Ruben Santiago-Hudson. Photo by Lia Chang
Manhattan Theatre Club (Artistic Director Lynne Meadow and Executive Producer Barry Grove) is presenting the Broadway debut of August Wilson’s Jitney, directed by Tony Award winner Ruben Santiago-Hudson (The Piano Lesson, Seven Guitars, Gem of the Ocean).
August Wilson’s Jitney will begin previews Wednesday, December 28 ahead of a Thursday, January 19 opening night at MTC’s Samuel J. Friedman Theatre (261 West 47th Street). Click here for tickets and more information.
“This is a dream come true for me,” said Santiago-Hudson. “11 years I’ve been working to make this happen and now beginning on December 28th ..It’s on! Blessed. Grateful.”
The ensemble of nine cast members featuring seven veterans of August Wilson plays met the press at the MTC Rehearsal Studios in New York City on November 29, 2016.
Ray Anthony Thomas, Keith Randolph Smith, Michael Potts, Brandon Dirden, John Douglas Thompson, Carra Patterson, André Holland, Anthony Chisholm, Harvy Blanks and Ruben Santiago-Hudson. Photo by Lia Chang
The cast features Harvy Blanks (Jitney in WNYC’s Greene Space American Century Cycle recording, Two Trains Running at Two River Theater Company) as “Shealy;” Tony Award nominee Anthony Chisholm (Radio Golf, Gem of the Ocean, Two Trains Running, Jitney at Second Stage) as “Fielding,” Obie and Theatre World Award winner Brandon Dirden (The Piano Lesson, Clybourne Park, “The Americans”) as “Booster;” André Holland (Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, Moonlight,”American Horror Story”) as “Youngblood;” Carra Patterson (Significant Other, Wit, Straight Outta Compton) as “Rena,” Michael Potts (The Book of Mormon, Aubergine) as “Turnbo;” Keith Randolph Smith (Fences, King Hedley II) as “Doub;” Ray Anthony Thomas (Jitney and Fences in WNYC’s Greene Space American Century Cycle recordings, Between Riverside and Crazy) as “Philmore;” and Drama Desk Award winner John Douglas Thompson (Joe Turner’s Come and Gone at the Mark Taper Forum, Satchmo at the Waldorf) as “Becker.”
Only one of the ten plays in two-time Pulitzer Prize winner August Wilson’s masterful The American Century Cycle has never been seen on Broadway – until now. Set in the early 1970s, this richly textured piece follows a group of men trying to eke out a living by driving unlicensed cabs, or Jitneys. When the city threatens to board up the business and the boss’ son returns from prison, tempers flare, potent secrets are revealed and the fragile threads binding these people together may come undone at last. MTC has a long history of co-producing works by this legendary playwright (King Hedley II, Seven Guitars and Piano Lesson) and is proud to produce this Broadway debut. Directing is Ruben Santiago-Hudson, called “perhaps the foremost interpreter of the legendary August Wilson” by The New York Times.
The creative team for August Wilson’s Jitney includes David Gallo (scenic design); Toni-Leslie James (costume design); Jane Cox (lighting design), Darron L West (sound design); Bill Sims, Jr. (original music); and Thomas Schall (fight director).
For more information on MTC, please visit www.ManhattanTheatreClub.com.
Ray Anthony Thomas, Keith Randolph Smith, Michael Potts, Brandon Dirden, John Douglas Thompson, Carra Patterson, André Holland, Harvy Blanks, Anthony Chisholm. Photo by Lia Chang
Lia Chang_photo by Garth Kravits
Lia Chang is an actor, a multi-media content producer and co-founder of Bev’s Girl Films, making films that foster inclusion and diversity on both sides of the camera. Bev’s Girl Films’ debut short film, Hide and Seek was a top ten film in the Asian American Film Lab’s 2015 72 Hour Shootout Filmmaking Competition, and she received a Best Actress nomination. BGF collaborates with and produces multi-media content for artists, actors, designers, theatrical productions, composers, musicians and corporations. Lia is also an internationally published and exhibited photographer, a multi-platform journalist, and a publicist. Lia has appeared in the films Wolf, New Jack City, A Kiss Before Dying, King of New York, Big Trouble in Little China, The Last Dragon, Taxman and Hide and Seek. She is profiled in Examiner.com, Jade Magazine and Playbill.com.
Lia Chang Photography 