Theatre Thursday: Fences (October 25th, 2018)

You know what's a shame? Halloween doesn't fall on Theatre Thursday. It's almost as if the universe is trying to ruin my fun. It's a shame too, I could have talked for hours about Sarah Kane and her fabulous body horror drama Cleansed for literal hours on end. I mean, what's scarier than a university turned into an institution under the sadistic rule of an irresponsible man named Tinker? 

Anyways, since we can't celebrate the pivotal day of spooky month, we're going to go with a classic. Let's start off with this: Did you know that Denzel Washington has been in some theatre productions? No? Well he was in five! Julius Caesar, A Raisin in the Sun, Checkmates, Iceman Cometh.... oh! And Fences by the late and great August Wilson.

August Wilson's Fences by Ladrica C. Menson-Furr

Call Number: E-Book

ISBN: 9781441168443

Publication Date: 2013-06-06

Fences represents the decade of the 1950s, and, when it premiered in 1985, it won the Pulitzer Prize. Set during the beginnings of the civil rights movement, it also concerns generational change and renewal, ending with a celebration of the life of its protagonist, even though it takes place at his funeral. Critics and scholars have lauded August Wilson's work for its universality and its ability, especially in Fences, to transcend racial barriers and this play helped to earn him the titles of "America's greatest playwright" and "the African American Shakespeare."

August Wilson, as a playwright, is pretty phenomenal. He was known for writing the Pittsburgh Cycle, which were ten different plays in different decades of the 20th century that depicted the tragic African American experience in America. If you were watching any of Berea College's theatre productions in Spring of 2018, you may have seen the play Ma Rainey's Black Bottom. This, although set in Chicago, was part of the Pittsburgh Cycle.

But Fences is definitely in Pittsburgh, and it's about a black man in the 1950s and his control over his life and his family. Troy, the man of the hour, a 53-year-old man who has a job as a trash collector and struggles to keep a living wage for his family. The thing about Troy is that he's more or less a villain in this play. He's cheating on his wife, he's verbally abusive towards his sons, and he can't quite grasp that his reality is different from the dream that he had about playing negro baseball in his younger years. This play is about subtly in dialogue and the nuances of a broken family. And trust me, it relates back to the titular fence.

This play is brilliant (and one of my favorites.) And it's good for people who like little details and doing research after a play is over. Or for the watch-and-go type of person. This play is just good, okay? I give it a 10/10. If you want to read Fences or any of August Wilson's works, feel free to find them as an E-Book in the Hutchins Library database or circulating somewhere on the third floor. Tune in next Thursday night for another fun theatre read!