Philadelphia-based Arden Theatre Company proudly presents the fourth production of its 2024/25 season with August Wilson’s gripping drama, King Hedley II, beginning Feb. 27. Directed by Pulitzer Prize-winner James Ijames, August Wilson’s King Hedley II, set in 1985, takes audiences on an emotionally charged journey of survival and redemption following an ex-convict’s struggle to rebuild his life against overwhelming odds. The production unfolds on the F. Otto Haas Stage with previews beginning Feb. 27, opening night on March 5, with performances through March 23.
King Hedley II continues Arden’s commitment to August Wilson, marking the sixth play from The American Century Cycle performed here. The cycle chronicles the African American experience across different decades of the 20th century. Previous productions in the cycle performed at the Arden include Fences, The Piano Lesson, Two Trains Running, Gem of the Ocean, and Radio Golf. The two-and-a-half hour play features six of the region’s most talented actors, including Akeem Davis, Kimberly S. Fairbanks, Taysha Marie Canales, Monroe Barrick, Dax Richardson, and Kash Goins.
King Hedley II is set in 1985 in Pittsburgh’s Hill District, a district that still exists today, and remains deeply impacted by poverty and systemic racism. The realistic set design immerses audiences in the heart of the neighborhood, featuring weathered brick rowhomes, overgrown vines, a worn-down backyard, boarded-up windows, and a faded mural. The setting reflects the harsh realities and struggles faced by King Hedley II (Akeem Davis), an ex-con recently released from prison who is determined to rebuild his life despite the limited opportunities available to him. Desperate to provide a stable future for himself and his wife, Tonya (Taysha Marie Canales), Hedley dreams of opening a video store. However, with few legitimate pathways to achieve his goal, he finds himself caught between pursuing his ambition the right way or turning to desperate measures to survive. Hedley’s journey is influenced by the people in his life and the weight of their past, including his mother, Ruby (Kimberly S. Fairbanks), his friend and business partner Mister (Dax Richardson), his neighbor Stool Pigeon (Monroe Barrick) and Elmore (Kash Goins), a man from Ruby’s past.
King Hedley II feels more prescient now than ever. The huge social and political problems of the 1980s have come back with vengeance. The ideas of nostalgia and progress in the play are potent and necessitate a grand ambition in the production. My hope is to create a production of this play that offers the audience the opportunity to see history as a roadmap for the future. The mistakes and brokenness of the Reagan era have directly shaped and changed our current moment. At the heart of the play is the titular character’s yearning, for a future, for a patch of earth, for love, to be freed from a past haunted.” – Director James Ijames
Tickets are available online at ardentheatre.org or at the box office at Arden Theatre Company (40 N. 2nd Street).