wide an audience as possible, Hudson relates, "I recorded all 10 of the plays two years ago and we are going to present them this year on NPR and then put them online. We are kicking off with JOE TURNER'S COME AND GONE and we will then make each of the 10 plays accessible online after that. So, in about six months you'll be able to listen to the complete performances of all 10 plays. They were all performed in front of live audiences, so you get the reactions and the energy from that, too. We want to archive them in certain arts institutions, as well - in their entirety - and so that's what we're also doing right now. We originally recorded all 10 plays at the Greene Space - we hired 64 actors from 30 different places who were all August Wilson actors and many of whom knew August themselves, along with a few who were new to the world of August Wilson who were very passionate about his work like Taraji P. Henson and Chadwick Boseman. What's most important to me is the integrity of the work, August's vision and the celebration of the culture and the people in these plays."

Offering up new details on his forthcoming TV series PUBLIC MORALS, Hudson says, "The new show I am contracted to is PUBLIC MORALS with Ed Burns, produced by Steven Spielberg, and that comes out August 17. It's a 10 episode first season and they are going to start airing them then. We are hoping it is successful so we can start working on a second season soon, too - it's been a real blessing to work on the series so far. It's an excellent show and I am very proud to be a part of it. It's set in 1968 in a police department, public morals division, so we handle gambling, drugs, strip joints and prostitution - anything that is not deemed publicly moral, we handle it. We handle a lot of dirty things and sometimes our hands get dirty, too, so we have to be careful - that's basically what PUBLIC MORALS is all about."

Reflecting on the Academy Award-winning SELMA, Hudson shares, "I loved being with some of my old theatre chums on SELMA - Lorraine Toussaint, Andre Holland, Colman Domingo, Wendell Pierce; many of my New York theatre chums were involved, so we had a dynamite time working together. I got to meet some other wonderful actors who I had known and hadn't had the opportunity to work with on that, too, so that was a lot of fun. And, Ava DuVernay was just great to work with - she is a very talented director and I hope I can work with her again in the future."
As for what's next, Hudson offers, "I am doing a world premiere at Williamstown later this year. It's called PARADISE BLUE, Dominique Morisseau's new play, and it stars Blair Underwood. I will be directing it and I am very much looking forward to working with Dominique and Blair and the rest of the team on it. It's a great play."

Photo Credits: Walter McBride, TNT, etc.

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