In honor of what would have been his 74th birthday, April’s Playwright Profile is on the legendary and prolific playwright, August Wilson.
August Wilson was born Frederick August Kittel on April 27, 1945. His mother, Daisy Wilson, was black and his father was a white, German immigrant. Since his father was mainly absent throughout his life, Wilson and his five other siblings were raised by their mother in the Hill District community of Pittsburg ("The Ground on Which I Stand"). When Wilson’s father died, he changed his name to August Wilson in honor of his mother (August).
Wilson was bullied in school due to being biracial ("The Ground on Which I Stand"), which resulted in him dropping out of high school in 1960 after his teacher accused him of plagiarizing a paper (“The Man Behind the Legacy”). He did not tell his mother he left school and instead continued his education at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh ("The Ground on Which I Stand"). He joined the army in 1962 but left after one year, despite having enlisted for three. He returned to Pittsburgh and worked odd jobs in order to support himself (“The Man Behind the Legacy”).
Wilson was an avid reader and from a very young age he began writing poetry. He would listen to people’s stories and how they talked, which would then influence his writing ("The Ground on Which I Stand"). He was also heavily influenced by Malcolm X and the Blues (August). The blues influenced his playwriting, with Wilson saying:
“I chose the blues as my aesthetic…I create worlds out of the ideas and the attitudes and the material in the blues. I think the blues are the best literature that blacks have. It is an expression of our people and our response to the world. I don't write about the blues; I'm not influenced by the blues. I am the blues” (Flatow).
In the 1960s, Wilson joined a group of poets, educators, and artists, who then formed the Centre Avenue Poets Theater Workshop. While part of the group, Wilson met Rob Penny, and in 1968 they co-founded the Black Horizon Theater, a Black Nationalist Theater Company in Pittsburg (“The Man Behind the Legacy”). One of Wilson’s first plays, Jitney, was performed as part of his theater company (August). Jitney would go on to become a part of his collection of plays called, The Pittsburgh Cycle ("The Ground on Which I Stand").
Wilson relocated to Minneapolis, where he then received a fellowship to Minnesota Playwrights Center. He was then accepted to the National Playwrights Conference at the O’Neill Center in Connecticut ("The Ground on Which I Stand"). In 1987, Wilson received the Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize for his play, Fences. In 1990, he won the Pulitzer Prize again for The Piano Lesson (August). Fences and The Piano Lesson were part of his ten-play cycle, The Pittsburgh Cycle. Each play took place in a different decade from the past century. All of them, except one, took place in Pittsburgh ("The Ground on Which I Stand"). The plays combine “…historical fact, comedy, and gritty realism with spiritual and supernatural elements of African and African-American cultures” ("The Ground on Which I Stand").
Wilson was married three times and had two children. During his first marriage, he converted to Islam in order to ensure the survival of his marriage to Brenda Burton in 1969 (August). In 2005, Wilson was diagnosed with terminal liver cancer. He died on October 2, 2005 ("The Ground on Which I Stand").
Wilson was an incredibly prolific playwright, whose plays remain an important part of theater history, as his work is still being produced today. His work also helped propel the careers of future artists, specifically artists of color. I highly suggest reading his work because of is his importance to the theater and society.
Works Cited
“AUGUST WILSON.” August Wilson, Pulitzer Winning Playwright: Biography, www.august-wilson-theatre.com/biography.php.
“August Wilson: The Man Behind the Legacy.” Center Theatre Group, www.centertheatregroup.org/programs/students-and-educators/august-wilson-monologue-competition/august-wilson-biography/.
“August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 29 Feb. 2016, www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/august-wilson-the-ground-on-which-i-stand-august-wilsonbiography-and-career-timeline/3683/.
Flatow, Sheryl. “August Wilson and the Power of Blues.” Playbill, PLAYBILL INC., 22 Mar. 1996, www.playbill.com/article/august-wilson-and-the-power-of-blues-com-100695.
Images
https://www.amazon.com/Fences-August-Wilson/dp/0452264014
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