Community College of Baltimore County Continues American Masters Homage with JOE TURNER'S COME AND GONE

Performing Arts at the Community College of Baltimore County continues its tribute to American Masters with August Wilson's iconic Joe Turner's Come and Gone November 1-5 in the Center for the Arts Theatre at CCBC Catonsville, 800 South Rolling Road. Performances will be held:

· 11:10 a.m., Thursday, Nov. 1.

· 7 p.m., Friday and Saturday, Nov. 2 and 3

· 3 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 4 (ASL interpreted for the deaf and hard-of-hearing)

· 10 a.m., Monday, Nov.

Tickets ($10 general admission, $5 for students, seniors and CCBC faculty and staff and free for currently enrolled CCBC students with IDs) are available from the CCBC Box Office at 443-840-ARTS (2787) or at the door one hour prior to the performances.

One of the country's most recognized playwrights, August Wilson emerged as the chronicler of the African-American experience with his cycle of Century Plays - one play set in each decade of the twentieth century. Plays like Fences, The Piano Lesson, and Jitney won Wilson a Tony, multiple Pulitzers and Drama Desk awards. While it was less commercially successful, Wilson considered Joe Turner's Come and Gone to be his favorite. "After I wrote it, I said to myself: 'If I die tomorrow, I have fulfilled myself as an artist.'"

Joe Turner's Come and Gone takes place in 1911 in a Pittsburgh boarding house run by Seth and Bertha Holley (Ja'min Williams and Shaterra Hatchett). Their boarders include Bynum (Devin Githara-Pipkin) a "conjure man," and Jeremy (Bryce Williams) a young man who loves guitar music and women. The arrival of Herald Loomis (Isaiah Evans) and his daughter Zonia (Jamaya Saddler) unsettles the house and its inhabitants as they search for Zonia's mother and Herald's wife Martha (Deneen Walker). The other characters whose lives intersect with the boarders include Mattie (Erin Johnson), Molly (Tesey Johnson), Rutherford Selig (Daniel Poletynski) and Reuben (Caiden Scruggs).

CCBC's production of Joe Turner's Come and Gone is directed by Donald Owens, artistic director of Baltimore's Arena Players, the oldest continuously operating African-American community theatre in the United States. Set and Lighting Design are provided by G. Maurice "Moe" Conn, with costuming by James J. Fasching. CCBC student Everett Simkins provides the sound design, with stage management by Carli White.

PHOTO CREDIT: Katie Simmons Barth

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