Latest news with #AugustWilson
CBC
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
Courtney B. Vance finds the softness in tough guy characters
Courtney B. Vance has played plenty of strong men. He was a teenager who enlists in the navy in the Broadway debut of August Wilson's Fences, the Assistant District Attorney on Law & Order: Criminal Intent, and now, he's former CIA Agent Cobra Bubbles in the new live action Lilo & Stitch movie. Vance says the key to portraying these characters is digging deep below their tough guy act, and getting in touch with their vulnerabilities. "[Cobra Bubbles] is a very tight gentleman," Vance tells Q 's Tom Power. "But he has an arc… actually, to see his emotional side." WATCH | Courtney B. Vance's full interview with Tom Power: While Lilo & Stitch may be aimed at children, Vance thinks it's a story that will resonate with viewers of any age. Even as a man in his sixties, who wasn't initially familiar with the original 2002 movie, he feels that this story is universally relatable. "That's what's so moving, I believe, about the story, is that we all are Stitches… we have to make transitions in life. And this is one of those where we have to make a decision," he says. "We all get to that point in our lives where it's just you, and sitting on the edge of the bed at two in the morning, and you've got to make a decision tomorrow." WATCH | Official Trailer for Lilo & Stitch (2025): Courtney B. Vance was also asked to find the emotional core of a more controversial man: the lead attorney who defended O.J. Simpson. To some, it might seem like a daunting challenge. But once Vance learned that Johnnie Cochran grew up as the only Black student in an all white school, he was immediately able to connect with his perspective. "That was what my parents did with me," he explains. "I knew that he was someone that had to get in there and figure it out. And navigate in uncharted waters, and find his way. And make people feel okay about who I am." Vance was all too familiar with the nuances of that fundamental experience in Johnnie Cochran's life. It allowed him to deliver his performance intuitively, rather than obsessing over how to imitate Cochran's exact voice or mannerisms. He ended up winning an Emmy and a Critics Choice Award for the role. " I recognized in him, me." Vance says. "All the experiences I went through in the industry prior to that gave me the confidence to say, 'I don't need to look at footage. Because if I look at footage, I'm going to be in my head. I don't need to be in my head. The scripts are written, they're great scripts. I think if I get the spirit of him, people will forgive the specificity.'" With over four decades in theatre, television, and film, Vance has a wise view of what makes it all worthwhile. It's not about adding more roles to his illustrious resume, or winning awards– it's about working with great teams on set. "It's the people… the scripts and performances are made by the experience," he says, as he reflects on working with the director of Lilo & Stitch. "We were all set up for success. If the environment's not right, we ain't going to be right."
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Radical de-investment': $600K cut to Oregon arts groups
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Artistic Director Brian Weaver would like to focus on the August Wilson play, that is now playing. Instead he's dealing with a $25,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts that was withdrawn the day before the play opened. The grant was initially awarded to help fund the show about Black history. Since it was withdrawn, the public stepped up to help cover the financial loss. 'If you're saying , 'Could people just pay for it directly?' I would say yeah, they could,' Weaver told KOIN 6 News. 'They could pay for roads, too. They could pay for schools. If you strip away public money, individuals will pay for it, but it will leave a lot of people behind.' The head of the said so far nearly $600,000 promised to dozens of Oregon organizations have been cut. While some arts organizations can get large donors to help fill gaps, that's not the case at most performing arts locations, especially in smaller communities. The shows and performances often help local economies as people dine out and explore the area. 'I think what we're seeing at every level of government is a radical de-investment in arts,' said Josh Hecht of the . 'And if we think that art and culture does a public good, then the public needs to support the art.' On Monday, US Rep. Suzanne Bonamici brought groups together to talk about a strategy going forward. Bonamici pledged to continue to fight to restore the NEA funding that was promised but taken away. Meanwhile, arts groups will try and figure out how to plan for the future. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CBS News
10-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Pittsburgh teens travel to New York City for national monologue competition
There are only a handful of Pittsburgh teenagers who can say they've performed on stage at the Apollo Theater. And now, there are two more. They are part of the Bill Nunn Theater Outreach Project. It's designed to get the participants ready for two competitions. The August Wilson Monologue Competition hosts a regional competition in Pittsburgh where students perform the works of the Pulitzer-winning playwright August Wilson. There are also regional competitions for the Next Narrative Monologue Competition, which features the works of contemporary playwrights. "We've been producing this program since 2008. We have witnessed the transformation of our young people," said Demearia Boccella, managing director of the Bill Nunn Theater Outreach Program. Nunn is also a Pittsburgh native and actor who started the program to expose young people to the work of Wilson. For at least two months, the students spent several hours on a Saturday selecting their monologues, memorizing and perfecting every nuance of their delivery. It's a program that introduces them to theater techniques, confidence-building and prizes. Top finalists win scholarship awards to Point Park University and a trip to New York City for the Next Narrative National Monologue Competition. "Traveling to New York for our participants is the winning prize of the monologue competition in addition to the cash prizes," said Boccella. "But really technically, it's like icing on the cake." The regional competitions were held in March. This year's top two Pittsburgh finalists were Dayton Jackson and KenNyah Woods. They earned the right to join the finalists from eight other cities around the country for the national competition in New York. However, this year the Pittsburgh group was a little larger. In a surprise move following the Pittsburgh competition, the Phoenix Helsel Family Foundation came forward and announced that it would sponsor all of the participants to travel to New York to support the finalists. There were screams of joy from the teens. "We do things that are a little bit more creative to help people in those different ways," said Anissa, the foundation's executive director. The students had the full New York experience. They stayed in Harlem, rode the subway to Manhattan, saw the shops on Madison Avenue, enjoyed artwork at the Whitney Museum and saw the Tony-nominated play "Purpose.". Also, the finalists had a chance to meet some of the actors after the show and ask them about their craft. Woods asked actor Glenn Davis, "Putting yourself into a character who has a bipolar issue, was that hard for you as an actor?" "Every character has their difficulties," Davis said. "I don't think I've run into a character in my professional life that I went, oh, this is a cake walk. This is easy." There was more time with well-known performers. Tony Award-winning actress and Broadway director Phylicia Rashad spent lots of time greeting the young people and having an intimate lunch and learn with the finalists. Kenny Leon, the Tony Award-winning director whose current project is "Othello" on Broadway, operates the Next Narrative Monologue Competition through the Kenny Leon True Colors Theatre Company. His ties to Pittsburgh run deep. "Pittsburgh will always be the foundation of the monologue competition," Leon said. "And August Wilson will always be in the Army of soldiers that loved us more than we loved ourselves. They always told our stories, so that's a great reminder to all of us that these young people, they can write their own stories, tell their own stories, speak their own stories, direct their own stories." For the students, the experience left a lasting impression. Jackson and Woods performed their monologues at the Apollo. The rest of the students reflected on their experiences. "All of the actors did an amazing job," said Candace Smith. "Their portrayal of each character was very authentic, and I really like that." Layla Sewell-Wilson said she liked the New Yorkers. "Everybody was so sweet. Like if you wanted to do a TikTok with people, they would do a TikTok," Sewell-Wilson said. Ashlyn Fair said her takeaway was the monologues performed in New York. "Watching everybody execute their monologues in their own way was pretty inspiring," she added. "Everything's a process," said Darnell Peak. "You can't rush anything. You can't jump thinking you're going to be the best already. You just got to take your time, slow down and enjoy it." Taj Jones believes she gained something she didn't expect. "Getting to know these people, it was like a blessing. And I feel like I built a great relationship with these people," she said. "I feel like we're almost family." Tillman added, "I think that each and every one of these kids, no matter what their beginnings were, their endings are going to be something magical."
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Editorial: With Trumpian cruelty, National Endowment for the Arts claws back grants
Whatever you think of the National Endowment for the Arts, or federal funding of the arts more generally, surely reasonable Americans all can agree that government agencies should not claw back previously approved grants when struggling nonprofit organizations had already started their projects after being told they could count on that money. But that's exactly what happened late Friday night when the NEA sent letters to a variety of grantees informing them their grants were being nixed. The after-hours emails, sent from inboxes unwilling to accept replies, followed the release of Trump's budget Friday, wherein he proposed defunding the NEA and the National Endowment for the Humanities, two entities he long has targeted. (Trump also issued an executive order late Thursday cutting off federal funding for NPR and PBS, claiming ideological bias. Court challenges are underway.) In the case of the NEA on Friday night, theaters and other arts groups were told their grants no longer aligned with NEA priorities and were being either rescinded or immediately terminated, depending on the circumstances. Many affected groups contacted reporters and took to social media. In one example, the Portland Playhouse in Oregon said it had received a email from the endowment on the very eve of its opening a production of August Wilson's 'Joe Turner's Come and Gone,' theoretically with $25,000 already promised from the NEA. Let's stipulate for the sake of argument that Trump is within his executive rights as duly elected president to change the 'priorities' of the NEA, although the new NEA criteria listed in the emails we've been shown are bizarre indeed, even including 'fostering A.I. competency,' which sure as heck is not why we attend the live arts in Chicago. Even if they sought change or elimination, any decent president would honor previous commitments, not rescind the funding when the recipient already was in a hole dug in good faith. Trump could have started his new vision, if that's the word, with the next funding cycle, if there is to be any funding cycle. He did not have to destroy the trusted word of an agency long known for empathetic staffers. And let's add here that, in the world of DOGE, $25,000 is not exactly a massive amount of money. The NEA hasn't been a major source of arts funding for years. On the one hand, that means its actions aren't likely to be catastrophic for most grantees. On the other, it makes these actions seem all the more cruel and petty. Perhaps that was Trump's point. If so, it's un-American, unbecoming to his office and, frankly, pathetic. We're aware many nonprofit constituencies are in the same unmoored boat as arts groups, but Friday night's actions were especially sleazy and egregious. At a bare minimum, Trump should direct the NEA to deliver the previously promised checks for projects already underway. And whatever they think of these agencies and their priorities, Republicans in Congress should ensure these matters get a full and fair debate in the light of day. Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@
Chicago Tribune
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Editorial: With Trumpian cruelty, National Endowment for the Arts claws back grants
Whatever you think of the National Endowment for the Arts, or federal funding of the arts more generally, surely reasonable Americans all can agree that government agencies should not claw back previously approved grants when struggling nonprofit organizations had already started their projects after being told they could count on that money. But that's exactly what happened late Friday night when the NEA sent letters to a variety of grantees informing them their grants were being nixed. The after-hours emails, sent from inboxes unwilling to accept replies, followed the release of Trump's budget Friday, wherein he proposed defunding the NEA and the National Endowment for the Humanities, two entities he long has targeted. (Trump also issued an executive order late Thursday cutting off federal funding for NPR and PBS, claiming ideological bias. Court challenges are underway.) In the case of the NEA on Friday night, theaters and other arts groups were told their grants no longer aligned with NEA priorities and were being either rescinded or immediately terminated, depending on the circumstances. Many affected groups contacted reporters and took to social media. In one example, the Portland Playhouse in Oregon said it had received a email from the endowment on the very eve of its opening a production of August Wilson's 'Joe Turner's Come and Gone,' theoretically with $25,000 already promised from the NEA. Let's stipulate for the sake of argument that Trump is within his executive rights as duly elected president to change the 'priorities' of the NEA, although the new NEA criteria listed in the emails we've been shown are bizarre indeed, even including 'fostering A.I. competency,' which sure as heck is not why we attend the live arts in Chicago. Even if they sought change or elimination, any decent president would honor previous commitments, not rescind the funding when the recipient already was in a hole dug in good faith. Trump could have started his new vision, if that's the word, with the next funding cycle, if there is to be any funding cycle. He did not have to destroy the trusted word of an agency long known for empathetic staffers. And let's add here that, in the world of DOGE, $25,000 is not exactly a massive amount of money. The NEA hasn't been a major source of arts funding for years. On the one hand, that means its actions aren't likely to be catastrophic for most grantees. On the other, it makes these actions seem all the more cruel and petty. Perhaps that was Trump's point. If so, it's un-American, unbecoming to his office and, frankly, pathetic. We're aware many nonprofit constituencies are in the same unmoored boat as arts groups, but Friday night's actions were especially sleazy and egregious. At a bare minimum, Trump should direct the NEA to deliver the previously promised checks for projects already underway. And whatever they think of these agencies and their priorities, Republicans in Congress should ensure these matters get a full and fair debate in the light of day.
