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Chapter 22 - Directing Wilson

A Roundtable Conversation with Denise Chapman, TammyRa’ Jackson, Ron O. J. Parson, Mark Clayton Southers, Timothy Douglas, Seret Scott, and Bartlett Sher

from Part III - Productions and Collaborations

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 June 2025

By
DeRon S. Williams
Edited by
Khalid Y. Long  and
Isaiah Matthew Wooden
Khalid Y. Long
Affiliation:
Howard University, Washington DC
Isaiah Matthew Wooden
Affiliation:
Swarthmore College, Pennsylvania
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Summary

This chapter convenes seven notable directors – Denise Chapman, TammyRa’ Jackson, Ron O.J. Parson, Mark Clayton Southers, Timothy Douglas, Seret Scott, and Bartlett Sher – who have collectively directed nearly eighty productions of Wilson’s works. The conversation features these artists reflecting on their directing approach, Wilson’s grounding in American theatre, and the challenges of exploring the worlds Wilson creates.

Keywords

August WilsonAmerican Century CycleDirectingBroadwayDenise ChapmanTammyRa’JacksonRon O.J. ParsonMark Clayton SouthersTimothy DouglasSeret ScottBartlett Sher
Type
Chapter
Information
August Wilson in Context , pp. 273 - 282
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2025

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References

Further Reading

Alvarado, Pedro E., “Pittsburgh Piety: A Century of Symbolism,” in The Routledge Companion to African American Theatre and Performance, eds., Perkins, Kathy A., Richards, Sandra L., Craft, Renée Alexander, and DeFrantz, Thomas F. (London: Routledge, 2019), 165–68.Google Scholar
Bryer, Jackson R. and Hartig, Mary C., eds., Conversations with August Wilson (Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2006).Google Scholar
Elam, Harry J., Jr., “August Wilson’s Women,” in May All Your Fences Have Gates, ed. Nadel, Alan (Chicago: University of Iowa Press, 1993), 165–182.Google Scholar
Graham Nesmith, N., and Richards, Lloyd, “Lloyd Richards: Reminiscence of a Theatre Life and Beyond,” African American Review 39, no. 3 (2005): 281–298.Google Scholar
Rudolph, Amanda M., “Images of African Traditional Religions and Christianity in ‘Joe Turner’s Come and Gone’ and ‘The Piano Lesson’,” Journal of Black Studies 33, no. 5 (2003): 562–575.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shannon, Sandra G., “The Fences They Build: August Wilson’s Depiction of African-American Women,” Obsidian II 6, no. 2 (1991): 1–17.Google Scholar
Wilson, August, “I Want a Black Director,” in May All Your Fences Have Gates, ed. Nadel, Alan (Chicago: University of Iowa Press, 1993), 200–204.Google Scholar

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