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Fences

Published by USC Bedrosian Center on

Our inaugural episode of the Price Projection Room podcast features a lively discussion of the film adaptation of August Wilson’s Fences, directed by Denzel Washington.

Fences is part of Wilson’s series of ten plays, all set in Pittsburgh depicting different decades of African American life in the city, The Pittsburgh Cycle. Fences is set in the 1950’s, and its universal themes of generational, working class, and familial struggle make its setting in time seem unimportant. The film is directed by and stars Denzel Washington, along with Viola Davis, Stephen Henderson, Jovan Adepo, Russell Hornsby, Mykelti Williamson and Saniyya Sidney. Washington plays Troy Maxson, a former baseball player whose career in sports was cut short with a stint in prison for murder. Years later, bitter for a career lost, he stands to oppose his youngest son’s desire to play football. While Tory struggles to find himself amidst the duties of family and work, the audience begins to see that each character faces the same grapples with the same interior dilemmas. This family drama focuses on themes of race, duty, class, and masculinity. For a summary of the film and its themes, check out the review on the Roger Ebert site.

Warning: *spoilers!*

Featuring Gregg T. Daniel, Ange-Marie Hancock, Jonathan Schwartz, and Erroll Southers

Special thanks to Dean Jack Knott, USC Price; Dean David Bridel, USC School of Dramatic Arts; and Dean Elizabeth Daley, USC Cinematic Arts for their support of this interdisciplinary conversation.

To listen to the Price Projection Room discussion of Fences click the orange arrow in the Soundcloud player at the top of this post. Or you can download it and subscribe through iTunes, Soundcloud, or Google Play.

 

Intersections: August Wilson, Writing to the Blues
Constanza Romero Wilson On Her Late Husband August Wilson’s Oscar Nomination
James Earl Jones – Fences “You Ain’t Never Liked Me”
What August Wilson Means Now by Ben Brantly and Wesley Morris in The New York Times
An Interview with August Wilson by Yvonne Shafer in the Journal of Dramatic Theory & Criticism
Reproducing Racism by Daria Roithmayr

What to watch next …

13th
American History X
Dope
Falling Down
Good Will Hunting
Gran Torino
I Am Not Your Negro

Let us know what you think of the film and our conversation at Facebook or Twitter.

This podcast is sponsored by Price Video Services and USC Bedrosian Center,
and continues our ongoing efforts to bring policy and its impact into the public discourse.

Special thanks to Dean Jack Knott, USC Price; Dean David Bridel, USC School of Dramatic Arts; and Dean Elizabeth Daley, USC Cinematic Arts for their support of this interdisciplinary conversation.

This podcast was produced by Aubrey Hicks and Jonathan Schwartz, recorded and mixed by Corey Hedden.
@AubreyHi
@jonHLYP
@coreyhedden

Bedrosian Center