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Overview

Synopsis

The seventh play is August Wilson’s Pittsburgh Cycle, Two Trains Running takes place in a restaurant run by a man named Memphis Lee. It is the 1960s, and the neighborhood is about to go through major economic development and gentrification. While we see a lot of the same themes as in August’s earlier works (surrounding race, oppression, identity), we see how those themes are filtered through a more modern world that is in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement. Malcolm X has just been killed, and the younger characters in the play, namely Sterling and Risa, are searching for who they are and where they fit in. Memphis has given up on trying to save his business from being taken by the government, but insists on getting the money he deserves. The colorful cast of African-American characters includes an old man who has gone crazy and can only say two phrases, a man who runs numbers (i.e. the lottery) for the people of the town, a young woman who cut up her legs to make them ugly so men would leave her alone, and a young man who recently got out of the penitentiary and just wants some money and a woman. A few of the characters from Wilson’s other plays are a part of this world, and hearing their names mentioned reconnects us to the roots of what it means and has meant to be an African-American in America.

Show Information

Category
Play
Age Guidance
Youth (Y)/General Audiences (G)
Number of Acts
2
First Produced
1990
Genres
Drama
Settings
Unit/Single Set
Time & Place
the hill district, pittsburgh, pennsylvania, 1969
Cast Size
small
Dancing
None
Ideal For
university, black box, community theater, professional, College/University, Community Theatre, Ensemble Cast, Mostly Male Cast, Professional Theatre, Regional Theatre, Small Cast, Includes Adult, Mature Adult, Young Adult Characters

Context


Plot


Characters

Name Part Size Gender Vocal Part

Wolf

Lead

Male

Spoken

Risa

Lead

Female

Spoken

Holloway

Lead

Male

Spoken

Sterling

Lead

Male

Spoken

Memphis

Lead

Male

Spoken

Hambone

Supporting

Male

Spoken

West

Supporting

Male

Spoken

Songs

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A song with an asterisk (*) before the title indicates a dance number; a character listed in a song with an asterisk (*) by the character's name indicates that the character exclusively serves as a dancer in this song, which is sung by other characters.

Monologues

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Scenes

All scenes are the property and copyright of their owners. Scenes are presented on StageAgent for educational purposes only. If you would like to give a public performance of this scene, please obtain authorization from the appropriate licensor.

Key Terms

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Videos

Quizzes

Themes, Symbols & Motifs

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Quote Analysis

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