According to someone on All That Chat yesterday, acclaimed playwright, August Wilson, only saw about 20 plays in his lifetime. Supposedly, he didn't go see plays he didn't write. I find it fascinating but hard to believe. I was actually an usher at his play Fences on Broadway with James Earl Jones. I must have seen the play over 30 times. Maybe I saw it more than he did. I recently read it again and I could hear the actors inflections in my head as if it were yesterday. As much as I admired it as a read, I was acutely aware that had I not seen the play first with the amazing cast on Broadway, I would not have appreciated how great the play is. I wish I were a better script reader. I also remember that it was the first time I had seen a drama on Broadway where the black audience members responded vocally: "That's right!" "You tell him!" "Mmmm hmmm!" "Amen" It often felt like being at a church revival and I remember thinking that in comparison, white audiences are boring. One line has stuck with me all these years and I've never forgotten it:
Troy: "Driving ain't nothing! You just point the car where you wanna go."
No comments:
Post a Comment