August Wilson Conference - "Tell Your Story."

August Wilson is considered to be one of this nation's best-known African American playwrights. But do Americans really know who he is? "He's probably less familiar to many Americans than other great American playwrights such as Eugene O'Neill, Arthur Miller or Tennessee Williams simply because he is from a younger generation," says University of Maryland Associate Professor of Theatre Heather Nathans. A Pulitzer prize-winning author, Wilson died in October, 2005.

Nathans is an expert on Wilson and a scholar of American Theatre. She is also the associate director of the David C. Driskell Center, which is sponsoring an upcoming conference on August Wilson to be held at the University of Maryland's Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center. "Tell Your Story - An Interdisciplinary Conference on August Wilson and African American Theatre, Art, and Culture," runs from Friday, March 9 through Sunday, March 11, and will be highlighted by a special performance in the Kogod Theatre by renowned actor Charles Dutton called "Acting August Wilson. A Medley of Scenes and Characters."

Nathans says Wilson's prize-winning plays are featured in almost every major anthology of American and world theater. He is best known for his 10 play cycle (set between 1904 and 1997) that combines the legacy of African rituals in American culture with an exploration of what it means to be both African and American. "It's the compulsion to tell the story - to make sure that the voice, the history, the memory, and the passion of African American culture survives that I think we see in all of Wilson's plays," says Nathans.

Read: "A Conversation With..." Assoc. Prof. Heather Nathans

Assistant Professor Faedra Carpenter (Dept. of Theatre) - also a Wilson expert - adds that it's important to note Wilson's works are not strictly for African Americans. "Wilson's plays carry with them messages and meaning for those within, as well as outside of, the African Diaspora," she says. But is there one message (for young people in particular) in all of Wilson's plays? Carpenter says it is "Know Thyself." "Part of this is about knowing and appreciating your past: understanding the obstacles overcome by those that came before you as well as recognizing the wealth of your culture and the contribution it has made to society-at-large."

Carpenter says August Wilson's plays portray families and communities. "But - like all good drama - he explores the various worldviews and disparities that distinguish characters from one another. Although we can usually deduce which way is "right," it's never cut and dry, thereby encouraging audience members to consider how they would position themselves within a like situation."

Read:

Last October, the African Continuum Theatre Company...	and UM Dept. of Theatre presented...	August Wilson's Pulitzer Prize-winning play, "The Piano Lesson."

Spirits Watching, 1986 David C. Driskell (c)

The "Tell Your Story" August Wilson Conference is just one of many events sponsored by the Driskell Center throughout the year. Executive Director and Associate Professor Robert Steele says the events range from exhibitions, to lectures and conferences. They all fit in with David Driskell's desire to educate. "In all aspects of his life, from teaching, collecting, creating art, writing, and lecturing, Prof. Driskell emphasizes the importance of education in his own life and encourages people to learn more about their professional fields and lives."

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