![]() ![]() ![]() Wilson reintroduces the minor supporting character Rutherford Selig (Raynor Scheine), a local peddler who first appeared as the "People Finder" in Joe Turner's Come and Gone, and formally introduces Aunt Ester (Greta Oglesby), a staple offstage character whose name and spiritual guidance are as common to Wilson's renditions of the Hill District as blues tunes and field hollers. Wilson returns to the Hill District of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in Gem of the Ocean.The African American community is disturbed by the empty promises of emancipation and confronts the stakes of freedom, justice, and redemption. Premiering at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago and directed by Marion McClinton, Gem of the Ocean is the ground on which Wilson's other plays now stand. Moreover, its greatest significance is the fact that it is set in 1904, thus establishing a solid point of departure for Wilson's cycle of plays. If one considers the cultural signifiers, historical allusions, and cast of characters that richly texturize Wilson's most renowned works, then Gem of the Ocean definitely distinguishes itself as an "August Wilson" play. With his ninth play, Gem of the Ocean, August Wilson is one play away from completing his decade-by-decade chronicle of the African American experience in the twentieth century. ![]() ![]() In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content: ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |