august wilson’s
joe turner’s come and gone

AUGUST WILSON (April 27, 1945- October 2, 2005) authored Gem of the Ocean, Joe Turner's Come and Gone, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, The Piano Lesson, Seven Guitars, Fences, Two Trains Running, Jitney, King Hedley II, and Radio Golf. These works explore the heritage and experience of African-Americans, decade-by-decade, over the course of the twentieth century. His plays have been produced at regional theaters across the country and all over the world, as well as on Broadway.

In 2003, Mr. Wilson made his professional stage debut in his one-man show, How I Learned What I Learned. Mr. Wilson's works garnered many awards including Pulitzer Prizes for Fences (1987); and for The Piano Lesson (1990); a Tony Award for Fences; Great Britain's Olivier Award for Jitney; as well as eight New York Drama Critics Circle Awards for Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Fences, Joe Turner's Come and Gone, The Piano Lesson, Two Trains Running, Seven Guitars, Jitney, and Radio Golf. Additionally, the cast recording of Ma Rainey's Black Bottom received a 1985 Grammy Award, and Mr. Wilson received a 1995 Emmy Award nomination for his screenplay adaptation of The Piano Lesson.

Mr. Wilson's early works included the one-act plays The Janitor, Recycle, The Coldest Day of the Year, Malcolm X, The Homecoming and the musical satire Black Bart and the Sacred Hills. Mr.Wilson received many fellowships and awards, including Rockefeller and Guggenheim Fellowships in Playwriting, the Whiting Writers Award, 2003 Heinz Award, was awarded a 1999 National Humanities Medal by the President of the United States, and received numerous honorary degrees from colleges and universities, as well as the only high school diploma ever issued by the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. He was an alumnus of New Dramatists, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a 1995 inductee into the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and on October 16, 2005, Broadway renamed the theater located at 245 West 52nd Street -The August Wilson Theatre. Additionally, Mr. Wilson was posthumously inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame in 2007.

Mr. Wilson was born and raised in the Hill District of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and lived in Seattle, Washington at the time of his death. He is immediately survived by his two daughters, Sakina Ansari and Azula Carmen Wilson, and his wife, costume designer Constanza Romero.

The Company

Lynch R. Travis (Director and Bynum) Mr. Travis has received theater honors from the Ann Arbor News, Detroit News, Detroit Free Press, Oakland Press, EncoreMichigan, Lansing City Pulse and the Detroit Theatre Examiner and Subscriber Awards at Performance Network and Detroit Repertory Theatres.

Lynch is a Resident Artist at the Purple Rose Theatre, and is the PRTC Chief Diversity Enrichment Officer. He also serves as Workshop Director for the Detroit Repertory Theatre, is a member of the University of Michigan CRLT Applied Theatre Company and was the Supervising Director for the 2023 Obsidian Theatre Festival which was held in downtown Detroit this June.

He has taught Acting and Theater for Ann Arbor Public Schools, Michigan Actors Studio, Mosaic Youth of Detroit, Shakespeare in Detroit, the Vista Maria Residential Program for Girls and lectured at UnWayne State University and Oakland University.

Antoine McKay (Seth) is an actor, writer, and director hailing from the Midwest. He developed his passion for acting at a young age and went on to hone his skills at Eastern Michigan University’s theatre arts program where he studied under world famous acting coach, Uta Hagen. McKay’s professional career began at the Second City’s Main Stages in Detroit and Chicago, where he wrote and performed in over 20 shows. He has appeared in countless commercials and television shows, including Detroit 187, ER, Prison Break, Southside, Sports Action Team, and Empire on Fox. He has also appeared in many feature films. Antoine thanks his lovely wife, Michelle, and their children for all of their love and support.

Yolanda Jack (Bertha) returns to the DRT with Joe Turner’s Come and Gone. She is well known for her work as an actor on our stage, but most recently she made her professional DRT directorial debut on Topdog/Underdog. Before that, she was Cynthia in Sweat. Previous DRT acting credits: Dauphin Island, for which she won the Subscriber Award for Best Actress; Evidence of Things Unseen; The Realization of Emily Linder; A Paradise of Fools; Forgiving John Lennon; Causa Mortis; and Yemaya’s Belly.

Dominik Alec Greyson (Jeremy) is making his Detroit Repertory Theatre debut. He is a former student of the Rep’s Actors Workshop, Michigan Actors Studio, and the Actors Loft. He recently performed in Nobody Wants a Weak Man by Mustard Seed Productions and Love’s Labors Lost at Shakespeare Royal Oak, along with various short and feature films. Dominik is looking forward to continuing to learn the Theatre Arts and learning more from every experience, other actors, and teachers as his career grows.

Will Bryson (Herald Loomis) is keeping his Detroit Repertory Theatre streak alive after recently appearing in Sweat and Topdog/Underdog. Will earned his MFA in Classical Theatre from The George Washington University and his BFA from Wayne State University. He is a veteran actor at the Rep and other Detroit-area theatres. Other Detroit Rep performances include Ghost Gardens, Firepower, and Brother of All. Bryson is a member of the Actors’ Equity Association and an instructor for the Rep’s Actors Workshop.

Tayler Jones (Mattie) is making her first appearance in a Detroit Rep production, but has been on our stage in the Detroit Playwrights Lab Showcase in 2019. Jones received her BFA in Acting from Wayne State University, her MFA in Applied Drama from Eastern Michigan University, and studied Advanced Actor Training at the Moscow Art Theatre School. A Detroit native, Tayler is a versatile theatre artist, actress, director and teaching artist. Recent performances include The Open Door at Matrix Theatre Company, Solo Acts at Limelight Theatre Company, Love’s Labors Lost at Shakespeare Royal Oak, and Snow Queen at Black and Brown Theatre.

Janai Lashon (Molly) is returning to the Rep stage after her appearance as Jasmine in Fairview (2022) where she made her Equity debut. Since then you may have seen her performance as Arlene in Eight Nights at Detroit Public Theatre; as Ensemble in the world premiere of Game. Set. Match. at Tipping Point Theatre; and Aisha in Mrs. Harrison at Williamston Theatre where she was one of the recipients of the ‘22 Wilde Award for Best Lead Actress. She earned her MFA in Acting from Ohio University in 2021, long after graduating from Western Michigan University with a BA in Theatre Performance in 2010. Janai is thankful to be a part of the Rep’s vision to uplift the relevance of August Wilson’s Century Cycle.

Aaron Kottke (Selig) returns to the Detroit Repertory Theatre where he’s been an actor and stage manager many times. Recent Rep appearances include A Facility for Living, Endangered Species, Sweet Pea’s Mama, Harmony Park, and The Puppeteer. Aaron has been a professional actor for 10 years and is a member of the Actors’ Equity Association. Last season, Aaron was behind the scenes as stage manager for Transfers, however he’s happy to be back on the Rep stage.

CJ Williams (Martha) is making her first appearance at the Detroit Repertory Theatre. She earned her BA in Theatre Arts from California State University and is a former Theatre Arts teacher. She began acting professionally in 1989 and decided to unofficially retire from acting years ago, but an unexpected move to Detroit during Covid inspired her to take an acting class to meet people and it reignited her passion for theatre. She recently played the role of Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Shakespeare Royal Oak. She is currently in the beginning stages of forming a new nonprofit community youth theatre program on Detroit's West Side.

Making their professional acting debuts: