{{Short description|Ten-play play cycle written by August Wilson}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2026}}
'''The Pittsburgh Cycle''' is a cycle of ten plays written by August Wilson. Also known as '''The American Century Cycle''' (or '''Century Cycle)''', each of the ten plays is set with a predominantly black cast in a decade of the twentieth century. All but one—''Ma Rainey's Black Bottom—''take place in the historically black Hill District neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
The first entry in the cycle, ''Jitney,'' premiered in 1982. The last, ''Radio Golf'', premiered in April 2005, shortly before Wilson's death that October. Eight of the plays transferred to Broadway in his lifetime, with ''Ma Rainey'' reaching Broadway in both 1984 and 2003. The cycle earned a collective 72 Tony Award nominations, over 14 Broadway stagings. Five of the ten plays were finalists for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, with ''Fences'' and ''The Piano Lesson'' each earning the award. Wilson is the only playwright to be a six-time Pulitzer finalist.
Wilson developed six of the plays with Lloyd Richards as director, frequently using the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center and the Yale Repertory Theatre—both of which featured Richards as artistic director—to workshop plays. Following a break in their relationship during the development of ''Seven Guitars,'' Wilson worked with multiple other directors, including Walter Dallas, Kenny Leon, and Marion McClinton. The plays in the cycle also provided early career breakthroughs for various actors, including Charles S. Dutton, Angela Bassett, Courtney B. Vance, Delroy Lindo, Laurence Fishburne, Viola Davis, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, LisaGay Hamilton, and S. Epatha Merkerson.
Three of the plays were made into feature films, starting with ''Fences'' in 2016, ''Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'' in 2020, and ''The Piano Lesson'' in 2024. A TV film version of ''The Piano Lesson'' also aired as a part of the Hallmark Hall of Fame series, starring Dutton and Alfre Woodard.
== Overview == In 1981, August Wilson was a struggling poet and playwright who lived in Saint Paul, Minesota.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=109}} He submitted versions of ''Jitney'' and the non-cycle play ''Black Bart and the Sacred Hills'' to the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center's National Playwright Conference multiple times starting in 1979.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=107-110}} After five rejections, he wrote and submitted an early version of ''Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'', which was accepted for the 1982 conference.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=107-110}} O'Neill artistic director Lloyd Richards favored Wilson, allowing the influential ''New York Times'' theater critic Frank Rich to come review the plays-in-progress, despite the conference's ban on press criticism.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=121-124}} Rich's rave about ''Ma Rainey'' boosted his career.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=123-124}}
Over the successive two decades, the cycle's plays frequently debuted at the NPC workshop. In 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, and 1993, he brought each of his new works in the cycle to the O'Neill center.<ref>{{Cite web |title=New Work by Decade |url=https://www.theoneill.org/newwork |access-date=March 28, 2026 |website=Eugene O'Neill Theater Center |language=en}}</ref> After Wilson struggled to find a way to bring ''Ma Rainey'' to Broadway, Richards offered to direct a production at the Yale Repertory Theatre, where he also served as artistic director.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=125}} Starting in 1984, Richards directed the plays' official world premieres at the Yale Repertory Theatre.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=199}} With ''Fences'' and successive cycle plays, Richards would also direct stagings for different League of Resident Theaters non-profit theater companies, to allow Wilson the chance to rewrite and hone the plays before they reached Broadway.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=200}} After a break with Richards in 1996, Wilson didn't return to the O'Neill until Richards's retirement, at which point Wilson worked on ''Gem of the Ocean'' as an invited playwright-in-residence.{{Sfn|Sweet|2014|p=168}} Likewise, when Richards retired from Yale Rep after his term as artistic director, Wilson didn't debut a new work there until his final play premiered in April 2005,{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=389-390}} shortly before his death that October.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Isherwood |first=Charles |date=2005-10-03 |title=August Wilson, Theater's Poet of Black America, Is Dead at 60 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/03/theater/newsandfeatures/august-wilson-theaters-poet-of-black-america-is-dead-at-60.html |access-date=2026-05-23 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> He worked with other directors as he developed his later work, especially Marion McClinton and Kenny Leon.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Genzlinger |first=Neil |date=November 28, 2019 |title=Marion McClinton, Interpreter of August Wilson, Dies at 65 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/28/theater/marion-mcclinton-dead.html |access-date=March 29, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
The ten plays are alternatively referred to as Wilson's Pittsburgh Cycle<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rawson |first=Christopher |date=October 3, 2005 |title=Obituary: August Wilson, Pittsburgh playwright who chronicled black experience |url=https://www.post-gazette.com/news/obituaries/2005/10/03/obituary-august-wilson-pittsburgh-playwright-who-chronicled-black-experience/stories/200510030204 |access-date=February 24, 2026 |website=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Busby |first=Margaret |date=October 4, 2005 |title=August Wilson |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2005/oct/04/guardianobituaries.artsobituaries |access-date=February 24, 2026 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> or as his American Century Cycle (or Century Cycle).<ref>{{Cite web |title=August Wilson's American Century Cycle |url=https://awaacc.org/american-century-cycle/ |access-date=February 24, 2026 |website=The August Wilson African American Cultural Center |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Nesmith |first=Nathaniel G. |date=August 16, 2023 |title=A Man in Full: August Wilson and His Plays, in All Their Complexity |url=https://www.americantheatre.org/2023/08/16/a-man-in-full-august-wilson-and-his-plays-in-all-their-complexity/ |access-date=February 24, 2026 |language=en-US}}</ref> Wilson first publicly spoke of the idea in November 1984 to ''The Pittsburgh Press'', commenting that he was in the process of writing a play for each decade of the 1900s to "isolate the most important ideas that confronted blacks."{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=198}} In 1987, Wilson explained his inspiration for the project to ''The New York Times,'' saying that he felt black Americans had become disconnected from the traumas of slavery and other historical injustices.<ref name=":74">{{Cite news |last=Freedman |first=Samuel G. |date=March 15, 1987 |title=A VOICE FROM THE STREETS |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/03/15/magazine/a-voice-from-the-streets.html |access-date=March 1, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> He contrasted the black cultural memory to the memory of slavery in Egypt, commemorated worldwide in celebrations of Passover.<ref name=":74" /> Wilson had also, in 1977, directed a production of ''In New England Winter'', the second play from Ed Bullins's ultimately unfinished 20-play Twentieth Century Cycle about a group of mid-century black Americans.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=86-87}} According to his biographer Patti Hartigan, Wilson felt that the writing was subpar and that he could do a better job of representing the black experience.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=86-87}} In an essay from 2000, Wilson described his intentions behind the cycle:<blockquote>The cycle of plays I have been writing since 1979 is my attempt to represent [black American] culture in dramatic art. From the beginning, I decided not to write about historical events or the pathologies of the black community. [...] Instead, I wanted to present the unique particulars of black American culture as the transformation of impulse and sensibility into codes of conduct and response, into cultural rituals that defined and celebrated ourselves as men and women of high purpose.<ref name=":75">{{Cite web |last=Wilson |first=August |date=2005-11-01 |title=Aunt Ester's Children: A Century On Stage |url=https://www.americantheatre.org/2005/11/01/aunt-esters-children-a-century-on-stage/ |access-date=2026-03-01 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Wilson |first=August |date=2000-04-23 |title=American Histories: Chasing Dreams And Nightmares; Sailing The Stream Of Black Culture |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/04/23/arts/american-histories-chasing-dreams-and-nightmares-sailing-the-stream-of.html |access-date=2026-03-01 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref></blockquote>
== Works == {| class="wikitable sortable" !Year of premiere !Place of Premiere !Title !Decade !Opened on Broadway<ref name="Century">[http://www.tcg.org/publications/augustwilson/histories.cfm The August Wilson ''Century Cycle''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141012101745/http://www.tcg.org/publications/augustwilson/histories.cfm|date=October 12, 2014}}.Theatre Communications Group. Retrieved October 7, 2014.</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Piepenburg |first=Erik |date=January 11, 2017 |title=August Wilson on Broadway: A History |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/11/theater/august-wilson-on-broadway-a-history.html |access-date=March 5, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> |- |1982 |Allegheny Repertory Theatre |''Jitney'' |1970s |2017 – Samuel J. Friedman Theatre |- |1984 |Yale Repertory Theatre† |''Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'' |1920s |1984 – Cort Theatre<ref name=":712">{{Cite web |title=Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (Broadway, Cort Theatre, 1984) |url=https://playbill.com/production/ma-raineys-black-bottom-cort-theatre-vault-0000003491 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251214020346/https://playbill.com/production/ma-raineys-black-bottom-cort-theatre-vault-0000003491 |archive-date=December 14, 2025 |access-date=February 25, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |1985 |Yale Repertory Theatre†|Yale Repertory Theatre† |{{Won|''Fences''|color=gold|align=left}} |1950s |1987 – 46th Street Theatre |- |1986 |Yale Repertory Theatre† |''Joe Turner's Come and Gone'' |1910s |1988 – Ethel Barrymore |- |1987 |Yale Repertory Theatre†|Yale Repertory Theatre† |{{Won|''The Piano Lesson''{{efn|''The Piano Lesson'' was a Pulitzer finalist in 1989 before it won the award in 1990}}|align=left|color=Gold}} |1930s |1990 – Walter Kerr |- |1990 |Yale Repertory Theatre|Yale Repertory Theatre |{{Shortlisted|''Two Trains Running''|align=left}} |1960s |1992 – Walter Kerr |- |1995 |Goodman Theatre† |{{Shortlisted|''Seven Guitars''|align=left}} |1940s |1996 – Walter Kerr |- |1999 |Pittsburgh Public Theater |{{Shortlisted|''King Hedley II''|align=left}} |1980s |2001 – Virginia Theatre |- |2003 |Goodman Theatre† |''Gem of the Ocean'' |1900s |2004 – Walter Kerr |- |2005 |Yale Repertory Theatre |''Radio Golf'' |1990s |2007 – Cort Theatre |} <sup>Notes:</sup> † <sup>Reflects works that were previously work-shopped at the Eugene O"Neill Theater Center</sup>{{Sfn|Sweet|2014|p=163}} {| class="wikitable" |+Key<ref>{{Cite web |last= |title=Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Winners by Year |url=https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-category/%7B%7Bglobal.pageCanocialUrl%7D%7D |access-date=March 29, 2026 |website=The Pulitzer Prizes |language=en}}</ref> !{{Won|Pulitzer Prize for Drama winner|color=Gold}} |- |{{Shortlisted|Pulitzer Prize for Drama finalist}} |}
=== Thematic connections === The question of individual worth persists throughout the cycle.<ref>{{Cite book |title=August Wilson: completing the twentieth-century cycle |date=2010 |publisher=University of Iowa Press |isbn=978-1-58729-875-2 |editor-last=Nadel |editor-first=Alan |location=Iowa City |chapter=Introduction}}</ref> In ''Ma Rainey,'' the black musicians are being subordinated by the white record company managers.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nadel |first=Alan |title=The Cambridge Companion to August Wilson |date=2007 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-86606-4 |editor-last=Bigsby |editor-first=Christopher |location=Cambridge; New York |chapter=Ma Rainey's Black Bottom: Cutting the historical record, dramatizing a blues CD}}</ref> In ''Seven Guitars,'' four musicians reflect on the senseless murder of their colleague.<ref name=":15">{{Cite book |last=Murphy |first=Brenda |title=The Cambridge Companion to August Wilson |date=2007 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-86606-4 |editor-last=Bigsby |editor-first=Christopher |location=Cambridge; New York |chapter=The Tragedy of Seven Guitars}}</ref> Herald Loomis, a major character in ''Joe Turner,'' is beset by trauma and depression following his seven-year stint on a Tennessee chain gang after being abducted by the titular Joe Turner;<ref name=":16">{{Cite book |last=Hay |first=Samuel |title=The Cambridge Companion to August Wilson |date=2007 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-86606-4 |editor-last=Bigsby |editor-first=Christopher |location=Cambridge; New York |chapter=Joe Turner's Come and Gone}}</ref> the play proceeds partly as Loomis's quest for serenity.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rich |first=Frank |date=March 28, 1988 |title=Review/Theater; Panoramic History Of Blacks in America In Wilson's 'Joe Turner' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/03/28/theater/review-theater-panoramic-history-of-blacks-in-america-in-wilson-s-joe-turner.html |access-date=March 21, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> In ''Gem,'' Citizen Barlow reproaches himself for his theft of a bucket of nails, weighing his own worth against the life of someone unjustly accused of his crime, before he embarks on a supernatural journey of spiritual healing.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Elam Jr. |first=Harry |title=The Cambridge Companion to August Wilson |date=2007 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-86606-4 |editor-last=Bigsby |editor-first=Christopher |location=Cambridge; New York |chapter=Gem of the Ocean and the Redemptive Power of History}}</ref>
Family conflicts recur throughout the cycle. In ''Jitney'', one storyline concerns the relationship between Jim Backer and his troubled son Booster following his release from prison.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gallo |first=Phil |date=February 4, 2000 |title=Jitney |url=https://variety.com/2000/legit/reviews/jitney-4-1117778641/ |access-date=March 19, 2026 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Krasner |first=David |title=The Cambridge Companion to August Wilson |date=2007 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-86606-4 |editor-last=Bigsby |editor-first=Christopher |location=Cambridge; New York |chapter=Jitney, Folklore, and Responsibility}}</ref> ''Fences'' focuses on the Maxson family, especially patriarch Troy's reproachful attitude toward his son and his infidelity toward his wife Rose, which results in an illegitimate daughter.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roudane |first=Matthew |title=The Cambridge Companion to August Wilson |date=2007 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-86606-4 |editor-last=Bigsby |editor-first=Christopher |location=Cambridge; New York |chapter=Safe at Home? August Wilson's Fences}}</ref> The primary conflict in ''The Piano Lesson'' is between siblings Berneice and Boy Willie, who disagree on whether to sell or preserve the titular family heirloom.<ref name=":17">{{Cite book |last=Hardison Londre |first=Felicia |title=The Cambridge Companion to August Wilson |date=2007 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-86606-4 |editor-last=Bigsby |editor-first=Christopher |location=Cambridge; New York |chapter=A Piano and Its History: Family and Transcending Family}}</ref> ''King Hedley II'' features a monologue from the character Tonya to her husband Hedley, where she defends her decision to abort their potential child due to the hopelessness of their milieu.<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 13, 2001 |title=THE QUEEN OF 'KING HEDLEY' FOR VIOLA DAVIS, ONE EMOTIONAL SCENE LED TO ANOTHER AT THE TONYS |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/2001/06/13/the-queen-of-king-hedley-for-viola-davis-one-emotional-scene-led-to-another-at-the-tonys/ |access-date=March 11, 2026 |website=New York Daily News |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":6">{{Cite book |last=Herrington |first=Joan |title=The Cambridge Companion to August Wilson |date=2007 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-86606-4 |editor-last=Bigsby |editor-first=Christopher |location=Cambridge; New York |chapter=King Hedley II: In the Midst of All This Death}}</ref>
The narratives throughout the cycle also track the course of real-life history. Characters in ''Gem'' and ''Joe Turner'' reflect the Great Migration, coming from Alabama or Tennessee, with Pittsburgh as a way-point to the North.{{Sfn|Shannon|2010|p=128-131}}<ref name=":16" /> ''The Piano Lesson'' and ''Seven Guitars'' meaningfully depict characters in the midst of the Great Depression and in the wake of World War II, respectively.<ref name=":17" /><ref name=":15" /> The end of the color line in the MLB comes shortly before the events of ''Fences,'' which fuels the resentment of the main character who had played in the Negro leagues (the character, Troy Maxson, has been compared to Ray Dandridge).<ref name=":5">{{Cite news |last=Vecsey |first=George |date=May 10, 1987 |title=SPORTS OF THE TIMES; RAY DANDRIDGE, THE HALL OF FAME AND 'FENCES' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/05/10/sports/sports-of-the-times-ray-dandridge-the-hall-of-fame-and-fences.html |access-date=March 21, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The play also features discussion of contemporary players like Jackie Robinson and Roberto Clemente in that context.<ref name=":5" /> The dialogue in ''Two Trains Running'' features references to the civil rights and black power movements, as well as local urban renewal.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bottoms |first=Stephen |title=The Cambridge Companion to August Wilson |date=2007 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-86606-4 |editor-last=Bigsby |editor-first=Christopher |location=Cambridge; New York |chapter=Two Trains Running: Blood on the Track}}</ref> ''King Hedley II'' repeatedly comments on the failed promise of the Reagan era, especially for black Americans in cities.<ref name=":6" /> Lastly'', Radio Golf'' centers on gentrification and growing (but complicated) black representation in politics.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jones |first=Chris |date=September 9, 2018 |title='Radio Golf' was never considered August Wilson's best — then it came to Court Theatre |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2018/09/09/radio-golf-was-never-considered-august-wilsons-best-then-it-came-to-court-theatre/ |access-date=March 21, 2026 |website=Chicago Tribune |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":8">{{Cite book |last=Booker |first=Margaret |title=The Cambridge Companion to August Wilson |date=2007 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-86606-4 |editor-last=Bigsby |editor-first=C. W. E. |location=Cambridge; New York |chapter=Radio Golf: The Courage of His Convictions —Survival, Success and Spirituality}}</ref>
==== Language ==== Each of the cycle's plays have been noted for their use of colloquial language and dialect.{{Sfn|Sternlicht|2015|p=10}} Critic Maya Philips referred to the vernacular dialogue as "one of the central ways Wilson's characters embody their stations in life, which can't be divorced from the diction, grammar and syntax they use with one another."<ref name=":4" /> Wilson wrote that his process for constructing the cycle often originated with a line of dialogue, which he would use to connect individual characters with a broader narrative.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wilson |first=August |date=March 10, 1991 |title=How to Write A Play Like August Wilson |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/03/10/theater/theaterspecial/how-to-write-a-play-like-august-wilson.html |access-date=March 21, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> He also said that his dialogue was meant to preserve the "street talk" of people he knew growing up in Pittsburgh.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lahr |first=John |date=April 9, 2001 |title=How August Wilson Brought a Century of Black American Culture to the Stage |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2001/04/16/august-wilson-been-here-and-gone |access-date=March 21, 2026 |work=The New Yorker |language=en-US |issn=0028-792X}}</ref>
=== Recurring characters === Elder Joseph Barlow, from ''Radio Golf,'' is the son of Citizen Barlow and Black Mary, from ''Gem of the Ocean.''<ref name=":8" /> He opposes the mayoral candidacy of Harmond Wilks, who is unknowingly the grandson of Caesar Wilks, the antagonist from ''Gem.''<ref name=":8" /> The two characters fight over the demolition of Aunt Ester's house, a major setting in ''Gem.''<ref name=":8" />
Hedley from ''Seven Guitars'' is the father of the titular character in ''King Hedley II.''<ref name=":6" /> The latter Hedley's mother, Ruby, is also in both plays.<ref name=":6" /> The ''Seven Guitars'' character Canewell reappears in ''King Hedley II'' as "Stool Pigeon," in reference to his betrayal of Hedley between the two plays.<ref name=":6" />
==== Aunt Ester ==== The character Aunt Ester appears or is mentioned in four of the ten plays, starting with ''Two Trains Running.''<ref>{{Cite web |last=Barfield |first=Taylor |date=May 20, 2024 |title=Aunt Ester in August Wilson's American Century Cycle {{!}} Two River Theater |url=https://tworivertheater.org/news-updates/aunt-ester-in-august-wilsons-american-century-cycle/ |access-date=February 27, 2026 |website=tworivertheater.org |language=en-US}}</ref> In that play, the characters speak about visiting her house at 1839 Wylie Avenue, in the Hill District, where she helps to cleanse their souls. In ''King Hedley II'', it's revealed that she died at the age of 366.{{Sfn|Shannon|2010|p=123}} The plot of ''Radio Golf'' partly revolves around gentrification and the demolition of Aunt Ester's house.<ref name=":8" />
The only play she appears onstage is ''Gem of the Ocean'', where she plays a lead role. Ester, in that play, is 285 years old, having arrived in the country under enslavement with the first Africans in Virginia in 1619.{{Sfn|Shannon|2010|p=129}} In ''Gem,'' she helps cleanse the soul of the character Citizen Barlow, who feels guilt for a theft that resulted in the wrong person being accused and dying. Ester ushers Barlow through a memory of the Middle Passage and the so-called "City of Bones."{{Sfn|Shannon|2010|p=128-131}}
Academic Harry J. Elam Jr. argued in 2005 that Ester represented a bridge in the black community between Christianity and more traditional African strains of spirituality, representing a collective ancestor.{{Sfn|Shannon|2010|p=124}} Her death in ''King Hedley II'' reflects the growing disconnection in the 1980s between the community as a whole and its collective memory.{{Sfn|Shannon|2010|p=126}} In 2000, Wilson wrote about Ester's role in the broader cycle.<blockquote>Aunt Ester has emerged for me as the most significant persona of the cycle. The characters, after all, are her children. The wisdom and tradition she embodies are valuable tools for the reconstruction of their personalities and for dealing with a society in which the contradictions, over the decades, have grown more fierce, and for exposing all the places it is lacking in virtue.<ref name=":75" /></blockquote>
=== The Four B's === {{Multiple image | image1 = Ma Rainey, 1923.jpg | caption1 = Blues singer Ma Rainey (center) with her band in 1923 | image2 = Amiri Baraka 2013.jpg | caption2 = Poet-playwright Amiri Baraka in 2013 | perrow = 1/2/1 | image3 = Jorge Luis Borges 1951, by Grete Stern.jpg | caption3 = Argentine short story writer Jorge Luis Borges in 1951 | image4 = "Sgt. Romare Bearden, noted young Negro artist whose paintings have been exhibited in galleries and museums in several m - NARA - 535841.jpg | caption4 = Artist Romare Bearden (right) with his painting "Cotton Widows" and cousin Charles Alston (left) in 1944 | direction = horizontal | width1 = 250 | width2 = 120 | width3 = 120 | width4 = 250 }} Wilson frequently spoke of his personal inspirations for the cycle as "The Four B's."{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=267}} These refer to blues music, the spiritual exploration of writer Jose Luis Borges, the poetry and politics of critic Amiri Baraka, and the multi-media paintings of Romare Bearden.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=267}}
Blues music was the primary element of the four,<ref name=":7">{{Cite news |last=Sillman |first=Marcie |last2= |last3= |date=March 1, 2004 |title=Intersections: August Wilson, Writing to the Blues |url=https://www.npr.org/2004/03/01/1700922/intersections-august-wilson-writing-to-the-blues |access-date=March 21, 2026 |work=Morning Edition |publisher=NPR |language=en}}</ref>{{Sfn|Tracy|2010|p=50}} with ''Ma Rainey, The Piano Lesson, Seven Guitars,'' and ''King Hedley II'' featuring blues music or musicians. In her play, Ma Rainey refers to the blues as "life's way of talking."<ref name=":7" /> The characters in ''The Piano Lesson'' meld the relatively new musical style of blues with work songs and spirituals.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Richardson |first=Kalia |date=November 29, 2024 |title=How 'The Piano Lesson' Uses Music to Excavate America's Dark History of Slavery |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-features/the-piano-lesson-music-malcolm-washington-interview-1235168458/ |access-date=March 21, 2026 |website=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}}</ref> In ''Seven Guitars,'' characters repeatedly reference both existing and original songs; the blues pioneer Buddy Bolden (and the Jelly Roll Morton song "Buddy Bolden Blues") recurs throughout.{{Sfn|Tracy|2010|p=53-55}} Academic Steven C. Tracy collected a "Bluesography" of ''Seven Guitars'' featuring the dozens of songs either referenced or sung throughout.{{Sfn|Tracy|2010|p=207-209}} ''King Hedley II,'' featuring characters from ''Seven Guitars,'' partly reflects the decline of the blues as a popular art.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Pease |first=Donald |title=August Wilson: completing the twentieth-century cycle |date=2010 |publisher=University of Iowa Press |isbn=978-1-58729-875-2 |editor-last=Nadel |editor-first=Alan |location=Iowa City |chapter=August Wilson's Lazarus Complex}}</ref>
Bearden's work provide direct inspiration for multiple plays in the cycle, after Wilson was introduced to the artist in 1977.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=86}} Wilson developed ''Joe Turner'' after seeing Bearden's collage painting ''Mill Hand's Lunch Bucket'', basing the character Herald Loomis on the despondent man in the center of the image.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Writing from Art: August Wilson and Romare Bearden |url=https://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/aug15.ela.lit.bearden/writing-from-art-august-wilson-and-romare-bearden/ |access-date=March 3, 2026 |website=PBS LearningMedia |language=en}}</ref> ''The Piano Lesson'' also arose out of a Bearden artwork titled ''The Piano Lesson (Homage to Mary Lou).''<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wakeman |first=Gregory |title=The Surprising Artwork That Inspired Netflix's 'The Piano Lesson,' a New Movie Based on August Wilson's Award-Winning Play |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-surprising-artwork-that-inspired-netflixs-the-piano-lesson-a-new-movie-based-on-august-wilsons-award-winning-play-180985424/ |access-date=March 3, 2026 |website=Smithsonian Magazine |language=en}}</ref> Bearden's work indirectly influenced Wilson's other plays, holistically, with his goal to make the cycle "the equal of Bearden's canvases."{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=192}}
Baraka provided professional inspiration for Wilson, as a fellow poet-turned-playwright.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=66-69}} After Baraka founded the Black Arts Repertory/Theater School (BARTS) in 1960s Harlem, Wilson and Rob Penny created their own version in Pittsburgh with the Black Horizon Theater. Wilson discovered Borges—based on his stories in ''The New Yorker—''while constructing the cycle''.''{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=267}} The flashback structure of ''Seven Guitars'' was meant as an homage to Borges.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=267}}
== Films == During its original Broadway run in 1987, Paramount purchased the rights to produce a film version of ''Fences'' for $500,000.<ref name=":72">{{Cite news |last=Greenberg |first=James |date=January 27, 1991 |title=FILM; Did Hollywood Sit on 'Fences'? |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/01/27/movies/film-did-hollywood-sit-on-fences.html |access-date=February 27, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Eddie Murphy was attached as the film's producer, with the notion that he would act as well.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=|pp=313-315}} Paramount and Murphy negotiated with several directors—including Barry Levinson—but they could not find a proper fit.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|pp=313-315}} In a September 1990 op-ed for ''The New York Times,'' Wilson maintained that only a black director could properly interpret his play cycle.<blockquote>At the time of my last meeting with Paramount, in January 1990, a well-known, highly respected white director wanted very much to direct the film. I don't know his work, but he is universally praised for sensitive and intelligent direction. I accept that he is a very fine film director. But he is not black. He is not a product of black American culture - a culture that was honed out of the black experience and fired in the kiln of slavery and survival - and he does not share the sensibilities of black Americans.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wilson |first=August |date=1990-09-26 |title=Opinion {{!}} 'I Want a Black Director' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/09/26/opinion/i-want-a-black-director.html |access-date=2026-02-27 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref></blockquote>Wilson suggested suggested various potential black directors, including Richards, Spike Lee, and Gordon Parks.<ref name=":72" /> Bill Duke was also considered as a possible candidate both parties could agree on.<ref name=":72" /> James Earl Jones expressed frustration at the impasse, which would ultimately result in him aging out of playing the starring role.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=315}} By the late 1990s, Murphy had left the project and was replaced by Scott Rudin as lead producer, who later helped produce the 2016 version.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=352}}
=== Denzel Washington partnership === [[File:Denzel Washington in 2024.jpg|thumb|271x271px|Denzel Washington at the Toronto International Film Festival for ''The Piano Lesson'' in 2024]] In 2014, Wilson's widow and literary executor Constanza Romero approached actor Denzel Washington about creating a film for each of the plays of the cycle.<ref name=":4">{{Cite news |last=Phillips |first=Maya |date=December 3, 2020 |title=August Wilson, American Bard |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/03/t-magazine/august-wilson-ma-rainey.html |access-date=February 26, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name=":9">{{Cite news |last=Greenberg |first=James |date=December 23, 2016 |title=The Long, Long Road to Building 'Fences' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/22/movies/the-long-long-road-to-building-fences.html |access-date=March 28, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Like the plays, Washington—and his producing partner Todd Black—decided to develop the films out of chronological order. The first two installations were filmed in Pittsburgh, but the third filmed in Atlanta.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Netflix's 'The Piano Lesson' adaptation breaks cycle by not filming in Pittsburgh |url=https://www.post-gazette.com/ae/movies/2023/04/13/netflix-the-piano-lesson-movie-august-wilson-denzel-washington-not-filming-pittsburgh/stories/202304130124 |access-date=February 26, 2026 |website=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette |language=en}}</ref>
In 2016, Washington directed the first installment, ''Fences'', starring himself (as Troy), Viola Davis (as Rose), and Jovan Adepo (as Cory) in his film debut.<ref>{{Cite web |last=D'Alessandro |first=Anthony |last2=Busch |first2=Anita |date=April 4, 2016 |title=Mykelti Williamson & Russell Hornsby Reprise Roles For 'Fences' Movie |url=https://deadline.com/2016/04/fences-denzel-washington-mykelti-williamson-russell-hornsby-jovan-adepo-saniyya-sidney-1201731560/ |access-date=March 28, 2026 |website=Deadline |language=en-US}}</ref> Washington and Davis had both starred in a 2010 revival of the play, where they each received Tony Awards.<ref name=":9" /> ''Fences'' earned four Oscar nominations and won one for Davis's performance.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Fences: Nominations and awards - The Los Angeles Times |url=https://envelope.latimes.com/awards/titles/fences/ |access-date=March 28, 2026 |website=latimes.com |language=en}}</ref> Wilson received a posthumous nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay—based on screenplays he wrote for eventually unrealized projects in his lifetime—with Tony Kushner working as an uncredited consultant.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Schulman |first=Michael |date=February 14, 2017 |title=Oscar Spotlight: The Screenplays |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/oscar-spotlight-the-screenplays |access-date=March 5, 2026 |work=The New Yorker |language=en-US |issn=0028-792X}}</ref>
In 2020, George C. Wolfe directed the next installment, ''Ma Rainey's Black Bottom,'' starring Davis, Colman Domingo, Glynn Turman, Michael Potts, and Chadwick Boseman in his final film role.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Riley |first=Jenelle |date=December 11, 2020 |title='Ma Rainey's Black Bottom' Director George C. Wolfe on Filming August Wilson's Play and Chadwick Boseman's Final Film Role |url=https://variety.com/2020/film/features/ma-raineys-black-bottom-george-wolfe-chadwick-boseman-1234850748/ |access-date=March 28, 2026 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref> The film added a scene to the ending featuring an all-white band dully performing the work that Levee had written.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Lee |first=Ashley |date=December 18, 2020 |title=Why Netflix's 'Ma Rainey's Black Bottom' changed the play's ending |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2020-12-18/netflixs-ma-raineys-black-bottom-ending-explained |access-date=February 27, 2026 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref> Wolfe described the addition as a way to further communicate how the difficult work of black artists is often simplified and appropriated by white performers.<ref name=":2" />
In 2024, Washington's son Malcolm Washington directed the most recent installment to date, of ''The Piano Lesson,'' starring his other son John David Washington (Boy Willie), Samuel L. Jackson (Doaker Charles), and Danielle Deadwyler (Berniece).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wheeler |first=André |date=November 25, 2024 |title=How Malcolm Washington Pitched Denzel Washington on "The Piano Lesson" |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/12/02/how-malcolm-washington-pitched-denzel-washington-on-the-piano-lesson |access-date=March 28, 2026 |work=The New Yorker |language=en-US |issn=0028-792X}}</ref> Barry Jenkins was originally the choice to direct, but had prior attachments to ''Mufasa: The Lion King'' and ''The Underground Railroad''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Barfield |first=Charles |date=October 1, 2020 |title='Piano Lesson': Denzel Washington Wants Barry Jenkins To Direct Samuel L. Jackson And John David Washington In A New Film |url=https://theplaylist.net/piano-lesson-barry-jenkins-samuel-l-jackson-john-david-washington-20201001/ |access-date=March 29, 2026 |website=The Playlist |language=en-US}}</ref> Deadwyler received nominations from the Screen Actors Guild Awards,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jackson |first=Hannah |date=February 24, 2025 |title=It Took Over 400 Hours to Make Danielle Deadwyler's Sculptural Louis Vuitton Dress for the 2025 SAG Awards |url=https://www.vogue.com/slideshow/danielle-deadwyler-2025-sag-awards |access-date=March 28, 2026 |website=Vogue |language=en-US}}</ref> the Critics Choice Awards,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Film Nominations Announced for the 30th Annual Critics Choice Awards hosted by Chelsea Handler – Critics Choice Association |url=https://www.criticschoice.com/2024/12/12/film-nominations-announced-for-the-30th-annual-critics-choice-awards-hosted-by-chelsea-handler/ |access-date=March 28, 2026 |website=www.criticschoice.com}}</ref> and the Indie Spirit Awards, where the film also earned a nomination in the Best First Feature category.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lattanzio |first=Ryan |date=December 4, 2024 |title='Anora' and 'I Saw the TV Glow' Lead Spirit Award Noms with Six Each — See the Full List |url=https://www.indiewire.com/awards/results/independent-spirit-award-nominations-2024-see-full-list-1235072334/ |access-date=March 28, 2026 |website=IndieWire |language=en-US}}</ref>
During the release of ''The Piano Lesson,'' Washington and Black said that they next planned to adapt ''Joe Turner's Come and Gone'' for film.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Davis |first=Clayton |date=September 10, 2024 |title=Denzel Washington on Watching Son Malcolm Direct 'The Piano Lesson,' Which August Wilson Adaptation Is Next and Why 'Gladiator' Is a 'Hard Act to Follow' |url=https://variety.com/2024/film/awards/denzel-washington-gladiator-2-malcolm-piano-lesson-1236139671/ |access-date=February 26, 2026 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref>
== Other versions == The Wilson estate allowed New York Public Radio to produce each of the ten plays in the cycle as successive dramatic readings in 2013.<ref>{{Cite web |title=August Wilson's American Century Cycle at The Greene Space |url=https://www.wnyc.org/story/306151-august-wilsons-american-century-cycle-greene-space/ |access-date=February 24, 2026 |website=WNYC |language=en}}</ref> The readings were broadcast on the organization's radio station, ''WNYC'', as well as other interested local stations'',''<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lee |first=Felicia R. |date=November 14, 2012 |title=New York Public Radio to Record August Wilson's Plays |url=https://archive.nytimes.com/artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/14/new-york-public-radio-to-record-august-wilsons-plays/ |access-date=March 5, 2026 |website=ArtsBeat |language=en}}</ref> then maintained on the station's website until 2015. Ruben Santiago-Hudson and Stephen McKinley Henderson—who each featured in multiple original cycle productions on Broadway—led the project. Besides Santiago-Hudson and Henderson, directors for the individual readings included Kenny Leon, Phylicia Rashad, Michele Shay, and Marion McClinton.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lee |first=Felicia R. |date=July 1, 2013 |title=Actors and Directors for Readings of August Wilson Cycle Are Veterans of Playwright's Work |url=https://archive.nytimes.com/artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/01/actors-and-directors-for-readings-of-august-wilson-cycle-are-veterans-of-playwrights-work/ |access-date=March 8, 2026 |website=ArtsBeat |language=en}}</ref>
In 2010, playwright Lorna Littleway adapted scenes from throughout the cycle into the dramatic revue ''August Wilson's Women.''<ref name=":10">{{Cite news |last=Gates |first=Anita |date=March 31, 2010 |title=Loving a Writer and His Women |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/01/theater/reviews/01august.html |access-date=March 28, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Littleway directed the production at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York. It proceeds chronologically through the cycle, starting with monologues from Aunt Ester in ''Gem'' and ending with a scene from ''Radio Golf.''<ref name=":10" />
Multiple theater companies have programmed series that run through the cycle. The Kennedy Center ran the first complete series in 2008, with Kenny Leon as artistic director.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Shapiro |first=Ari |date=March 16, 2008 |title=Wilson's 'Century Cycle' Runs at Kennedy Center |url=https://www.npr.org/transcripts/88120926?ft=nprml&f=88120926 |access-date=March 7, 2026 |work=Weekend Edition |publisher=NPR}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=October 4, 2006 |title=Kennedy Center to Present August Wilson's "Pittsburgh Cycle" in Spring 2008 - TheaterMania.com |url=https://www.theatermania.com/news/kennedy-center-to-present-august-wilsons-pittsburgh-cycle-in-spring-2008_9168/ |access-date=March 7, 2026 |language=en-US}}</ref> The Kennedy Center version featured 41 actors to cover the 77 different roles,<ref name=":1" /> including Lou Gossett Jr., Anthony Mackie, Tracie Thoms, Russell Hornsby, and LaTanya Richardson Jackson.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Russell |first=Montae |date=April 6, 2008 |title=August Wilson Cycle at Kennedy Center: Montae Russell's blog |url=https://www.post-gazette.com/ae/theater-dance/2008/03/16/August-Wilson-Cycle-at-Kennedy-Center-Montae-Russell-s-blog/stories/200803160286 |access-date=March 7, 2026 |work=The Pittsburgh Post-Gazzette}}</ref> Some theaters produced the cycle over multiple years, including the Goodman Theatre,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Jones |first=Kenneth |date=December 11, 2006 |title=With Radio Golf, Goodman Becomes First Troupe to Stage Complete Wilson Cycle |url=https://playbill.com/article/with-radio-golf-goodman-becomes-first-troupe-to-stage-complete-wilson-cycle-com-136954 |access-date=March 11, 2026 |work=Playbill}}</ref> the Huntington Theatre,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Haritgan |first=Patti |date=March 9, 2012 |title=With 'Ma Rainey,' Huntington completes its August Wilson cycle |url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/2012/03/09/with-rainey-huntington-theatre-completes-its-august-wilson-cycle/H1k1x2bhCDoTR3a2TPoPFL/story.html |access-date=March 11, 2026 |website=The Boston Globe |language=en-US}}</ref> the Pittsburgh Public Theater,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Isenberg |first=Robert |date=October 2, 2008 |title=The final installment of August Wilson's epic Pittsburgh Cycle premieres at the Public. |url=https://www.pghcitypaper.com/arts-entertainment-2/the-final-installment-of-august-wilsons-epic-pittsburgh-cycle-premieres-at-the-public-1340845/ |access-date=March 11, 2026 |website=Pittsburgh City Paper |language=en-US}}</ref> the St. Louis Black Repertory Company (which completed a second cycle in 2025),<ref>{{Cite web |last=Goodwin |first=Jeremy D. |date=May 22, 2025 |title=The Black Rep's take on August Wilson's 'Radio Golf' marks a historic milestone |url=https://www.stlpr.org/arts/2025-05-22/black-reps-august-wilsons-radio-golf-marks-historic-milestone |access-date=March 11, 2026 |website=STLPR |language=en}}</ref> and the Seatlle Repertory Theatre.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pierce |first=Jerald |date=April 19, 2023 |title=At Seattle Rep, delving into what made August Wilson an all-time great |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/theater/at-seattle-rep-delving-into-what-made-august-wilson-an-all-time-great/ |access-date=March 11, 2026 |website=The Seattle Times |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2018, the Wilson estate and the ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'' recognized the 15 different professional, non-profit, and community theater organizations that had, at that point, staged the cycle.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=February 23, 2018 |title=New Award to Honor Producers of Full August Wilson Cycle |url=https://www.americantheatre.org/2018/02/23/new-award-to-honor-producers-of-full-august-wilson-cycle/ |access-date=March 11, 2026 |website=American Theatre |language=en-US}}</ref> They also announced that they would grant future cycle-completers an official plaque to mark the accomplishment.<ref name=":3" />
== Legacy == The Pittsburgh Cycle plays received critical acclaim and accolades at the time of their release. All nine of the plays that were eligible{{Efn|''Jitney'' made its Broadway debut in 2017, but the Tony Awards categorized it as a revival, due to a prior off-Broadway production in 1999.}} were nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play, with ''Fences'' the sole winner.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=August Wilson (Writer): Playbill Vault |url=https://playbill.com/person/august-wilson-vault-0000024691 |access-date=March 7, 2026 |website=Playbill}}</ref> Eight of the ten—excepting ''King Hedley II'' and ''Gem of the Ocean—''won Best Play (or Best American Play) from the New York Drama Critics' Circle.<ref name=":0" />
{{Multiple image | direction = vertical | image1 = August Wilson Theatre (52302250226).jpg | caption1 = August Wilson Theatre on Broadway, which was renamed in 2005 for the playwright. | image2 = August Wilson Cultural Center, Pittsburgh, 2023-12-20.jpg | caption2 = August Wilson African American Cultural Center in Pittsburgh, pictured in 2023 }}
Wilson himself is regarded as one of the great American playwrights, often receiving comparison to other totemic playwrights like Eugene O'Neill, Tennessee Williams, and Arthur Miller.<ref name=":13">{{Cite news |last=Brantley |first=Ben |last2=Morris |first2=Wesley |date=January 11, 2017 |title=What August Wilson Means Now |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/11/theater/what-august-wilson-means-now.html |access-date=March 28, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Busby |first=Margaret |date=October 4, 2005 |title=August Wilson |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2005/oct/04/guardianobituaries.artsobituaries |access-date=March 28, 2026 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Buckley |first=Cara |date=February 15, 2017 |title=Denzel Washington, the Oscars and Race |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/15/movies/denzel-washington-the-oscars-and-august-wilson.html |access-date=March 28, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> His completion of a long play cycle—which O'Neill tried and failed to do himself—features prominently among his achievements.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=406-407}} The National August Wilson Wilson Monologue Competition—started in 2007 by Wilson collaborators Kenny Leon and Todd Kriedler—draws largely from the monologues of the cycle.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=428}} The documentary ''Giving Voice'' followed the 2018 competition.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Considine |first=Allison |date=December 15, 2020 |title='Giving Voice' Does Just That for Its Student Competitors |url=https://www.americantheatre.org/2020/12/15/giving-voice-does-just-that-for-its-student-competitors/ |access-date=March 28, 2026 |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2022, the August Wilson African American Cultural Center opened an exhibition featuring some of Wilson's possessions and sets constructed based on different cycle plays.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Eberson |first=Sharon |date=July 8, 2022 |title=The Enduring Legacy of Pittsburgh's August Wilson |url=https://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/the-enduring-legacy-of-pittsburghs-august-wilson/ |access-date=March 28, 2026 |website=Pittsburgh Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref>
In 2005, shortly before his death, Jujamcyn Theaters said it would rename the Virginia Theatre after Wilson, where cycle play ''King Hedley II'' premiered on Broadway.<ref name=":11">{{Cite news |last=McKinley |first=Jesse |date=October 17, 2005 |title=Virginia Theater Takes a New Name: August Wilson |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/17/nyregion/virginia-theater-takes-a-new-name-august-wilson.html |access-date=March 28, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> It was the first Broadway theater to be named after an African American.<ref name=":11" /> At the dedication, which came after his passing, actors performed vignettes from ''Ma Rainey'' and ''Seven Guitars.''<ref name=":11" />
The cycle has returned to Broadway multiple times since Wilson's passing. One production—a revival of ''Joe Turner'' in 2009—received extensive criticism from Wilson mainstays for its white director, Bartlett Sher.<ref name=":12">{{Cite news |last=Healy |first=Patrick |date=April 23, 2009 |title=Race an Issue in Wilson Play, and in Its Production |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/23/theater/23wils.html |access-date=March 28, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Wilson had been firmly opposed to a white director for his film version of ''Fences'' during his lifetime and black directors—like Marion McClinton and Kenny Leon—noted how few opportunities there were for black directors otherwise.<ref name=":12" /> ''Joe Turner'' cast-member LaTanya Richardson Jackson—who herself later directed the 2022 revival of ''The Piano Lesson''<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tillet |first=Salamishah |date=October 7, 2022 |title=LaTanya Richardson Jackson on Directing 'The Piano Lesson' (and Her Husband) |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/07/theater/latanya-richardson-jackson-the-piano-lesson.html |access-date=March 28, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>''—''said she understood the frustration, but praised Sher's directing ability.<ref name=":12" />
{| class="wikitable" |+ '''Major awards for Pittsburgh Cycle plays on Broadway''' ! rowspan="2" |Year ! rowspan="2" |Title ! colspan="2" |Tony Awards ! colspan="2" |Drama Desk Awards ! |- !Nominations !Wins !Nominations !Wins ! |- |'''1984''' !''Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'' ! align="center" |3 ! align="center" |0 !2 !1 !<ref name=":71">{{Cite web |title=Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (Broadway, Cort Theatre, 1984) |url=https://playbill.com/production/ma-raineys-black-bottom-cort-theatre-vault-0000003491 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251214020346/https://playbill.com/production/ma-raineys-black-bottom-cort-theatre-vault-0000003491 |archive-date=December 14, 2025 |access-date=February 25, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''1987''' !''Fences'' ! align="center" |6 ! align="center" |4 !7 !5 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=Fences (Broadway, Richard Rodgers Theatre, 1987) |url=https://playbill.com/production/fences-46th-street-theatre-vault-0000003088 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260121034337/https://playbill.com/production/fences-46th-street-theatre-vault-0000003088 |archive-date=January 21, 2026 |access-date=February 25, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''1988''' !''Joe Turner's Come and Gone'' !6 !1 !7 !0 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=Joe Turner's Come and Gone (Broadway, Ethel Barrymore Theatre, 1988) |url=https://playbill.com/production/joe-turners-come-and-gone-ethel-barrymore-theatre-vault-0000004312 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251205205333/https://playbill.com/production/joe-turners-come-and-gone-ethel-barrymore-theatre-vault-0000004312 |archive-date=December 5, 2025 |access-date=February 25, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''1990''' !''The Piano Lesson'' ! align="center" |5 ! align="center" |0 !5 !1 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Piano Lesson (Broadway, Walter Kerr Theatre, 1990) |url=https://playbill.com/production/the-piano-lesson-walter-kerr-theatre-vault-0000010056 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260114211149/https://playbill.com/production/the-piano-lesson-walter-kerr-theatre-vault-0000010056 |archive-date=January 14, 2026 |access-date=February 25, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''1992''' !''Two Trains Running'' !4 !1 !1 !1 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=Two Trains Running (Broadway, Walter Kerr Theatre, 1992) |url=https://playbill.com/production/two-trains-running-walter-kerr-theatre-vault-0000010053 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251211123355/https://playbill.com/production/two-trains-running-walter-kerr-theatre-vault-0000010053 |archive-date=December 11, 2025 |access-date=February 25, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''1996''' !''Seven Guitars'' !8 !1 !5 !1 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=Seven Guitars (Broadway, Walter Kerr Theatre, 1996) |url=https://playbill.com/production/seven-guitars-walter-kerr-theatre-vault-0000010048 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260115180357/https://playbill.com/production/seven-guitars-walter-kerr-theatre-vault-0000010048 |archive-date=January 15, 2026 |access-date=February 25, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''1999''' !''King Hedley II'' ! align="center" |6 ! align="center" |1 !4 !2 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=King Hedley II (Broadway, August Wilson Theatre, 2001) |url=https://playbill.com/production/king-hedley-ii-virginia-theatre-vault-0000005232 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251212061802/https://playbill.com/production/king-hedley-ii-virginia-theatre-vault-0000005232 |archive-date=December 12, 2025 |access-date=February 25, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''2003''' !''Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'' (Revival) ! align="center" |1 !0 !0 !0 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (Broadway, Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, 2003) |url=https://playbill.com/production/ma-raineys-black-bottom-royale-theatre-vault-0000010182 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251121080344/https://playbill.com/production/ma-raineys-black-bottom-royale-theatre-vault-0000010182 |archive-date=November 21, 2025 |access-date=February 25, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''2004''' !''Gem of the Ocean'' ! align="center" |5 ! align="center" |0 !1 !0 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gem of the Ocean (Broadway, Walter Kerr Theatre, 2004) |url=https://playbill.com/production/gem-of-the-ocean-walter-kerr-theatre-vault-0000010038 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251213220548/https://playbill.com/production/gem-of-the-ocean-walter-kerr-theatre-vault-0000010038 |archive-date=December 13, 2025 |access-date=March 5, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''2007''' !''Radio Golf'' ! align="center" |4 !0 !3 !0 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=Radio Golf (Broadway, Cort Theatre, 2007) |url=https://playbill.com/production/radio-golf-cort-theatre-vault-0000003467 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251213221837/https://playbill.com/production/radio-golf-cort-theatre-vault-0000003467 |archive-date=December 13, 2025 |access-date=February 25, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''2009''' !''Joe Turner's Come and Gone'' (First revival) ! align="center" |6 ! align="center" |2 !0 !0 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=Joe Turner's Come and Gone (Broadway, Belasco Theatre, 2009) |url=https://playbill.com/production/joe-turners-come-and-gone-belasco-theatre-vault-0000010748 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251116034639/https://playbill.com/production/joe-turners-come-and-gone-belasco-theatre-vault-0000010748 |archive-date=November 16, 2025 |access-date=February 25, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''2010''' !''Fences'' (Revival) ! align="center" |10 !3 !4 !3 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=Fences (Broadway, Cort Theatre, 2010) |url=https://playbill.com/production/fences-cort-theatre-vault-0000003462 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260219122826/https://playbill.com/production/fences-cort-theatre-vault-0000003462 |archive-date=February 19, 2026 |access-date=March 7, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''2017''' !''Jitney'' (Revival) ! align="center" |6 !1 !6 !3 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=Jitney (Broadway, Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, 2017) |url=https://playbill.com/production/jitney-samuel-j-friedman-theatre-2016-2017 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260123043437/https://playbill.com/production/jitney-samuel-j-friedman-theatre-2016-2017 |archive-date=January 23, 2026 |access-date=March 5, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''2022''' !''The Piano Lesson'' (Revival) ! align="center" |2 !0 !5 !1 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Piano Lesson (Broadway, Ethel Barrymore Theatre, 2022) |url=https://playbill.com/production/the-piano-lesson-broadway-ethel-barrymore-theatre-2022 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260109050441/https://playbill.com/production/the-piano-lesson-broadway-ethel-barrymore-theatre-2022 |archive-date=January 9, 2026 |access-date=February 25, 2026 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> |- |'''2026''' !''Joe Turner's Come and Gone'' (Second revival) !5 !Pending !2 !2 !<ref>{{Cite web |title=Joe Turner's Come and Gone (Broadway, Ethel Barrymore Theater, 2026) |url=https://playbill.com/production/joe-turners-come-and-gone-broadway-ethel-barrymore-theatre-2026 |access-date=March 7, 2026}}</ref> |- ! colspan="2" |Total ! align="center" |77 ! align="center" |14 !53 !20 ! |}
=== Critical consensus === ''Joe Turner'' is frequently referred to as the best play in the cycle.<ref>{{Cite web |last=McNulty |first=Charles |date=November 1, 2025 |title=Review: The power of August Wilson's best play, 'Joe Turner's Come and Gone,' lives on at A Noise Within |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2025-11-01/joe-turners-come-and-gone-noise-within-august-wilson-review |access-date=March 29, 2026 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Sauer |first=David |title=The Cambridge companion to August Wilson |last2=Sauer |first2=Janice |date=2007 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-86606-4 |editor-last=Bigsby |editor-first=C. W. E. |location=Cambridge; New York |chapter=Critics on August Wilson}}</ref> Frank Rich called the play Wilson's most haunting, after reviewing the original premiere as his "finest achievement."<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Nesmith |first=Nathaniel G. |last2=Rich |first2=Frank |date=2017 |title=August Wilson and American Theater: An Interview with Frank Rich |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/48538110 |journal=The Black Scholar |volume=47 |issue=4 |pages=50 |doi=10.2307/48538110 |issn=0006-4246}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Rich |first=Frank |last2= |first2= |date=May 6, 1986 |title=THEATER: 'JOE TURNER' AT YALE REP |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/05/06/theater/theater-joe-turner-at-yale-rep.html |access-date=March 29, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Wilson biographer Patti Hartigan lays out the consensus on the cycle, with ''Joe Turner'' at the top as "the undisputed masterpiece;" ''Fences, The Piano Lesson'', and ''Gem of the Ocean'' as "classics;" and ''King Hedley II'' as "the weakest," with the other lesser plays having considerable strengths.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=422-423}} Harold Bloom included both ''Fences'' and ''Joe Turner'' in his 1994 canon of Western literature.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bloom|first=Harold|title=The Western Canon: The Books and School of the Ages|date=1994|publisher=Harcourt Brace|isbn=978-0-15-195747-7|edition=1st|location=New York|page=566}}</ref>
Critics Wesley Morris, Ben Brantley, Maya Phillips, and others have favorably compared the cycle to the work of William Shakespeare.<ref name=":13" /><ref name=":4" /><ref name=":14">{{Cite web |last=Regatao |first=Gisele |date=February 20, 2015 |title=August Wilson, the American Shakespeare |url=https://www.wnyc.org/story/august-wilson-american-shakespeare/ |access-date=March 29, 2026 |website=WNYC |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Ifill |first=Gwen |author-link=Gwen Ifill |last2=Wilson |first2=August |date=April 6, 2001 |title=American Shakespeare |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/american-shakespeare |access-date=March 29, 2026 |website=PBS News |language=en-us}}</ref> Sam Pollard, who directed a documentary on Wilson for PBS, felt the Shakespeare label fit due to the unique scope of the cycle. <blockquote>His body of work really covers the whole 20th century of American history. There is no other American playwright who did that body of work over a period of time.<ref name=":14" /></blockquote>
=== Impact on theater community === Multiple black actors—including Charles Dutton, Rocky Carroll, S. Epatha Merkerson, Viola Davis, Delroy Lindo, Laurence Fishburne, Angela Bassett, Courtney B. Vance—had their first major roles in the plays of the cycle.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Simonson |first=Robert |date=March 26, 2019 |title=Did You Know These Major Stars Got Their Start in August Wilson Plays? |url=https://playbill.com/article/did-you-know-these-major-stars-got-their-start-in-august-wilson-plays |access-date=March 29, 2026 |work=Playbill}}</ref>{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=417}} Dutton, Bassett, and Vance came to the roles shortly after their time at Yale Drama School under Lloyd Richards, who also invited them to the O'Neill workshops.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=115}} Other actors, known as "Wilson Warriors," featured repeatedly in the later plays and subsequent revivals—including as directors—creating a small community with each other.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=241}} Among those identified as Wilson warriors are Ruben Santiago-Hudson,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Miller |first=Stuart |date=October 30, 2013 |title=Stepping Into His Friend's Shoes |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/03/theater/ruben-santiago-hudson-plays-august-wilson-in-a-new-show.html |access-date=March 29, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Anthony Chisholm, Stephen McKinley Henderson,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Healy |first=Patrick |date=June 8, 2010 |title=A Stalwart in the Club of 'Essential Wise Men' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/09/theater/09wilson.html |access-date=March 29, 2026 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> and Phylicia Rashad,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wilker |first=Deborah |date=September 7, 2016 |title=Phylicia Rashad Returns to the Work of August Wilson |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lifestyle/lifestyle-news/phylicia-rashad-returns-work-august-926263/ |access-date=March 29, 2026 |website=The Hollywood Reporter |language=en-US}}</ref> among others.{{Sfn|Hartigan|2023|p=425-426}}
Davis reflected on his "revolutionary" impact in making black characters into "kings and queens."<ref name=":4" /> Successive black playwrights, including Suzan-Lori Parks, Tarell Alvin McCraney, Katori Hall, and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Haun |first=Harry |date=February 1, 2017 |title='Everybody' Wants Some! Branden Jacobs-Jenkins is a Young Playwright on the Rise |url=https://observer.com/2017/02/branden-jacobs-jenkins-playwright-interview-everybody/ |access-date=March 29, 2026 |website=Observer |language=en-US}}</ref> have each cited the substantial—and sometimes detrimental—impact Wilson's cycle has had on their own work.{{Sfn|Maley|2019|p=169-174}} Dominique Morriseau credited the Pittsburgh Cycle with inspiration for her own three-play "Detroit Project," which she completed in 2022 with ''Skeleton Crew''.<ref name=":4" />{{Sfn|Maley|2019|p=169}}
== Notes == {{Notelist}}
== References == <!-- Inline citations added to your article will automatically display here. See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WP:REFB for instructions on how to add citations. --> {{reflist}}
=== Sources === {{Refbegin}} *{{Cite book |last=Sweet |first=Jeffrey |title=The O'Neill: The Transformation of Modern American Theater |publisher=Yale University Press |year=2014 |isbn=9780300206937 |language=EN}} *{{Cite book |last=Hartigan |first=Patti |title=August Wilson: A Life |publisher=Simon & Schuster |year=2023 |isbn=978-1501180668 |edition=1st}} *{{Cite book |last=Sternlicht |first=Sanford |title=August Wilson's Twentieth-Century Cycle Plays: A Reader's Companion |publisher=Texas Tech University Press |year=2015 |isbn=978-0-89672-900-1 |location=Lubbock, Texas}} *{{Cite book |last=Maley |first=Patrick |title=After August: Blues, August Wilson, and American Drama |publisher=University of Virginia Press |year=2019 |isbn=9780813943022}} *{{Cite book |last=Tracy |first=Steven |title=August Wilson: Completing the Century Cycle |publisher=University of Iowa Press |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-58729-875-2 |editor-last=Nadel |editor-first=Alan |location=Iowa City, IA |language=En |chapter=The Holyistic Blues of Seven Guitars}} *{{Cite book |last=Shannon |first=Sandra |title=August Wilson: Completing the Twentieth Century Cycle |publisher=University of Iowa Press |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-58729-875-2 |location=Iowa City, IA |language=En |chapter=Turn Your Lamp Down Low! Aunt Ester Dies in King Hedley II. Now What?}} {{refend}}
== External links ==
* [https://awaacc.org/american-century-cycle/ August Wilson African American Cultural Center page on cycle] * [http://www.augustwilson.library.pitt.edu/ August Wilson Archives, University of Pittsburgh] * [https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/august-wilson-the-ground-on-which-i-stand-scenes-and-synposes-of-august-wilsons-10-play-cycle/3701/ PBS list of cycle plays, featuring filmed excerpts] * [https://archives.uncsa.edu/repositories/2/resources/32 WNYC recordings of the cycle, hosted by University of North Carolina]
{{Pittsburgh Cycle}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pittsburgh Cycle, The}} Category:The Pittsburgh Cycle Category:Plays set in Pittsburgh Category:All-Black cast Broadway shows Category:1980s plays Category:1990s plays Category:2000s plays Category:American plays adapted into films Category:American plays Category:Culture of Pittsburgh