WINE IN THE WILDERNESS
by ALICE CHILDRESS
directed by LACHANZE
PERFORMANCES MARCH 6 – APRIL 13
Run time: 90 minutes, no intermission
Fortune has smiled on artist Bill Jameson (Grantham Coleman) – his friends just introduced him to a model for the final piece of his triptych on Black womanhood. But this woman, Tomorrow Marie (Olivia Washington), is no mere muse, and she’s about to give Bill much more than he bargained for. Set against the backdrop of the 1964 Harlem riot on a hot summer night, Wine in the Wilderness is a rarely-seen play from the brilliant mind of Alice Childress, whose Trouble in Mind recently took Broadway by storm. That production’s star, Tony® winner LaChanze, brings her deep connection to Childress’s work to her New York directing debut.
This production contains: strong language, adult situations, and use of racial slurs.
MEET THE CAST
OLIVIA WASHINGTON (Tomorrow “Tommy” Marie) is known for her work in Boot’s Riley’s I’M A VIRGO, Lee Daniels’ THE BUTLER, and guest performances on EMPIRE, MADOFF, MR. ROBOT, and Spike Lee’s SHE’S GOTTA HAVE IT. Most recently, Olivia graced the stage in the West End debut of Jeremy O. Harris-penned SLAVE PLAY alongside Kit Harrington.
Other projects include Joel Coen’s Shakespeare adaptation, THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH, from Scott Rudin and A24, the John Lee Hancock thriller THE LITTLE THINGS from Warner Bros., and ROBIN ROBERTS PRESENTS: MAHALIA. She was also seen in military drama BREAKING which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2022. It was announced that she will star in the Bron Studios film SOLITARY alongside David Oyelowo. She was also seen in The Public Theater’s presentation of MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING.
GRANTHAM COLEMAN (Bill Jameson) Broadway: Macbeth, The Great Society. Off-Broadway: Much Ado About Nothing, Buzzer, Choir Boy, One Night, We Are Proud To Present… As You Like It. Regional: The Tempest, Sweat, Hamlet, Romeo & Juliet. Film: “Rustin,” “Bardo,” “Black Bear,” “Seberg.” Television: “Emperor of Ocean Park,” “Bass Reeves,” “Power Book III: Raising Kanan,” “Red Bird Lane,” “The Carmichael Show,” “NCIS: Los Angeles,” “Doubt,” “11.22.63,” “Murder in the First,” “The Night Shift,” “The Americans.” Grantham is a graduate of The Juilliard School (Group 41).
BROOKS BRANTLY (Sonny-man) is thrilled to be making his New York return at Classic Stage Company. After graduating from Morehouse Colleg, Brooks worked for the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia as the very 1st recipient of the Kenny Leon Fellowship. Brooks later received his MFA in Acting from the University of Connecticut. He also had the privilege of being invited to the Guthrie Experience program to train under the late Ken Washington at the renowned Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis, MN. Brooks was nominated for an LA Ovation Award for the hit production of FLY at the Pasadena Plahouse which went on to win the NAACP Theatre Award for best show. Past Credits include Sweat, The Whipping Man, Othello, War Horse (1st National Tour), and Significant Other on Broadway. Brooks is an alum of the ABC Network Showcase and was most recently seen in “Ghosts” on CBS.
MILTON CRAIG NEALY (Oldtimer) Broadway credits: Motown: The Musical (Pop Gordy), Caroline, or Change (Bus/Dryer standby), Miss Saigon (John), Five Guys Named Moe (Four-Eyed Moe), Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Andre standby), Once on this Island (Agwe), and the original and revival productions of Dreamgirls. National Tours: The Full Monty (Horse) and the 20th anniversary tour of Jesus Christ Superstar (Judas). He was also seen in the Australian productions of The Full Monty and Miss Saigon. Film and TV credits: “The Blues Brothers” and “Person of Interest.”
LAKISHA MAY (Cynthia) is an actor, producer and advocate. Her acting credits include Jaja’s African Hair Braiding (original Broadway cast), Skeleton Crew (Broadway), The Miser (Molière in the Park), Dirty Laundry (WP Theater), “Law & Order: SVU,” “City on a Hill,” “Blue Bloods,” “Historias del Canal,” and countless others. Lakisha is an assistant producer with LaChanze Productions and with her company (CCC) has produced projects with Nikyatu Jusu, Rashad Frett, Saheem Ali and other filmmakers. Her work as an artist is informed by her service in the community. As an advocate, Lakisha most recently served as chair of the James Beard Leadership Awards Committee. Last summer, she was the host and lead organizer of SÜPRMARKT’s grand opening block party, shutting down Slauson Ave in South Central, LA. SÜPRMARKT is a low-cost organic vegan grocery store. Lakisha has her BA in English from Spelman College and her MFA in Acting from The American Conservatory Theater. IG: @kishamay
ARTIST BIOS
ALICE CHILDRESS. Born in 1916 and raised during the Harlem Renaissance under the watchful eye of her beloved maternal grandmother, Alice Childress grew up to become first an actress and then a playwright and novelist. A founding member of the American Negro Theatre, she wrote her first play, Florence, in 1949. The script was written in one night on a dare from close friend and actor Sidney Poitier, who had told Alice that he didn’t think a great play could be written overnight. She proved him wrong, and the play was produced Off-Broadway in 1950. In 1952 Childress became the first African-American woman to see her play (Gold Through the Trees) professionally produced in New York. In 1955, Childress’ play Trouble in Mind was a critical and popular success from the beginning of its run Off-Broadway at the Greenwich Mews Theatre. The play immediately drew interest from producers for a Broadway transfer. In an ironic twist echoing the tribulations of the characters in the play itself, the producers wanted changes to the script to make it more palatable to a commercial audience. Childress refused to compromise her artistic vision, and the play didn’t open on Broadway. If it had, at that time Childress would have been the first African-American woman playwright to have a play on Broadway. Trouble in Mind received a well-reviewed Off-Broadway revival in 1998 by the Negro Ensemble Company and has since been produced by Yale Repertory Theatre, Centerstage, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Arena Stage. Trouble in Mind, directed by Charles Randolph-Wright, produced by the Roundabout Theatre Company, opened on Broadway in November 2021. Childress is perhaps best known today for “A Hero Ain’t Nothin’ But A Sandwich,” her 1973 novel about a 13-year-old black boy addicted to heroin, which was subsequently made into a movie in 1978. Other plays written by Childress include Just A Little Simple (1950), Wedding Band: A Love/Hate Story in Black and White (1966) and Gullah (1984). Alice Childress died in New York in 1994. Throughout her career, she examined the true meaning of being black, and especially of being black and female. As Childress herself once said, “I concentrate on portraying have-nots in a have society.”
LACHANZE. Broadway: Celie in The Color Purple (Tony Award®), Ti Moune in Once On This Island (Tony Award nomination), Trouble In Mind (Tony Award nomination), Summer: The Donna Summer Musical (Tony Award nomination), A Christmas Carol, If/Then, The Wiz, Company, Ragtime, and Dreamgirls. Off Broadway: The Secret Life of Bees, The Bubbly Black Girl Sheds Her Chameleon Skin, The Vagina Monologues, and Cabin in the Sky at New York City Center Encores! TV: “Handel’s Messiah Rocks: A Joyful Noise” (Emmy Award), “East New York,” “The Blacklist,” HBO’s “The Night Of,” “Law & Order: SVU,” “The Good Fight,” “Sex And The City.” Film: The Help, Melinda, and Disney’s Hercules among other titles. As Producer: The Outsiders, adapted from S.E. Hinton’s classic novel (Tony Award), Jaja’s African Hair Braiding by Jocelyn Bioh (Tony Award nomination), Here Lies Love by David Byrne and Fatboy Slim along with 20th Anniversary of Suzan-Lori Parks’ acclaimed Pulitzer-Prize-Winning play, Topdog/Underdog (Tony Award) and Jeanine Tesori and David Lindsay-Abaire’s new musical, Kimberly Akimbo (Tony Award), both co-produced with David Stone. This season, LaChanze is proud to provide her producing skills to Purpose by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, directed by Phylicia Rashad, and Buena Vista Social Club, based on the Grammy Award-winning album. President of Black Theatre United, a community dedicated to awareness, accountability, and advocacy. Proud mother to Celia Rose and Zaya LaChanze. She resides in Westchester, New York with her three cats and gardening hats.