Tony Award Winning Jitney Visits Arena Stage

Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winning playwright August Wilson has produced mesmerizing American narratives for decades, ever since his first play Recycle premiered in 1973. The fabrics formed by Wilson intentionally edifies viewers of the similar experiences lived by all Americans but through the purview of African American characters and communities. 

Fortunate for DC theatergoers, now through October 20, Arena Stage is performing a piece from Wilson’s critically acclaimed “Pittsburgh Cycle” in Jitney, directed by Ruben Santiago-Hudson. The play is part of a larger August Wilson Festival, with a series of events through May 2020.

Jitney is set in the Pittsburgh Hill District in the 1970s. Here, Wilson brings the resiliency of communities who operate out of necessity to life. In a predominately black community of the hardworking city, taxis were rare, if at all a factor. To facilitate everyday functions like going to the grocery store, attending church and visiting loved ones, unofficial and unlicensed taxis were necessary to transport folks throughout the city. 

In true Wilson fashion, the story follows complex lives of jitney drivers, placing the vulnerabilities of this American subsection center stage. 

“This production is our production; I’m not competing with anyone, but I’m bring something uniquely different.”

Director Santiago-Hudson is quite familiar with the famous works of Wilson, collecting a 1996 Tony Award as an actor for his role in Seven Guitars.

“August suggested years and years ago that I direct his play[s], starting with Gem of the Ocean, which led to others like Seven Guitars, Two Trains Running and now Jitney,” Santiago-Hudson shares.  

Not only is Santiago-Hudson a critically acclaimed stage actor and director, he has also stood alongside great actors in films such as Denzel Washington in American Gangster and Halle Berry in Their Eyes Were Watching God.  He’s also a reoccurring actor on the Oprah Winfrey Network’s David Makes Man, SHOWTIMES’s Billions and BET’s The Quad. 

Of all the acting, directing successes Santiago-Hudson has enjoyed during the course of his career, reviving Jitney on Broadway provides a special point of pride, as the play won a Tony for Best Revival under his direction in 2017.

“This play is not only poetic, it’s impactful, traumatic, comedic and it’s beautifully written”, Santiago-Hudson continues. “Those black communities [where race can determine if a taxi serves your community] exist all over the country, it’s not unique. But what makes it brilliantly unique is that August turns it into a [fully] realized theatrical production, which is simply a celebration of African American culture and life.”

Though Jitney has been produced by others, including four showings in DC, Santiago-Hudson is  introducing his own original, authentic, rendition of Wilson’s work.

“This production is our production; I’m not competing with anyone, but I’m bring something uniquely different.”

Enhancing the work of Wilson could be seen as a major challenge, if not impossible, but Santiago-Hudson incorporates an original score, composed by recently deceased musician Bill Sims Jr., which he insists will augment the viewing experience.

“The music is almost like a Greek chorus or a mood ring, like a conscience of the play. It will give you a certain feeling.”

“It’s like smelling momma’s cooking, when you walk into your momma’s house and smell her cooking, it elicits a feeling from you,” he continues.  “When you hear Bill Sims’ music, it elicits feelings, it makes you want to rock, makes you bop, makes you melancholy, makes you sad and it makes you happy. It makes you think. Music is never apart from the play, it is a part of the play being directed.” 

The production in DC is the first of many stops in Jitney’s national tour. Generally, when a play does a national tour the cast often differs from the Broadway performance. However, Santiago-Hudson’s Jitney at the Arena Stage will feature the same troupe as the 2017 Tony Award winning performance.

“I am bringing the Broadway production of Jitney to the Arena. The same writer, same director, same costume designer and 80 percent of the same cast. I am really excited to bring this group of actors and this production to DC, the nation’s capital.”

August Wilson’s Jitney, directed by Ruben Santiago-Hudson will be showing at Arena Stage until October 20. Tickets are $82 and can be purchased by visiting the Arena Stage Ticket portal. 

Arena Stage: 1101 Sixth Street SW, DC; 202-488-3300; www.arenastage.org