Last Saturday, I took the NJ Transit train to Red Bank, NJ, to see Two River Theater’s critically acclaimed production of August Wilson‘s Radio Golf directed by Obie Award winner Brandon J. Dirden.
Back in March 2020, the production was forced to shut down early in its run because of the pandemic. Now with health and safety protocols in place, the cast and creative team are looking forward to inviting audiences back to the theater. “I think what our return to the Rechnitz stage with August Wilson‘s Radio Golf best represents is the resilience and necessity of live theater. Only because of the incredible and unfailing support of our audiences over the last year and half are we able to return to the story that we began last March. I cannot wait for our community to sit together, once again, and hear how August Wilson‘s words ring even more true in our ears and hearts today than they did 18 months ago. Forever ONWARD!”, says Dirden.
The second glitch was before opening night, Wayne DeHart had to have an emergency appendectomy and director Brandon J. Dirden stepped in to the role of Elder Joseph Barlow until DeHart recovered.
Set in 1997, Radio Golf is the final play of August Wilson‘s American Century Cycle, a series of ten plays documenting the African American experience throughout the twentieth century. The production marks Two River’s sixth play from the Cycle and will run from November 6 – 21, 2021 in Two River’s Rechnitz Theater. Much of the show’s original cast has returned, including: Wayne DeHart (Elder Joseph Barlow), Nathan James (Sterling Johnson), Carl Hendrick Louis (Harmond Wilks) and Robbie Williams (Roosevelt Hicks). Toccarra Cash joined the cast in the role of Mame Wilks.
The creative team includes scenic designer Ed Haynes, costume designer Karen Perry, lighting designer Driscoll Otto, sound designer Kay Richardson, and wig designer Erin Hicks. The casting is by Heidi Griffiths & Kate Murray, and the production stage manager is Megan Smith.
Single tickets are now on sale at tworivertheater.org or 732.345.1400. Prices range from $40 to $70, with discounts available for groups, seniors, and U.S. military personnel, their families, and veterans. Season Subscriptions are also available and, for a limited time, patrons can buy a full season 4-show package for $150 – a savings of up to 50%! The remaining performances are today at 3pm and 8pm and Sunday at 3pm.
A limited number of $25 tickets are available for every performance; $25 tickets may be partial view. Tickets for patrons under 30 are $25 and include the best available seats at every performance.
Lia Chang is an actor, a multi-media content producer and co-founder of Bev’s Girl Films, making films that foster inclusion and diversity on both sides of the camera. Bev’s Girl Films’ debut short film, Hide and Seek was a top ten film in the Asian American Film Lab’s 2015 72 Hour Shootout Filmmaking Competition, and she received a Best Actress nomination. BGF collaborates with and produces multi-media content for artists, actors, designers, theatrical productions, composers, musicians and corporations. Lia has appeared in the films Wolf, New Jack City, A Kiss Before Dying, King of New York, Big Trouble in Little China, The Last Dragon, Taxman. She stars in and served as Executive Producer for the short independent films Hide and Seek, Balancing Act, Rom-Com Gone Wrong, Belongingness and When the World was Young (2021 DisOrient Film Audience Choice Award for Best Short Narrative). She is also the Executive Producer for The Cactus, The Language Lesson, The Writer and Cream and 2 Shugahs.
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Backstage Pass with Lia Chang 