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Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival Opens 35th Anniversary with August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson
Pulitzer Prize-winning Playwright James Ijames Directs Wilson’s Celebrated Masterpiece
Center Valley, PA—May 26, 2026—Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival (PSF) opens its 2026 Summer Theatre Series and landmark 35th Anniversary Season with August Wilson’s Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning drama The Piano Lesson, running May 27 through June 14 in the Schubert Theatre at the Labuda Center for the Performing Arts on the campus of DeSales University.
Directed by James Ijames, Pulitzer Prize winner for his play Fat Ham, a modern adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, The Piano Lesson marks PSF’s return to Wilson’s acclaimed American Century Cycle, following its 2022 production of Fences.
Set in Pittsburgh’s Hill District in 1936 in the aftermath of the Great Depression, the play centers on siblings Boy Willie and Berniece as they battle over a treasured family heirloom: a piano carved by their enslaved ancestor, bearing the faces of generations of family during the years of their enslavement. As tensions rise, the ghosts of the past begin to stir, and the piano becomes a powerful symbol of family history, sacrifice, and legacy.
Akeem Davis leads the cast as Boy Willie. A Philadelphia-based award-winning actor and PSF veteran, Davis directed last season’s A Raisin in the Sun and has appeared in numerous PSF productions including Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing, and The Merry Wives of Windsor. Regionally, he has performed leading roles at the Arden Theatre, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Theatre Horizon, Theatre Exile, Folger Theatre, and People’s Light, where his performance in All My Sons earned him a Barrymore Award for Outstanding Supporting Performance. A Helen Hayes nominated artist, Davis was a recipient of the F. Otto Haas Award for Emerging Philadelphia Theatre Artist (2015).
Jessica Johnson returns to PSF to play Berniece, following her acclaimed turn as Celie in The Color Purple (2024). Her recent credits include Mayme in Intimate Apparel (Arden Theatre), Chris in POTUS (Arden Theatre), Opal in Fat Ham (Wilma Theatre), and Modúpé in Half God of Rainfall (Wilma Theatre). Johnson has received two Barrymore Awards for Outstanding Lead Performer in a Musical for The Color Purple (Theatre Horizon) and Outstanding Supporting Performer in a Musical for Once on This Island (Arden Theatre). In addition to her stage achievements, Johnson has been honored with several prestigious fellowships and residencies, such as the Independence Foundation Fellowship (2019), the Jilline Ringle Residency (2019), and the HATCH Residency (2021) to develop her independent work.
Kash Goins makes his PSF debut as Doaker, the siblings’ steadfast uncle. Goins has performed in August Wilson’s Two Trains Running, King Hedley II, and Joe Turner’s Come and Gone (Arden Theatre).
Terrence Clowe plays Wining Boy, Doaker’s wandering, piano-playing brother, a washed-up recording musician and gambler who drifts in and out of the family household. Clowe’s select stage credits include tours of Fosse, Chicago, Rent, Miss Saigon, and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
Joining them in the cast are Christopher James Murray (Lymon), Johnnie Hobbs III (Avery), Jessica Money (Grace), and Leonice Diaz (Maretha).
Ijames, helming the production, is a Pulitzer Prize-winning and Tony Award-nominated playwright, director, and educator. A 2015 Pew Fellow for Playwriting, he received the 2015 Terrence McNally New Play Award for WHITE and a 2015 Kesselring Honorable Mention for …Miz Martha. His honors also include a 2017 Whiting Award, the 2019 Kesselring Prize for Kill Move Paradise, Steinberg Playwright Awards in 2020 and 2022, the 2022 Pulitzer Prize in Drama, and a 2023 Tony Award nomination for Best Play for Fat Ham. He currently serves as Associate Professor of Theatre and Head of Playwriting at Columbia University.
Joining Ijames on the creative team are Scenic and Lighting Designer Thom Weaver, Costume Designer Jerrilyn Lanier Duckworth, Sound Designer and Composer Liz Filios, Fight Director Eli Lynn, and Intimacy Director Kim Carson. Danielle Sellick serves as Production Stage Manager, with Karly Amato as Assistant Stage Manager.
The Piano Lesson previews May 27 and 28, officially opens May 29, and runs through June 14. An audio-described performance for the blind and visually impaired will take place on Saturday, May 30 at 2 p.m.
Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival invites audiences to join the cast for a champagne toast following the opening night performance on Friday, May 29. Post-show discussions will follow the June 4 and June 11 performances. “Epilogues” — a free behind-the-scenes discussion open to all — takes place at 10 a.m. on June 13, offering audiences a deeper look at the production and a chance to ask questions.
Tickets for The Piano Lesson are available at pashakespeare.org, by calling 610.282.WILL (9455), or at the box office.
The production is sponsored by B. Braun, with co-sponsorship by H. Lloyd Carbaugh, CrossAmerica Partners, Dunne Manning, and Lehigh Valley 250.
The 2026 Season Sponsors are Kathleen Kund Nolan and Timothy E. Nolan. Associate Season Sponsors include Air Products; Mary Bongiorno; The Jeff Hunter Charitable Trust; Linda Lapos and Paul Wirth; Yvonne Payne and Edward Spitzer; The Szarko Family; and Harry C. Trexler Trust.
Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival’s 2026 Summer Theatre Series, themed “Legends and Legacy,” celebrates the Festival’s 35th anniversary and 30 years as the Official Shakespeare Festival of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Running May 27 through August 2, the full season lineup can be found here at pashakespeare.org
About Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival
Founded in 1992, Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival is the Lehigh Valley’s Professional Equity Theatre hosted on the campus of DeSales University, and the Official Shakespeare Festival of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, featuring acclaimed actors from Broadway, television, and film, and is the summer home to over 200 artists from around the country, including winners and nominees of the Tony, Obie, Emmy, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Jefferson, and Barrymore Awards. PSF’s mission is to enrich, engage, entertain, and inspire the widest possible audience through professional productions of classic, contemporary, and Shakespearean works, along with educational programming and mentorship opportunities for emerging artists.
Artistic Leadership:
CASEY WILLIAM GALLAGHER (Managing Director) started his journey with PSF in 1994, and over four decades, he was involved with close to 200 productions and worked with over 2,200 actors, administrators, artists, and artisans. Before serving as managing director, he worked as a box office intern, a stage management intern, assistant house manager, box office manager, company manager, assistant producer, director of development, and general manager. Casey worked with Festival Founder Jerry Schubert, former Producing Artistic Director Patrick Director, and now co-leads PSF with Artistic Director Jason King Jones. Beyond PA Shakespeare, Casey was treasurer for the Shakespeare Theatre Association, director of audience services for People’s Light, worked for 1812 Productions and Fringe Arts, and was a peer panelist for the New Jersey Council on the Arts as well as a judge for the Greater Philadelphia Barrymore Awards for excellence in theatre. Casey was a board member for Civic Theatre of Allentown and People’s Light and is currently a member of the PSF Board of Directors.
JASON KING JONES (Artistic Director) is entering his fourth season as PSF Artistic Director, where he has directed Rosencrantz And Guildenstern Are Dead, The Tempest, The Last Five Years, the “Play On!” Community Tour: Much Ado About Nothing, and Winnie-the-Pooh & Friends, which he also wrote. Additional writing credits include last season’s The Princess and The Frog Prince and its sequel, Sheila the Magical, and a new adaptation of Goldoni’s The Servant of Two Masters, which he directed for DeSales Act One Productions. Prior to moving to the Lehigh Valley with his family, Jason spent ten years at Maryland’s Olney Theatre Center, where he served as Senior Associate Artistic Director and Artistic Director of National Players. In the past twenty-seven years, Jason has directed over eighty productions, mentored hundreds of early-career theatremakers, and established various educational programs. He is an Acting Company alumnus, a proud member of the PSF Board, the Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce’s Nonprofit & Business Partners Council, the Lehigh Valley Drama Club, and the executive committee of the Shakespeare Theatre Association. Jason holds a BFA in Theatre Performance from Missouri State and an MFA in Directing from Boston University.
Cast
Terrence Clowe (Wining Boy)* is thrilled to be performing this iconic work at PSF! TV/Film: Five Days at Memorial (Apple+); Just Beyond (Disney+); She Hulk (Disney+); Pretty Hurts (Lifetime); Will Trent (ABC); Mike (Hulu); Divorced Sistas (BET); The Harder They Fall, The Glorias, Hershey (upcoming). Tours: Fosse, Chicago, Rent, Miss Saigon, Joseph. Regional: Riverside Theatre, Kinky Boots (Simon Sr.); Arvada PAC, Smokey Joes Cafe (Ken); Atlanta TUTS, Dreamgirls (ensemble); Arts Center of Coastal Carolina, Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Ken). NYU TSOA TerrenceClowe.com @TerrenceClowe
Akeem Davis (Boy Willie)* is from Miami, FL, and a graduate of Florida State University. PSF: Henry V (2015), Longaville (Love’s Labor’s Lost, 2016), Duke Orsino (Twelfth Night, 2018), Demetrius (A Midsummer Night’s Dream, 2021), Benedick (Much Ado About Nothing, 2022), Trinculo/Edward (Tempest/Sense and Sensibility, 2023), Ford (Merry Wives of Windsor, 2024), Cloten (Cymbeline, 2024), Claudius (Hamlet, 2025), Directed Raisin in the Sun (2025). Regional: Arden Theatre: The Mountaintop, King Hedley II, Intimate App, A Streetcar Named Desire, The Lehman Trilogy, Gem of the Ocean, A Doll’s House; Philadelphia Theatre Company: Primary Trust, Choir Boy; Theatre Horizon: Lobby Hero, In The Blood; Theatre Exile: Buzzer; Simpatico Theatre Project: The Brothers Size; Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company: The Arsonists; Folger Theatre: District Merchants, King John; People’s Light: All My Sons. Barrymore Award for Outstanding Supporting Performance. Helen Hayes nominated. Recipient of the 2015 F. Otto Haas Award for Emerging Philadelphia Theatre Artist, Akeem is a proud man of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.
Leonice Diaz (Maretha) has showcased her versatility in roles such as Minal in Aladdin Jr., Chef Louis in The Little Mermaid Jr., Queen Grimhilde in a Snow White skit, Amelia Earhart in a Living History Museum production, and William Still in a Black History production. A graduate of Arts Academy Elementary Charter School, she trains in percussion, is a member of the Theater Club, Choir Club, Step Team, and Dance Club. She recently completed acting classes at DeSales University through PSF. With her strong stage presence, creativity, and dedication to the arts, Leonice is an emerging performer to watch.
Kash Goins (Doaker)* is making his enthusiastic debut at PSF this summer! Regional: Lantern Theater Company, Blues for an Alabama Sky (Sam Thomas), Fabulation or the Re-Education of Undine (Dad/Babalawo); InterAct Theater Company, On my Deen (Dawud/Isa); Arden Theatre Company, King Hedley II (Elmore), 74 Seconds to Judgment (Bill), Two Trains Running (Hambone), A Raisin in the Sun (Bobo); Plays and Players Theatre, Joe Turner’s Come and Gone (Herold Loomis). TV/Film: Split, Creed, House of Cards, Gotham, Prison Song.
Johnnie Hobbs III (Avery) is thrilled to be welcomed to PA Shakes for the first time! Regional: InterAct Theatre’s Blue/Orange (Christoper), Pig Iron’s Pay Up (Core Creator/Ensemble), Arden Theatre’s Arabian Nights (Ensemble), and others. Motion Capture: South of Midnight video game (Shakin’ Bones). Commercial: Honda, Williams-Sonoma, Chrysler. As an actor, and teaching artist, Johnnie has taught and performed at The Matrix Theatre, The Colburn School, USC, AMDA LA, Broadway Dance Center, and various tap dance festivals. He has spoken on tap dance and film history at Temple University, The University of Colorado, and The Windward School. Thank you to the production for the warmth and open arms.
Jessica Johnson (Berniece)* is so excited to return to PSF. PSF: The Color Purple (Celie); Regional: Philadelphia Theatre Company, Wilderness Generation (Nicole), People’s Light, Little Shop of Horrors (Crystal); Arden Theatre, Falsettos (Dr. Charlotte), Intimate Apparel (Mayme), POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive (Chris); Wilma Theatre, Half God of Rainfall (Modúpé), Fat Ham (Opal).
Jessica Money (Grace) is so excited to be back at PSF! PSF: The Color Purple (Nettie). Regional: Pioneer Theatre Company, Ten Brave Seconds World Premiere (Gabby), Arden Theatre Co. Spelling Bee (Olive Ostrovsky), Theatre Horizon, The Color Purple, (Nettie), Arden Theatre Co. Falsettos (Cordelia), Duluth Playhouse, Ragtime (Sarah), New Light Theatre, Our Town (Emily Webb), Delaware Shakespeare Company, The Tempest (Miranda), People’s Light, Little Shop of Horrors (Audrey). @money226156
Christopher James Murray (Lymon)* is thrilled to make his PSF premiere this summer! PSF: The Piano Lesson. OFF-Broadway: Chasing Happy, The Falling Season, WIT. Regional: Orlando Shakespeare Theater: Welcome To Matteson; Capital Repertory Theater, Sweat; Maples Repertory Theater: Merrymaking; Virginia Theater Festival: One Man, Two Guvnors; Blackfriars Playhouse: Gross Indecency; and many others. FILM/STREAMING: The Conspiracists, Salacia, And Just Like That, Evil Lives Here, A Body in The Basement, and more. A three-time Nicholl Fellowship semifinalist, his writing and performance work are marked by a sharp sensitivity to family, identity, and the resilience of the human spirit. Christopher’s creative practice centers on exploring Southern culture, generational trauma, and the ways love and legacy intertwine. IG: @crosemurray | TikTok: @christopherjamesmurray
Creatives
James Ijames (Director) is a Pulitzer Prize-winning and Tony Award nominated playwright, director and educator. James’ plays have been produced by Flashpoint Theater Company, Orbiter 3, Theatre Horizon, Wilma Theatre, Theatre Exile, Azuka Theatre (Philadelphia, PA), The National Black Theatre, JACK, The Public Theater (NYC), Hudson Valley Shakespeare Theater, Steppenwolf Theatre, Definition Theatre, Timeline Theater (Chicago IL) Shotgun Players (Berkeley, CA) and have received development with PlayPenn New Play Conference, The Lark, Playwright’s Horizon, Clubbed Thumb, Villanova Theater, Wilma Theater, Azuka Theatre and Victory Garden. James is the 2011 F. Otto Haas Award for an Emerging Artist recipient, and two Barrymore Awards for Outstanding Direction of a Play for The Brothers Size with Simpatico Theatre Company and Gem of the Ocean with Arden Theatre. James is a 2015 Pew Fellow for Playwriting, the 2015 winner of the Terrance McNally New Play Award for WHITE, the 2015 Kesselring Honorable Mention Prize winner for ….Miz Martha, a 2017 recipient of the Whiting Award, a 2019 Kesselring Prize for Kill Move Paradise, a 2020 and 2022 Steinberg Prize, the 2022 Pulitzer Prize in Drama recipient and a 2023 Tony nominee for Best Play for Fat Ham. James was a founding member of Orbiter 3, Philadelphia’s first playwright producing collective. He received a B.A. in Drama from Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA and a M.F.A. in Acting from Temple University in Philadelphia, PA. James is an Associate Professor of Theatre at Columbia University where he serves as head of playwriting. He resides in South Philadelphia and the Morningside Heights neighborhood in New York, NY.
Thom Weaver (Scenic & Lighting Designer) Recently for PSF: Penelope, Raisin in the Sun. Off-Broadway: Sandra (Vineyard); The Total Bent (Public); Kingdom Come (Roundabout); Exit Strategy (Primary Stages); King Hedley II, How I Learned What I Learned, The Liquid Plain (Signature Theatre Company); Teller’s Play Dead (The Players Theater). Regional: Alliance, Huntington, Arden, Wilma (Associate Artist), Philadelphia Theatre Company, Milwaukee Rep, Chicago Shakespeare, Getty, Children’s Theatre Company, Cleveland Play House, Portland Center Stage, Folger Theatre, Asolo Rep, Round House, Hangar, CenterStage, California Shakespeare Theater, Syracuse Stage, Berkshire Theatre Festival, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Spoleto, Lincoln Center Festival, and Yale Repertory Theatre, as well as numerous designs with Pilobolus. Awards: 2 Jeff Awards, 6 Barrymore Awards, Helen Hayes Award, and 2 AUDELCO Awards. Education: Carnegie Mellon and Yale.
Jerrilyn Lanier Duckworth (Costume Designer) is excited to be returning to PSF this summer. PSF: The Color Purple. Regional: People’s Light, Costume Designer: A Christmas Carol, A Raisin in the Sun, and the ripple, the wave that carried me home. Academic: The University of Alabama, Barbecue (Costume Designer); and Coastal Carolina University, Grease (Costume Designer).
Liz Filios (Sound Designer & Composer)* is grateful to be part of this wonderful team. PSF: Hamlet (WillPower Tour), The Ice Princess, Shakespeare In Love, An Iliad. Regional: Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, The Tempest; Folger Theatre, The Winter’s Tale; Round House Theatre, The Tempest; People’s Light: Twelfth Night, The Matchmaker, The Department of Small Things; Delaware Shakespeare, Twelfth Night, O Lo Que Quieras, The Merchant of Venice; Lantern Theater, As You Like It, An Iliad; Theatre Exile, D-Pad; Quintessence Theatre Group, A Little Princess; Temple University, Dance Nation; Polyphone Festival, Sweetwater. BFA University of Michigan.
Eli Lynn (Fight Director) is an actor, award-winning fight director, and certified Intimacy Director. PSF: Cymbeline (Guiderius), TPTGW (Trevor), Henry IV, Pt 2 (Hal), Complete Works … Abridged (Jess). Other Regional: People’s Light, Peter Panto (Peter Pan); InterAct Theatre, Plantation Black (Kate/Bet); Lantern Theater, Macbeth (Witch/Ross); New Light Theatre, Fun Home (Big Alison); American Shakespeare Center, Twelfth Night (Orsino/Toby); Cleveland Playhouse, The Three Musketeers (Aramis).They’ve been nominated for multiple Barrymore awards for fight direction, and received the award for their original Shakespeare adaptation, Citrus Andronicus (Philadelphia Artists’ Collective).They’ve served as FD/ID at theatres including Woolly Mammoth (DC), The Acting Company (NYC), The Wilma, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Gulfshore Playhouse, and many more.
Kim Carson (Intimacy Director) is a Barrymore Award-winning Philadelphia actor and theatre professional, celebrated for her performances on major regional stages including Arden Theatre Company, Walnut Street Theatre, Fulton Theatre, People’s Light, and more. She now brings her deep expertise to the role of Director of Education and Community Engagement for PA Shakespeare Festival. As a dedicated theatre educator, Kim has worked with students across the Allentown School District, Saucon Valley School District, Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts, the Summer Theatre Institute at West Chester University, and the DeSales University Summer Theatre Institute. An accomplished director, playwright, teaching artist, and photographer, Kim bridges the worlds of professional theatre and education, bringing her wealth of experience to students throughout the Lehigh Valley
Danielle Sellick (Production Stage Manager)* Hailing from Florida, Danielle is brand new to the Philly theater scene and is so excited to be working with PSF. Some of her previous stage management credits include: The Snow Queen – Wilma Theater. Can’t Forget About You – Inis Nua Theatre. Macbeth; Gorey Stories; P.O.T.U.S. – Jobsite Theater. Judith; A Skeptic and a Bruja – Urbanite Theater. Five Guys Named Moe – Westcoast Black Theater Troupe.
Karly Amato (Assistant Stage Manager)* is a Philadelphia based AEA Stage Manager and is thrilled to be returning to PSF! PSF: The Comedy of Errors (SM), Winnie the Pooh & Friends (SM), The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised] [again] (SM Intern), Shakespeare for Kids (SM). Regional: The Spitfire Grill (Skylight Music Theatre), Execution of Justice, The Witnesses (World Premiere), A Showcase of One Acts (Chautauqua Theater Company), Primary Trust (McCarter Theatre Center), Jelly’s Last Jam (New York City Center Encores!), Wishing to Grow Up Brightly (World Premiere), Oedipus in Seattle, tick, tick… BOOM! (Theatre Horizon), and Antony & Cleopatra, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Quintessence Theatre Group). Opera: The Comet / Poppea (at Yale Schwarzman Center), The Seasons (Opera Philadelphia). Dance: EXPLOSIVE: Bold New works on the Rise (PHILADANCO! The Philadelphia Dance Company), Americana (American Repertory Ballet).
*Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Stage Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
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