The Century Cycle
Beginning in 1904 with Gem of the Ocean and ending in 1997 with Radio Golf, August Wilson's 10-play American Century Cycle charts the lived experience of African Americans. Over the course of approximately 26 years, Wilson wrote one play for each decade in the 20th century. A feat unrivaled in the theatrical canon, the cycle is primarily set in Pittsburgh's Hill District, a historically Black neighborhood, and celebrates the traditions and magic of what he described as a "separate and distinct" culture with "different philosophical ideas, different ways of responding to the world, different ideas and attitudes, different value."
- Jitney (1982): Set in 1977, this play follows the men who congregate in the jitney cab station owned by Jim Becker. Veterans, formerly incarcerated people, and number runners tell a story of brotherhood, tragedy, and reconciliation.
- Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (1984): This play (the only one not set in Pittsburgh) fictionalizes a recording session of real-life blues legend Ma Rainey and her band. The band gathers on a sweltering Chicago day in 1927 as Ma fights for agency over her art while hot-headed trumpet player Levee confronts the weight of existing in Jim Crow America.
- Joe Turner’s Come and Gone (1984): In Seth Holly’s boarding house in 1911, a community forms among the newly freed roomers. A “conjure man” with a connection to African religion, a young migrant from North Carolina, and a mysterious stranger who arrives searching for the wife who abandoned him and his daughter.
- Fences (1987): The first of Wilson’s two Pulitzer Prize-winning plays, and arguably the most famous of his works, this play is set in 1957 and tells the story of the Maxon family. Led by complicated patriarch Troy, a former Negro League baseball player, and his devoted wife of 18 years, Rose.
- The Piano Lesson (1990): The second of Wilson’s plays to win a Pulitzer Prize, this play is set in 1936 in the aftermath of the Great Depression. Siblings Boy Willie and Berniece disagree on what to do with an invaluable heirloom, the family’s hand-carved piano, crafted by their formerly enslaved ancestor. While Boy Willie, a sharecropper living in the South, feels they should sell it and buy the land he tends, Berniece is emphatic and believes that they should keep it in honor of their family history.
- Two Trains Running (1991): In 1969, Memphis Lee’s diner serves as a meeting place for members of the Hill District. Set against the backdrop of the Civil Rights movement and the rapid gentrification of Pittsburgh, the diner is set for demolition. While Memphis fights for what his restaurant is worth, his customers search for love, freedom, and justice in a changing country.
- Seven Guitars (1995): Fresh from his release from jail and on the heels of the release of his first and only hit record, blues singer Floyd Barton returns to the Hill District in 1940, in hopes of reconnecting with his love, Vera. However, the demons of his past come back to haunt him and he is tragically killed. Those who love him gather to mourn and celebrate his electric life and work.
- King Hedley II (1999): In 1985, King Hedley, a formerly incarcerated man, hatches a plan to support his wife and mother by selling stolen refrigerators to buy a video store and becomes a respectable businessman. This play is a searing critique of the Reagan administration and the “supply-side economics” that led many to financial precarity.
- Gem of the Ocean (2003): In 1904, we are introduced to Ester Tyler, the matriarch of August Wilson’s Century Cycle. Referred to as "Aunt Ester," she is known for opening her home to individuals on the journey toward redemption and the building of a new culture that recognizes the path from Africa to post-enslavement America.
- Radio Golf (2005): The last play in the Cycle, set in 1997, revolves around Harmond Wilkes, an Ivy League-educated local politician whose redevelopment project would alter the Hill District in irreparable ways, namely, by demolishing 1839 Wylie Avenue, the home Aunt Ester occupied for nearly 100 years.
More about August Wilson’s Gem of the Ocean:
The Hill District
The Hill District is a 1.4-square-mile section of Pittsburgh that has been predominantly African American since the 19th century. This small strip of Pittsburgh is where a majority of the Century Cycle Plays are located. To understand more, read to explore where these plays come from!
From the Director: Chip Miller
Director Chip Miller on the significance of memory, history, and ancestral connection in August Wilson's Gem of the Ocean and the other plays of Wilson's Century Cycle.
Behind the Curtain: Spotlight on Aunt Ester
Over the course of approximately 26 years, Wilson wrote one play for each decade in the 20th century. At the center of this tapestry stands Aunt Ester, the character which Wilson himself deemed the most significant in his plays.
Reviews of Gem of the Ocean
"Introspective and keenly engaged with the problems of the world … the play shows that to fix what influences you, you first have to understand and come to terms with, yourself." – Chicago Critic
Gem of the Ocean Reading List
Calling all readers! Multnomah County Library put together a reading list inspired by our production of August Wilson's Gem of the Ocean.
Current & Upcoming
Piano Bar with Courtney Freed and David Saffert
Join us for this monthly event with local songstress Courtney Freed and Portland-based pianist David Saffert as they host a good old-fashioned PIANO BAR.
NASSIM
From Iranian playwright Nassim Soleimanpour (creator of the Off-Broadway smash hit White Rabbit, Red Rabbit) comes an audacious new theatrical experiment, presented in collaboration with Boom Arts. Each night, a new, unrehearsed local performer joins the playwright on stage, while the script waits, unseen, in a sealed box... Touchingly autobiographical yet powerfully universal, NASSIM is a striking theatrical demonstration of how language can both divide and unite us.
Coriolanus
Shakespeare’s tragedy about the war hero Coriolanus and the fight between the elite and the deprived masses will be fueled by a dynamic female and non-binary ensemble with a muscular, movement-focused staging.
First Annual 503 Day
Portland's first annual 503 Day. Discounts on tickets, drink specials, and more!
Pre-Show Music with Chera Chera
As part of BIPOC Affinity Night for Nassim, join us for a pre-show music performance featuring Chera Chera, blending Iranian music and Farsi lyrics for the matinee crowds.
Improvisation Classes for Beginners
Whether you're looking to get more confident in social situations, think quicker on your feet, or get in touch with your imaginative side, these "one-off" improv classes will set you on the path to success!
Portland Center Stage is committed to identifying & interrupting instances of racism & all forms of oppression, through the principles of inclusion, diversity, equity, & accessibility (IDEA).
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