The year is 1968 — the height of the civil rights movement — and the buzz of change is in the air. In a small Pittsburgh diner, where the scent of coffee lingers and the weight of uncertainty is heavy, a group of regulars gathers to hope, dream and confront a world that refuses to stand still.
From 1982 to 2005, prolific playwright August Wilson penned 10 standalone plays, each set in a different decade, that capture the Black experience throughout the 20th century. “Two Trains Running,” a Pulitzer Prize finalist, is the seventh chronological installment of Wilson’s American Century Cycle, the slice-of-life series now considered one of American theatre’s crowning achievements.
“The joy and horror of August Wilson’s work is that it doesn’t take much to make it relevant,” said Devin Brain, producing director of The Acting Company, the New York City-based professional theatre group bringing “Two Trains Running” and Shakespeare’s “The Comedy of Errors” to Asheville.
“What’s true in both the 1960s and today is that each day can be filled with struggles and challenges and change, but also with laughter and camaraderie,” he continued. “As Ken Gash, our artistic director, likes to say: This is a play that is absolutely about Black Americans. But, ultimately, it’s a play about Americans. It’s a view of what America is.”
Founded more than 50 years ago by John Houseman and Margot Harley, The Acting Company began as a way to showcase the talents of Juilliard graduates, including notable names like Kevin Kline, Patti LuPone and Rainn Wilson. The company has since evolved into a diverse ensemble of both emerging and veteran actors who tour high-caliber performances to audiences nationwide.
The company’s pairing of “The Comedy of Errors” (Friday, Feb. 28) and “Two Trains Running” (Saturday, March 1) is intentional, offering audiences a contrast in style and storytelling.
“‘Two Trains Running’ is a national treasure, and we wanted to pair it with a piece of classical theatre that took on similar themes, but pushed it in a totally different direction,” Brain said. “We landed on this contemporary translation of ‘The Comedy of Errors,’ partially because, in different ways, both pieces are about finding your place in the world.”
“The Comedy of Errors” follows two sets of identical twins — both separated from their other halves at birth — who unknowingly cross paths in the same city, leaving chaos and confusion in their wake. Originally set in the Mediterranean city of Ephesus, this slapstick comedy about mistaken identities is reimagined in a new and contemporary light, using a 21st century translation that reinterprets antiquated slang, metaphor and double entendre with updated jokes and clever, modern wordplay. In an additional twist, The Acting Company’s adaptation is also set in the same diner as “Two Trains Running.”
“Though it’s not necessarily 1968,” Brain quickly explained. “Our ‘Comedy of Errors’ references contemporary (culture) from the ‘70s, ‘80s, ‘90s and today — replacing all those 400-year-old in-jokes that no one finds funny. You don’t have that disconnect that you sometimes get with Shakespeare and modern audiences.”
While attending both nights is not integral to either play’s enjoyment, Brain encourages audiences to experience both productions to witness the full range of the company’s talent. “Two Trains Running is perfect realism. It’s a tiny, precise glimpse into real people’s lives,” he said. On the other hand, “The Comedy of Errors is absurd, clownish joy. It is literal slapstick. And at the heart of it all — at the heart of The Acting Company — is our great actors, who are capable of embodying both of those things.”
Downtown Asheville’s Wortham Center for the Performing Arts presents two evenings with The Acting Company, beginning with “The Comedy of Errors” at 8 p.m. Feb. 28 and concluding with “Two Trains Running” at 8 p.m March 1. Tickets are available at worthamarts.org.
WANT TO GO?
What: The Acting Company presents Shakespeare’s “The Comedy of Errors” and August Wilson’s “Two Trains Running”
When: 8 p.m. Feb. 28 and March 1
Where: Wortham Center for the Performing Arts, 18 Biltmore Ave., downtown Asheville
