Gem of the Ocean Closes Hartford Stage's MainStage Season

Pulitzer Prize-winning Playwright August Wilson's Gem of the Ocean will be open May 12 at Hartford Stage, the final play in the Tony Award-winning theatre's 47th season. Associate Artistic Director Hana S. Sharif (Gee's Bend) directs a talented cast of seven actors in this acclaimed drama. The production runs at Hartford Stage through June 5.

Set in 1904, Gem of the Ocean is the story of a spiritually tormented young man is the first installment of Wilson's decade-by-decade, ten-play chronicle of the 20th century, The Pittsburgh Cycle. Citizen Barlow comes to the home of a former slave and "soul cleanser," Aunt Ester, who sets him off on a spiritual journey to find a city in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. On his way to the mythic City of Bones, he makes startling discoveries about guilt, duty, and redemption. Principal Underwriter for Gem of the Ocean is United Technologies. Production Sponsor is Robinson & Cole. Support for Hartford Stage productions is provided by The Greater Hartford Arts Council and The Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism.

The cast of Gem of the Ocean consists of seven talented actors. Joniece Abbot-Pratt is making her Hartford Stage debut in the role of Black Mary. She has been seen Off-Broadway in The Good Negro and has numerous regional theatre credits. Christopher McHale (Rutherford Selig) was seen earlier this season at Hartford Stage in Antony & Cleopatra. His Broadway credits include Piaf, The Iceman Cometh, Execution of Justice, Julius Caesar, and King Lear and Joe Turner's Come and Gone at Lincoln Center. Novella Nelson plays the central role of Aunt Ester. She has been seen at Hartford Stage in Oedipus, Camino Real, and Digging Eleven and she directed Bailey's Café. Broadway work includes Having Our Say, Purlie, Caesar and Cleopatra, and Hello, Dolly! She works frequently in regional theatre and television. Ernest Perry, Jr. plays Eli. He was previously seen at Hartford Stage in Dutchman. Perry is a 30-year resident actor at the Goodman Theatre and has appeared on Broadway in Death and the King's Horseman. Roger Robinson (Solly Two Kings) is a 2009 Tony Award winner for his work in Joe Turner's Come and Gone. Other Broadway credits include , Drowning Crow, The Iceman Cometh, Amen Corner-The Musical, Ain't Supposed to Die a Natural Death, The Miser, Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie? He also has numerous Off-Broadway, regional, and television credits. He is making his Hartford Stage debut. Ray Anthony Thomas (Caesar) returns to Hartford Stage, having appeared in Fences, Digging Eleven, Spunk, and A Streetcar Named Desire. He has appeared on Broadway in Race, works frequently Off-Broadway, regionally, and in film, and is an Obie Award winner for his work in Volunteer Man. Stephen Tyrone Williams plays Citizen Barlow in his Hartford Stage MainStage debut. He has worked extensively at theatres around the country and has numerous film and television credits.

August Wilson's ten-play cycle stands as one of the most ambitious and remarkable feats of American playwriting. The plays-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-share stories, characters and themes as they chronicle the heritage and experience of African-Americans, decade-by-decade, over the 20th century.

Wilson began as a poet, though his connections with the theatre began as early as 1968 when he co-founded the Black Horizons theatre company. In 1978 he moved to St. Paul, Minnesota, and began playwriting in earnest. His early works include the one-act plays The Janitor, Recycle, The Coldest Day of the Year, Malcolm X, The Homecoming, and the musical satire Black Bart and the Sacred Hills. In 1980, he won a Jerome Fellowship given by the Playwrights Center in Minneapolis for his play Jitney. After submitting several plays to the National Playwrights Conference of the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom was chosen for the 1982 Conference. It was directed by Lloyd Richards at the O'Neill, and then in full production in its premiere at Yale Repertory Theatre and then Broadway. Wilson and Richards collaborated on six plays, moving them from readings to Broadway. Wilson's plays have been produced at regional theatres across the country and all over the world, as well as on Broadway. His work garnered many awards, including Pulitzer Prizes for Fences (1987); and for The Piano Lesson (1990); a Tony Award for Fences; Great Britain's Olivier Award for Jitney; as well as seven New York Drama Critics Circle Awards for Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Fences, Joe Turner's Come and Gone, The Piano Lesson, Two Trains Running, Seven Guitars, and Jitney. The American theatre community mourned its great loss when Wilson succumbed to cancer in 2005 at the age of 60, just months after completing Radio Golf, the final play of the cycle. On October 16, 2005, Broadway renamed the theatre located at 245 West 52nd Street the August Wilson Theatre.

Gem of the Ocean is directed by Hana S. Sharif, who currently serves as Hartford Stage's Associate Artistic Director. Sharif is the co-founder of Nasir Productions, a theatre dedicated to the exploration of contemporary voices experimenting with traditional structure. She has brought theatre to underserved communities and has directed and produced shows in Atlanta, Houston, and Hartford, including the world premieres of Fragility's Decline, Next Stop Africa, and The Drum. She was a recipient of the TCG New Generations mentorship at Hartford Stage. Her directorial work at Hartford Stage includes the readings of Elliot, A Soldier's Fugue, Barrio ABC's, Tuesday Night, Game/Over, Dreaming in Cuban, and 365 Days/365 Plays; she served as assistant director on Fences and A Raisin in the Sun. Sharif was the 2009-2010 Aetna New Voices Fellow at Hartford Stage. She received a B.A from Spelman College and an M.F.A. from the University of Houston.

Gem of the Oceanfeatures scenic design by Scott Bradley (Gee's Bend, The Bluest Eye, Fences, A Raisin in the Sun, among others) and costumes by Ilona Somogyi (Tom Sawyer, Noises Off!, A Midsummer Night's Dream); lighting by Lap Chi Chu (Gee's Bend, Fences); and sound design by Broken Chord Collective (Snow Falling on Cedars, Gee's Bend, Tom Sawyer). Wig design is by Charles LaPointe (Tom Sawyer, Gee's Bend, Noises Off!, A Midsummer Night's Dream). Craig Handel (The 39 Steps) is the fight choreographer.

Tickets for Gem of the Ocean are $23 to $69. A limited number of $10 "Ten Spot" tickets are also available for all performances, making Hartford Stage among the most affordable entertainment options in Connecticut. Discounts are available for groups of ten or more by calling 860-520-7244. Tickets for children and students are $10 off the full price when purchased in advance. Students of Capital Community College may purchase one $10 ticket to Gem of the Ocean upon presentation of their student ID at the Hartford Stage box office. All discount programs are subject to availability and cannot combined with other offers. Hartford Stage has wheelchair accessible seating, assistive listening devices and other amenities. For more information, please call the Hartford Stage box office. Hartford Stage is located at 50 Church Street in downtown Hartford with parking located in the MAT Garage, directly adjacent to the theatre. The theatre is accessible from I-84 and I-91.

Key Dates and Information
Tickets for Gem of the Ocean are on sale now and can be purchased by calling 860-527-5151 or by visiting hartfordstage.org.
Low-priced preview performances begin May 12 and run through May 19.
Press opening for Gem of the Ocean is Wednesday, May 18 at 7:30 p.m.
The production runs through June 5. Evening performances are weeknights (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday) at 7:30 p.m. and weekends (Friday and Saturday) at 8:00 p.m. Matinee performances are Sundays and selected Wednesdays and Saturdays at 2:00 p.m. For a more specific schedule of performances, call the Hartford Stage box office at 860-527-5151 or visit hartfordstage.org.
The Lunchtime FreeView for Gem of the Ocean, a brief scene from the play followed by and informative and lively discussion with members of the cast and artistic staff, will be held at noon on Thursday, May 26.
The Pay What You CanSaturday matinee performance of Gem of the Oceanwill be Saturday, May 21 at 2:00 p.m. Pay What You Cantickets are available two hours before the performance in person at the box office only.
Open Captioned performances of Gem of the Ocean will take place on Sunday, May 29 at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
The Audio Described performance of Gem of the Ocean will be Sunday, June 4 at 2:00 p.m.

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