AUGUST WILSON AND THE CENTURY CYCLE
MONDAY, February 23, 2009, 6:30 p.m.
$12 members
$15 students and teachers
$20 non-members.
Reservations Required. Please call 215.409.6700 or order online.
Annenberg Center for Education and Outreach
Kirby Auditorium
National Constitution Center
Independence Mall
525 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA
Special ticket times for the America I AM: The African American Imprint are available. More information is below.
August Wilson is one of the most influential and successful African American playwrights of the twentieth century. According to the New York Times, August Wilson's Century Cycle is "one of the most ambitious dramatic projects ever undertaken." In it, Wilson dramatizes the African American experience and heritage of the twentieth century. A two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Wilson's plays have been produced all over the world and have brought black theater to the mainstream American stage.
With the help of an American theater scholar, an historian, and professional actors, this program will explore and celebrate Wilson’s work in relationship to the American theater and to the social, political and historical experience of African Americans. The evening will feature dramatic readings from some of Wilson's most famous works performed by a company of talented actors. Walter Dallas moderates the conversation.
Walter Dallas has worked on and off-Broadway, in England, Africa, France, Russia, and at numerous major American theatres. A frequent collaborator with Pulitzer Prize winner playwright August Wilson, he spoke at Wilson’s memorial tribute in 2006. In 1983 he created the University of the Arts’ School of Theatre Arts and served as its Director for ten years. From 1992 to 2008, he served as Artistic Director of Philadelphia’s award-winning Freedom Theatre. Dallas is best known for his productions of Lazarus, Unstoned, Willie Lobo/Manchild, Black Nativity, Sparkle, Black Picture Show, Seven Guitars, The Old Settler, Cooley High, and Asafohene. In spring, 2009, he will direct Tanya Barfield's Blue Door for the African Continuum Theatre Company in Washington, DC. A graduate of Morehouse College and the Yale School of Drama, with additional studies at Harvard Divinity School and the University of Ghana, Dallas recently joined the Theatre Department of the University of Maryland for a five-year tenure as Senior Artist-in-Residence.
Nathaniel Norment, Jr. is chair and associate professor of African American Studies at Temple University where he teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in African American Studies and African American literature and culture. He is the co-director of The Center for African American Research and Public Policy at Temple whose research focuses on four areas affecting African Americans: criminal justice, economic development, education and health. He is the editor and author of several books, including the forthcoming title, The Addison Gayle, Jr. Reader.
Parking for this event is available for $7.00 at the National Constitution Center garage located at the rear of the building on Race Street between 5th and 6th Streets. Parking availability is subject to change, so please call the ConstitutionCenter on the day of the program or check our web site for more information. Please also see our directions by public transportation.
Please note: Member-priced tickets can only be purchased by calling our call center. Online tickets are only available for the student and non-member rates.
Special: Buy a ticket for $5.50 to see America I AM: The African American Imprint. Ticket holders of the August Wilson program may view the exhibition with a specially purchased ticket for the exhibition between 5:00-6:20 p.m. on February 23rd (request either the 5:00 or 5:30 p.m. windows when you call to buy your ticket). These special tickets can only be ordered by calling our call center. View this inspiring exhibition before the program!
For reservations please call 215.409.6700 or order online. Programs at the National Constitution Center begin promptly and latecomers may not be admitted to the program. Please note that this program is subject to change.
The National Constitution Center is hosting the world debut of America I AM: The African American Imprint, celebrating nearly 500 years of African American contributions to this country. The exhibition presents a historical continuum of pivotal moments in courage, conviction, and creativity that solidifies the undeniable imprint of African Americans across the nation and around the world. Featuring more than 200 artifacts culled from every period of U.S. history, the exhibit will include objects, texts, religion, music, narration, and media. An interactive component of the exhibition will allow visitors to leave their own video “imprints,” and this collection will grow throughout the life of the exhibition with the potential to become the largest recorded oral history project in U.S. history. The exhibition is developed in partnership with Tavis Smiley, and organized by Cincinnati Museum Center and Arts and Exhibitions International (AEI).