Script

Can we each write down which slides we will be discussing and a start of what we're going to say. I think we said Lisa would open, I would do the middle, and Savannah would close. Hopefully we can split it up easily. If you want to talk about the music, Savannah, and it doesn't fall at the right place we can maybe do some rearranging.

I uploaded the most recent copy of the PowerPoint if you click "pages and files" on the right you should find it. Laura - just uploaded the must recent version Monday a.m. Check it out.

Lisa- I will take the all slides up to the slide that presents the August Wilson center. I put Bearden's painting first. I will open saying something about the painting and its Pittsburgh connection and segue into the slide that presents the tour.

Lisa Slide 1 - Title Slide 2 - Piano Lesson painting and introduction Slide 3 - Destinations Slide 4 - August Wilson House My Script (Lisa)

Slide One Welcome everyone to our tour of August Wilson’s Pittsburgh through his play The Piano Lesson. I felt compelled to begin this introduction with the painting by Romare Bearden that inspired Wilson to write this play. The painting portrays a very young Mary Lou Williams, a jazz pianist who grew up in Pittsburgh. Also the place where our playwright spent his childhood.

Slide Two Pittsburgh. Here is a snapshot of the city where our tour takes place. This tour is created by Savannah Berg, Laura Martin, and me, Lisa Morein

Slide Three Our tour is mapped out on this slide showing the destinations covered on our tour. They include the home of August Wilson, the Hill House Association, the August Wilson Center, Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, and the Carnegie Museum of Art.

Slide Four First let’s visit the childhood home of our playwright. Wilson’s home is located in the Hill District of Pittsburgh on Bedford Avenue. He was born to an African American mother and a German father who was absent from Wilson’s life. His mother, Daisy Wilson, raised August and his siblings in the 40s and 50s above what was then Bella's Market on the second and third floors of the back end of 1727 Bedford Ave. Through the efforts of Wilson’s nephew Paul Ellis, Jr. today the home has become the Daisy Wilson Community Center. It serves as a residence and workshop space for artists, musicians, and writers.

Laura Slide 5 - Hill House Association The Hill House traces its roots back to two settlement houses in the early 1900s. The purpose of the settlement houses, which served as community centers, was to help immigrants and settlers adjust to life in Pittsburgh.

The Hill District flourished as thousands came to Pittsburgh from different regions. In the 1930s, Harlem Renaissance poet Claude McKay referred to the Hill District as the “crossroads to the world” because it was a neighborhood so central to African-American music, art, and commerce.

But, by the 1960s, the construction of the Civic Arena cut off the Hill District from the downtown area and displaced many residents. This led to the creation of the current Hill House Association, an agency that would combine health, welfare, recreation, and community programs right in the African-American community.

Today, the Hill House serves 70,000 people a year in five programs areas, with multiple programs in each area: early learning and child development, youth services, family and workforce development, senior services, and neighborhood development.

The Hill District was, and continues to be, a vital community and the programs offered by the Hill House help residents take care of themselves, their families, and their community in positive way.

Slide 6 - August Wilson Center The August Wilson Center for African American Culture has a mission of “preserving, presenting, interpreting, celebrating, and shaping the art, culture, and history of African Americans utilizing the rich history, legacy, and culture of African Americans from Western Pennsylvania as a foundation.” The center offers a theatre, education center, lectures, and community spaces.

One of the core exhibits at the August Wilson Center is “Pittsburgh: Reclaim, Renew, Remix.” This exhibit highlights the artists, musicians, dancers, sports and literary figures of Western Pennsylvania’s African American heritage. Visitors can interact with the exhibit by creating a video collage of the region’s story from their own perspective.

Savannah Slide 7 - Pittsburgh Cultural Trust The next stop on our tour is the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. Music played a very important role in The Piano Lesson and the Cultural Trust is a great place to learn about the music of that era. We’ve already heard some examples of Ragtime music. One of the most famous musicals in American history, //Porgy & Bess// debuted in 1935 and actually played in Pittsburgh as part of its first tour. Let’s listen to a sample of music from the show. Cole Porter’s musical //Anything Goes// premiered in 1934 and a revival will actually be coming to the Cultural Trust in April of 2013 for anybody interested in seeing a show from the 1930s.

Slide 8 - Carnegie Museum of Art Our final destination is the Carnegie Museum of Art. This is the home of the Charles “Teenie” Harris Archive. Teenie Harris spent approximately forty years photographing the African American community in Pittsburgh. These photographs are a wonderful way to see what life was like during August Wilson’s life. You can also find more information about the archive on the website of the Carnegie Museum of Art.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the tour and remember all of the places you can go and the cultural aspects that shine when you have a little music in your life!