AMERICAN THEATRE | Brandon J. Dirden Caps the Wilson Cycle With a ‘Gem’

This month Brandon J. Dirden joins a choose group of theatre artists. Along with his look as Caesar Wilks in Gem of the Ocean at Two River Theater in Purple Financial institution, N.J., by June 30, he completes the August Wilson cycle—i.e., he has both acted in or directed each one of many 10 performs the late playwright wrote, every set in a special decade of the twentieth century.

Dirden acquired a little bit of a head begin on this journey, showing at age 11 within the canon’s youngest position, Reuben Scott, in Joe Turner’s Come and Gone on the Alley Theatre in his hometown of Houston. Since then he’s racked up spectacular credit on TV (The Individuals) and on Broadway (All of the Manner, Skeleton Crew), with a recurring backbeat of Wilson working by his résumé.

As he informed me in a latest Zoom dialog, Wilson isn’t the one long-running theme in his life: Two River Theater has additionally turn into a creative dwelling, as Gem marks his twelfth look there in 12 seasons. He and his spouse, the gifted actor-director Crystal Dickinson, reside in close by West Orange, and he or she has additionally been a frequent presence at Two River, each alongside Dirden (in Gem in addition to A Raisin within the Solar) and as an actor underneath his path (in Seven Guitars and 2022’s Wine within the Wilderness).

Gem of the Ocean, set in Pittsburgh in 1904, follows a younger migrant from Alabama, Citizen Barlow, who seeks therapeutic from the non secular chief, Aunt Ester, whereas battle brews on the native mill between its Black employees and Caesar Wilks, the city’s lawman.

The next has been edited for readability and concision.

ROB WEINERT-KENDT: Congrats on finishing the cycle. Inform me, that are those you’ve directed however not appeared in?

BRANDON J. DIRDEN: King Hedley II, Seven Guitars, and Radio Golf—although there’s an asterisk there. I directed it one and a half instances, you can say, as a result of we began it in January 2020, and we acquired by the primary week of previews earlier than it was shut down in March 2020 for the pandemic. They left the arrange at Two River Theater for 2 years whereas the theatre was darkish, and we got here again and reopened the theatre with our manufacturing. However a few days earlier than opening, the actor who performed Previous Joe had an emergency appendectomy—we had been about to open and he simply fell on the stage in rehearsals. So I needed to go on, e-book in hand, for a few week as Previous Joe. So technically I acted in that one too.

Caesar Wilks, the character you play in Gem, is the grandfather of Harmond Wilks, the lead in Radio Golf, and people performs are type of the bookends of the cycle.

I’m so completely happy I’m doing this one final—, they are saying the final shall be first and the primary can be final. Gem is the primary chronologically. I really feel like my understanding might be nearly ample in regards to the lineage of the Wilks household and what August is doing with ancestry. That’s a giant factor for August—in his physique of labor, but in addition personally. What I knew of him personally, within the conversations I used to be fortunate sufficient to have with him, is that he was very large on lineage and on the connective tissue of household. So in quite a lot of his performs—regardless that he by no means claimed to be a historian—I believe he was laying the groundwork to say that our roots are very deep as a individuals.

To come back to Caesar now, after having directed Radio Golf, the place Previous Joe and Harmond Wilks uncover they’re kin—it takes 100 years for that separation to seek out itself resolved in Radio Golf, however this the place we see that separation, in Gem of the Ocean, between Black Mary and the Wilks lineage. Then we see it repaired and are available collectively in Radio Golf. I’d wish to suppose that was fairly intentional on August’s half, to say: It might take a while, it could take a number of generations, however there’s a gravitational pull towards reconnecting and remembering who you might be, the place you come from. There’s energy, there’s energy, there’s legitimacy in an understanding that we have now a previous that’s a lot deeper, a lot richer than the one we’ve usually afforded or allotted as Black individuals on this nation. I don’t understand how a lot I can use that as I’m taking part in Caesar, however simply as an artist I admire the breadth and the scope of what August was trying—and never solely tried however truly did—with the ten performs.

August didn’t shy from depicting battle amongst Black people, not simply in intimate human phrases but in addition in divisions of sophistication, generations, gender. This one has one other edge as a result of Caesar has a badge and helps implement the white man’s legislation. Are you able to speak about how he acquired to that place?

Completely. Caesar thinks that for each human being, our essential objective is survival—and never simply to outlive however to finest survive, given the alternatives or lack thereof. Caesar took a path that will have been unpopular for lots of people. He noticed that the lane wasn’t too crowded for somebody who was prepared to be unlikable to different Black individuals, to take care of legislation and order and be handsomely rewarded. , we all the time had the overseers on the plantations. So this isn’t a novel method to having a greater life as one can see it.

I believe Caesar additionally feels that manner due to the best way he had been handled by different Black individuals alongside the journey. In his efforts to attempt to be honest, to be an sincere businessman, he says, “I’m going to make a bakery and promote meals,” and other people complained about his meals and gave him a tough time. He says, “Okay, I’ll open up a playing joint behind the store,” and there was quite a lot of combating, he had his life threatened, he needed to put some holes in individuals. So he feels the individuals weren’t treating him pretty, and I believe he has a really sensible manner of issues. He has divorced himself from any allegiance based mostly upon pores and skin colour for an allegiance to the pure order of issues, and the pure order of issues right here in America is that there are specific advantages to upholding and sustaining the rule of legislation, even whether it is upholding an influence construction for anyone who doesn’t appear like you. You’ve acquired to be savvy; you’ve acquired to play the hand that was dealt you. I believe that’s Caesar’s modus operandi: I’m taking part in the hand the easiest way that I can.

I’m listening to from you what I hear from quite a lot of actors once they’re taking part in a villain or an antagonist—that you just turn into an advocate on your character, to a fault. You need to see your character from their perspective to play them. Is that proper?

Completely, otherwise you let anyone else do it. As a result of all of the characters on this play deserve a good shake.

What are you drawing on to play Caesar?

I’m initially from Houston, Texas. Excuse me for leaping round, however we’re in an election season, and one factor you hear rather a lot about is the courtship of the Black vote, and also you hear on a regular basis that Black individuals are not a monolith. I believe August is exploring that concept, or constructing on that notion in his physique of labor. So you have got a Caesar and you’ve got a Solly; you have got these completely different factors of view; in Two Trains Working, you have got Memphis and you’ve got Sterling—very completely different factors of view. They’re formed by life experiences, in fact. In Texas, you do discover a lot of conservative Black Republicans. I completely consider that if Caesar had been alive immediately, he could be a Sheriff Clarke, proper? However you even have in Houston an extended custom of Black Civil Rights activists and congressman, like Al Inexperienced. Rising up in Texas gave me a full perspective of the completely different factors of entry which might be doable inside the Black group, and residing aspect by aspect.

The opposite factor that was so advantageous rising up in Houston versus wherever else within the South is that Houston had one of many largest regional theatres, the Alley Theatre, so I used to be afforded the chance to be within the manufacturing of Joe Turner’s Come and Gone once I was 11 years previous. It was one of many first regional productions of the play, and it was directed by Claude Purdy, who was August’s finest buddy, and with the late, nice Roscoe Lee Browne as Bynum. That was my first skilled expertise.

On that play there was an actor, Alex Allen Morris—who might have performed all 10 performs within the cycle by now too—who was an organization member on the Alley Theatre, and he noticed how and dedicated I used to be, whilst a younger actor, and he mentioned, “Bear in mind this title, August Wilson; he’s going to feed your loved ones sooner or later.” I took this to imply, okay, I’m simply going to do August Wilson performs for the remainder of my life. I wasn’t even desirous about Broadway; I noticed this because the lifetime of a regional theatre actor. There was one other man, Russell Andrews, who has performed a bunch of August WIlson and was one in all my large brothers; the subsequent 12 months or two years later, I noticed him do Levee in Ma Rainey’s, so I used to be like: “That is going to be my life, I’m simply going to do August Wilson performs.”

How lengthy was it till your subsequent one?

You may’t actually matter these—and I don’t depend these in my cycle—however in highschool, we did a manufacturing of Ma Rainey’s Black Backside, and I might work on scenes from Fences. The subsequent one was one other manufacturing of Joe Turner’s Come and Gone at Dartmouth School, directed by Clinton Turner Davis; I performed Seth in that one. That’s how I met August. I wasn’t even a pupil there; I had a buddy who was at Dartmouth, and he or she knew how a lot I really like August, so she known as me once I was at Morehouse and mentioned, “Hear, August goes to be instructing right here for this semester. We have now an change program with Morehouse, and it’s essential apply for the change so that you will be up right here whereas he’s right here.” I jumped on it, and I acquired to go on the final minute—my dad and mom needed to scrape collectively some cash to fly me to Boston. I didn’t actually have a winter coat; I’d by no means seen snow. I needed to audition for it, and I used to be already off-book for all the play. I memorized all the three-hour play, and I’ve by no means forgotten a line—that’s the type of impression it made on me. Clinton Turner Davis was like, “Okay, nice, you sound like what you’re doing.”

August was round, and fairly frankly, he didn’t appear to have a full schedule when he was there; we’d see him strolling round or sitting on the nook smoking cigarettes. So I might nudge as much as him and bum some cigarettes. I didn’t even smoke—I might get sick as a canine making an attempt to smoke, however I simply wanted these 10 minutes. After some time he found out what I used to be doing, he was like, “Man, you bought the identical smoke breaks.” However he simply beloved speaking to individuals and telling tales and sharing. He was such a individuals particular person.

So that you performed Reuben, then Seth—you can work your manner by all of the generations simply in Joe Turner. And there are many components for you within the different 9 performs too.

That’s the purpose, proper? I simply hope to maintain my nostril clear lengthy sufficient to the place I can play Bynum. I imply, that’s a present, particularly to Black actors—I’ll even refine that to say, Black male actors. What he gave us is simply an countless quantity of alternatives for self-exploration by his work. At any given time, I don’t care the place I’m or how previous I’m, there’ll all the time be one thing acceptable for me to do in an August Wilson play. That’s releasing in a manner that provides me such an anchor as an artist, to know that there’s something on the market that I can do, even when I simply wish to decide up a e-book with my son and skim aloud. It’s simply exceptional.

You simply alluded implicitly to at least one criticism he all the time acquired—that he didn’t create as many good roles for ladies as he did for males, although he did attempt to handle that with the likes of Berniece and Aunt Ester. The opposite knock he acquired is the sense that he was handled because the anointed Black genius, and that his success didn’t do sufficient to open the door for different writers of colour. What do you consider that criticism?

I wrestle with this query, Rob, I actually do. I don’t suppose that was his accountability or his door to open. I believe it’s society’s job to ensure that anyone can stroll by that door. Did his performs make an excellent case for the riches which might be to be discovered when that door is open to everybody? Completely. However did he open the doorways? I imply, do these doorways get opened with out Lloyd Richards at Yale Rep saying, “That is stage-worthy”? I don’t know. So I can’t give credit score to August for opening these doorways; I can’t communicate for him or say that was his purpose. I solely supply that, as we begin to actually honestly look at our deficiencies within the American theatre as a complete, as is the present mandate, we can’t search for this drawback to be solved by somebody of the marginalized group—for them to write down one thing so simple that it makes the case. We should demand as an American theatre that these doorways stay open to everybody, to all tales. Proper?

Completely. Mentioning Lloyd is basically vital, as a result of he actually did have the ability to open doorways for August and for others, and that did set an instance for others. However I take the purpose—it wasn’t August’s job to do this.

All of it goes into the pot. Subsequent season I’m going to direct Eden by Steve Carter, a playwright who was an affect on August Wilson, identical to Ron Milner or Amiri Baraka. They opened the doorways simply as a lot as August. So you possibly can’t speak about August opening doorways with out wanting on the physique of labor that got here earlier than him that was informing his style and his talent. Once you say “open the door,” that assumes it’s a degree of origin, and it’s positively not.

Proper, and Samm-Artwork Williams’s Residence is at Roundabout; there’s positively a legacy past and earlier than August. It jogs my memory slightly little bit of how Shakespeare is finished to loss of life, however firms like Purple Bull are round to remind us that there have been different playwrights of that interval and earlier than who’re additionally value doing. Additionally like Shakespeare, I discover August Wilson a dialog starter, a lingua franca that simple to match notes on with so many individuals. Alongside these traces, do you have got a favourite play of his?

Actually, no matter one I’m engaged on turns into my favourite. I want that I wouldn’t cop out and provide you with that reply. However as I’m now engaged on Gem of the Ocean, with an actual intentionality of getting to inform the story in entrance of an viewers, it’s like, “Oh my God, this play is the very best one.” After which if I decide up Ma Rainey tomorrow, I’ll be like, “No, that is the very best.” It’s an not possible query for me to present an sincere reply to.

I’ll say there are specific performs, simply based mostly upon what they did for my trajectory as an artist and what they taught me—as a result of each time I work on one in all his performs as an actor or a director, it makes my humanity greater, it implicates me in a manner, it exposes me; I get to seek out out, I’m not as unhealthy as I assumed it was, or I’m even higher than I assumed I used to be, what I’m saying? However actually The Piano Lesson, the 2012 manufacturing we did on the Signature the place I performed Boy Willie, is a seminal second in my profession. Discuss opening doorways—the rooms that I used to be invited to be in after that exact manufacturing, it’s simple. And I made my directorial debut with Seven Guitars; I now have a directing profession, and I’ve to credit score Seven Guitars and my exploration of that play. So there are these two performs—however it’s best to by no means have requested this, as a result of now I’m remembering that once I did Ma Rainey’s Black Backside on the East Coast, my brother Jason was taking part in Levee on the West Coast on the similar time, in order that was an enormous second for our household and the way we intertwine with the canon as nicely.

Jason was additionally in that Piano Lesson with you, is that proper?

Yeah, and earlier this 12 months, I watched Jason do Boy Willie on the Ensemble Theatre in Houston. For years, he wouldn’t contact Boy Willie; he didn’t wish to do it. I wished to direct him, however he was like, “I don’t know, man, I can’t get your Boy Willie out of my head. I want extra distance.” I suppose he does have distance now; he did an unimaginable job. He would name me generally when he was in rehearsals and go, “Look, you’re gonna see this present, so I’m simply gonna inform you—there ain’t no different solution to say this line. So don’t suppose I’m making an attempt to steal your fashion.”

Earlier than you go, I simply wish to ask in regards to the dwelling you’ve made at Two River.

There are Two River posters throughout my workplace. If anybody needs to write down the story of Brandon Dirden, you possibly can’t write it with out Two River Theater. You simply can’t do it. That’s the place I started my relationship with Ruben Santiago-Hudson and August Wilson—I’d labored with Ruben on one other play in New York previous to coming right here, however when it comes to the connection with Ruben and dealing collectively on August Wilson performs, Two River afforded that first alternative. It afforded me my first alternative to direct with Seven Guitars. It has simply been an excellent nurturer.

There’s additionally an unwavering religion that what I can carry to the work as an artist will all the time be value investing in. Not quite a lot of artists, I don’t care who you might be, even you probably have Pulitzer Prize, can say they’ve establishments that sooner or later don’t transfer on and favor the subsequent scorching factor. I’m a run the place I’ve both acted or directed a play there each season for the final 12 years. And never simply me: My brother has labored right here, and my spouse. My father even acquired his Fairness card throughout the manufacturing of A Raisin within the Solar on the age of 72 years previous: I used to be doing Walter Lee, Crystal was doing Ruth, and we introduced my dad in to play Bobo, that small however actually pivotal position on the finish. In order that theatre has supported not solely me however my whole household. It offers me such a confidence in understanding that this place is right here, and that I can stretch out as I develop my creative sensibilities. Subsequent season I’m gonna direct Arthur Miller’s The Worth there.

I believe that is the closest factor we have now to a repertory firm. I grew up in a city the place on the Alley Theatre you can watch Alex Allen Morris and James Black and different rep members play a number of roles over a decade or two. That’s such a uncommon factor now, and I believe to the detriment of the American theatre. However this group in Purple Financial institution, and the New York audiences that come down, we get to be on this journey collectively. The artist I used to be 12 years in the past once I began there—I’m in a special place now. So are they. And we acquired to do this collectively. It’s like once you grew up as a child and you set your peak markings on the wall, and yearly you get slightly taller. I can choose my life as an artist by the reveals I’ve been in a position to do at Two River. I can see these markings 12 months after 12 months after 12 months after 12 months.

Rob Weinert-Kendt (he/him) is editor-in-chief of American Theatre.

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