How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
#1How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 5/26/10 at 9:43pmI've been thinking about reading the cycle of ten plays that August Wilson wrote. I was wondering what you people thought was the best way to approach them. In chronological order by date written/performed, or by the decade in which they occur. Thanks.
#2How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 5/26/10 at 9:47pmI would do it by date written and performed.
#2How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 5/26/10 at 10:26pmPersonally, I think it would be best to read them chronologically by the decade they represent. You're reading about the rise, fall and rehabilitation of a neighborhood and some of the plays make reference to past events and characters from plays that weren’t written yet. And you can notice how, as a whole, the spiritual aspects of the plays and the poetry of the language gradually fades as the century progresses.
#3How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 5/26/10 at 10:28pm
I'm actually doing the same thing this summer. I started at the end of the century with KING HEDLEY and RADIO GOLF. Just started GEM OF THE OCEAN and sticking with chronological order as best I can.
#4How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 7/12/10 at 10:04amI'm resurrecting this thread because I'm still curious as to how you all would read the ten play cycle.
#5How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 7/12/10 at 10:25am
Got this from Wiki, hope it helps:
1900s - Gem of the Ocean (2003)
1910s - Joe Turner's Come and Gone (198
1920s - Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (1984) - set in Chicago
1930s - The Piano Lesson (1990) - Pulitzer Prize[4]
1940s - Seven Guitars (1995)
1950s - Fences (1987) - Pulitzer Prize[4]
1960s - Two Trains Running (1991)
1970s - Jitney (1982)
1980s - King Hedley II (1999)
1990s - Radio Golf (2005)
#6How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 7/12/10 at 10:27amObiHave, I actually have a list of them by decade and by performed, and that is the list I used to make them. It is a nice list as a quick reference.
iluvtheatertrash
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/9/04
#7How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 7/12/10 at 10:48amRead them in order of the date Wilson has set the play, not the date he wrote it.
#8How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 7/12/10 at 12:01pm
I would read them in the chronological order, from 1900s-1990s. To me, it only makes sense. By the way, does anyone know why they weren't (edit: written) in order? And what the benefit would be to read them as they were produced?
Updated On: 7/12/10 at 12:01 PM
Phyllis Rogers Stone
Broadway Legend Joined: 9/16/07
#9How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 7/12/10 at 12:10pm
By the way, does anyone know why they weren't produced in order?
Because they weren't written in order.
#10How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 7/12/10 at 2:27pmEach play is stand-alone, so you really can read them in any order. However, if you're looking at it from a completist point of view, I'd recommend reading it chronologically. But really, they can be read in any order without missing too much.
#11How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 7/12/10 at 11:48pmAC126748, yeah, I know they are stand alone. I don't know why I feel the need to read them in a certain order; I just felt like it needed it. I'm weird that way. I was at Barnes and Noble, and they had The Piano Lesson and Fences, but I decided not to buy either of them because they were in the middle. I'm a freak, but to me it just felt like I needed to read them in a certain way to, I guess, get a meaning from them, but that doesn't make much sense. I don't know...
#12How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 7/13/10 at 12:22amI'm surprised that there hasn't been a publication of the plays together...
#13How to Read The Pittsburgh or Century Cycle by August Wilson
Posted: 7/13/10 at 10:43amI think there's a box set, but nothing like a whole book of them together. It is weird.
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