The Pulitzer Prize-winning monologues of playwright August Wilson, especially his 10-play depiction of the African-American experience, Century Cycle, are considered literacy legacies. On March 28, talented high school students got a chance to breathe new life into August Wilson’s monologues.
As part of a national competition, Learning through an Expanded Arts Program (LeAp) presented the 3rd Annual NYC August Wilson Monologue Competition. The preliminary competition at Brooklyn Theatre Arts High School in Brooklyn was held March 28. Students performed two- to three-minute monologues of their choosing from one of August Wilson’s renowned works from his Century Cycle plays.
The winners were as follows:
Kia Absalom
Adama Jackson
Tyronickah Buckmire
Alternate Winner Takeya Campbell
These winners will go on to compete in the NYC Competition against students from Curtis High School (Staten Island), Hillcrest High School (Queens), Fordham High School (Bronx), and Repertory Company High School for Theatre Arts (Manhattan) on April 12. The winners of the NYC competition will then advance to the National Competition on May 9 to compete against students from Pittsburgh, Chicago, Boston, Seattle, and Atlanta. Contestants will be judged by a panel of Broadway and other theatre professionals.
