BWW Reviews: THE PIANO LESSON at McCarter is a Must-See!

From the moment you walk into McCarter's Berlind Theatre and see Neil Patel's set, the living area of the Charles family nestled within an artistic rendition of the tall buildings of Pittsburgh's Hill District circa 1936, you know something exciting is about to happen. There's a spark in the shape of the landscape that rolls into a fire when Boy Willie (Stephen Tyrone Williams) comes to the door, up from Mississippi with a truck load of watermelon and a plan to sell the family's cherished piano.

That piano has a story of its own, not only in the etchings carved on its panels, but it how it came into the Charles family possession. The fight over what this legacy means to the family's future is what drives this drama, seamlessly portrayed in a production that holds the audience in its grasp well after it ends, casting the illuminating questions of August Wilson's 1990 Pulitzer Prize winning drama into contemporary context.

McCarter Artistic Director, Emily Mann describes the play's director, Jade King Carroll as an "astute and sensitive director who elicits extraordinary performances from her actors." And "extraordinary" is the word that best describes the performances that vibrate with a deep and honest harmony, not only as fully realized characters but as a family, with all the unspoken history, pain, and love that runs beneath.

The cast includes Tony Award-winner Cleavant Derricks (Dreamgirls); Tony Award-nominee John Earl Jelks (August Wilson's Radio Golf); Stephen Tyrone Williams (Spike Lee's Da Sweet Blood of Jesus); David Pegram (B'Way's War Horse); Shannon Janee Antalan (B'way's Caroline, Or Change); Owiso Odera (The Roundabout's Overwhelming), and Miriam A. Hyman. Rounding out the cast is Frances Brown, an eleven year-old Plainsboro native making her McCarter debut.

McCarter Theatre's production of THE PIANO LESSON runs until February 7. It is a lesson in brilliance you don't want to miss.

August Wilson's The Piano Lesson runs Jan. 8 - Feb. 7 on the Berlind Stage.

Tickets are available now at the McCarter Box Office, online at www.mccarter.org or by phone at 609-258-2787.

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