A production of playwright August Wilson’s “Jitney” opens this week at the Alliance for the Arts in Fort Myers. The play marks the eighth chronological installment in Wilson’s series known as the American Century Cycle. Each play in the series captures various aspects of the Black experience in America during each decade of the 20th century.
Set in the late 1970s, “Jitney” centers on the lives of some unofficial, unlicensed taxi drivers operating in Pittsburgh’s Hill District community, where traditional taxi services wouldn’t go. As each of the character’s individual stories unfold, themes of both societal and institutional racism emerge, as well as gentrification, the lingering effects of the Vietnam War, struggles with addiction, trust in romantic relationships, and an ever-fraught father-son relationship.
We take a deeper dive in a conversation with director Sonya McCarter and actor Shontae White.
If You Go:
August Wilson’s “Jitney” at the Alliance for the Arts
10091 McGregor Blvd, Fort Myers, FL 33919
Feb. 13-15, 20-22 at 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 23 at 2 p.m.
