-
-
Netflix announced the news yesterday. First as a Broadway revival whenever that resumes, then a film transfer with the original cast intact. It looks like Barry Jenkins won’t direct the film, as originally planned, b/c he’s making a “Lion King” prequel. :-/ LaTanya Richardson-Jackson will direct the stage production. Starring her husband, Samuel L. Jackson in a supporting role. The leads are John David Washington and Danielle Brooks.
From BroadwayWorld:
THE PIANO LESSON to Hit Broadway and the Big Screen Starring Samuel L. Jackson, Danielle Brooks, and John David Washington
Samuel L. Jackson, Danielle Brooks, and John David Washington are set to star in a Broadway revival of August Wilson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play “The Piano Lesson” in 2022. The production will be directed by LaTanya Richardson-Jackson.
Following its Broadway run, the same cast will star in its film adaptation, making it the third of Wilson’s Pittsburgh Cycle plays be adapted as a movie, following “Fences” (2016) and “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (2020).
“The Piano Lesson” is set in 1936 Pittsburgh and follows the lives of the Charles family as they deal with themes of family legacy and more, in deciding what to do with an heirloom, the family piano.
The play was first staged in 1986 at the National Playwrights Conference. It was then staged in 1988 at the Huntington Theatre Company in Boston, and then opened on Broadway in 1990. The production starred Carl Gordon, Charles S. Dutton, Rocky Carroll, S. Epatha Merkerson and more. The 1990 production won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play, and the New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award for Best Play. It won the Peabody Award in 1995.
The TV adaptation of “The Piano Lesson” was nominated for the 1995 Emmy Award for Outstanding Made for Television Movie and the 1996 Emmy Award Outstanding Television Movie or Mini-Series.
“The Piano Lesson” was revived Off-Broadway in 2013 and starred Roslyn Ruff, Brandon J. Dirden, Chuck Cooper, and more. It won the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Revival, as well as Outstanding Lead Actress, Outstanding Featured Actor, and Outstanding Director.
ReplyEither the tradition will continue and Jackson will be in the running for an Oscar win, or people will already be burnt out by the August Wilson film series. Personally, I just wish they did more to justify these adaptations by providing more cinematic elements. I’m tired of watching unchanged stage plays on a screen.
ReplyCopy URL
This post was found to be inappropriate by the moderators and has been removed.
This post was found to be inappropriate by the moderators and has been removed.It was officially announced a month ago that the Broadway revival production will begin performances on September 19, 2022. Hopefully this means that the film adaptation is get closer to reality as they production should close by early 2023 and it should start production that January or latest by April like Fences.
I’m still holding out for a 2023 release but I am confident that the movie will be released by 2024 at the latest.
ReplyCopy URLI had even forgotten this was even a thing. All the news about it just dropped.
They wanted to do the Broadway revival first and plans for that to happen in fall 2021 didn’t materialize and the actors had projects that started filming in the first few months of this year so they had to postpone the revival to this fall. The filming of the movie adaptation should begin soon after the Broadway revival.
ReplyCopy URL
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
