“I read Fences in 1987 and was so moved by its portrait of the deeply troubled Troy Maxson that, as soon as I had turned the last page, I vowed to read everything I could get my hands on that was written by August Wilson.” Thus began Dr. Sandra Shannon's more than 30-year career as a leading scholar of his life and work.
August Wilson’s Century Cycle is a towering achievement of 10 plays documenting the hopes and struggles of African Americans. With increasing popularity in the last 10 years, Fences has become an American classic, dedicated to unearthing the lives, hopes, dreams and struggles of African Americans.
As the Ford’s Theatre Teacher-in-Residence for four weeks, Karen Richey researched contemporary speeches from a wide range of human experiences and cultures. Discover new resources that students can use to make connections between the past and present and see take part in civic dialogue.
Questions abound about which knife John Wilkes Booth used to stab Major Henry Rathbone after he assassinated President Abraham Lincoln. Read on to see what evidence exists in the curatorial files and what our conclusion is.
Many Americans have used oratory as a way to drive civic change. Learn about 10 change-makers whom you might not know about yet.
You might not guess that Ford’s can only fit eight musicians in our 1860s-style band pit, or that we plan for more than a year before staging a musical. Discover the process from our decision to produce to our audience’s applause.
Learn more about the production of August Wilson’s Fences from the director of its 2019 run at Ford’s Theatre, Timothy Douglas.
When John Wilkes Booth was captured, a photo of Lucy Hale was found on his person. But it turns out, that Lucy Hale had captured more hearts in Washington than Booth’s!
One of the most commonly asked questions we hear is, “Why is there a portrait of George Washington decorating the Presidential Box?”
Twelve Angry Men is a play credited with creating a genre: the “courtroom drama.”
