Ford's Theatre Announces Cast of FENCES

Ford's Theatre Society announced full casting and the design team for August Wilson's Fences, directed by Timothy Douglas- one of the foremost interpreters of Wilson's work. The production features Craig Wallace (A Christmas Carol, Death of a Salesman) and Erika Rose (Mosaic Theater Company's Queens Girl in Africa, Woolly Mammoth's An Octoroon) in the roles of Troy and Rose Maxson. Performances of this powerful drama about family, duty and betrayal are September 27 to October 27, 2019, at historic Ford's Theatre. A media performance is scheduled for October 2, 2019 at 7:00 p.m.

Wallace and Rose are joined by actors Doug Brown (Jim Bono), KenYatta Rogers (Lyons Maxson), Jefferson A. Russell (Gabriel Maxson),Justin Weaks (Cory Maxson), Janiyah Lucas and Mecca Rogers (Raynell Maxson, actors rotate in the role).

Tickets for August Wilson's Fences are now on sale and range from $17 to $72. Discounts are available for groups, senior citizens, military personnel and those younger than age 35. The production is recommended for ages 14 and older.

Set in segregated 1957 Pittsburgh, Fences depicts the life of Troy Maxson, a former Negro League baseball star now scraping by as a sanitation worker. A towering figure facing thwarted aspirations, Troy attempts to assert control in his life through his relationships with his wife and son. But even as he takes responsibility for their safety and well-being, he betrays them each in ways that will forever alter their lives. Part of August Wilson's 10-play Century Cycle, Fences explores the walls we build around ourselves and our loved ones, while also illuminating one family's struggles in a racist society.

"My directing career has afforded me my very own personal and ongoing August Wilson Festival, having directed nine of the 10 plays from Wilson's opus multiple times. The consistent revisiting of these plays continues to affirm for me their infinite reservoir of deeper meanings," says director Timothy Douglas. "With this Ford's production of Fences, I am primarily focused on harnessing those deeper meanings so that the play is in relevant dialogue with our current trials and tribulations. I also want to tease out even more of the larger-than-life parallels between Troy Maxson and the playwright himself."

The Ford's Theatre 2019-2020 season is sponsored by Chevron. August Wilson's Fences is also made possible by the following Underwriters: The Home Depot, Oshkosh Corporation.

Tickets may be purchased in advance at www.fords.org.

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