Wisconsin Union Theater will host a performance of August Wilson’s ‘Two Trains Running,’ a timeless story of justice and hope, on March 19
Posted: 03/17/25
Set in the late ‘60s in Pittsburgh, Penn., August Wilson’s “Two Trains Running” brings to Shannon Hall for one night only on March, 19, and as part of the Wisconsin Union Theater season, a story of a predominantly Black community seeking connection and justice during the civil rights era.
Tony Award-winning touring repertory theater group The Acting Company will perform the play, which earned Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award nominations and an American Theatre Critics Award. “Two Trains Running” explores the themes of economic disparity, social change and racial tension through telling the stories of people navigating attitudes toward race, life after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., and the suburbanization of the Hill District in Pittsburgh.
The play takes place in a historically black neighborhoo and centersd around the staff and customers of a diner, and the diner’s owner, a character , named Memphis Lee.. Lee is fighting for a fair price for his diner as the neighborhood is being redeveloped.
Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Wilson wrote “Two Trainings Running” in part based on his own experiences in the Hill District, though he said his work was not autobiographical. Wilson also authored the plays “The Piano Lesson” and “Fences.” Wilson also cofounded and directed Horizons Theatre in Pittsburgh as well as published poetry in journals, such as “Black World.”
WUT’s 2024-2025 season also includes Classical Series performances by violinist Gil Shaham and pianist Orli Shaham on April 3 and Roomful of Teeth on April 9 and a Jazz Series performance by the Branford Marsalis Quartet on May 1. The WUT team will announce a 2025-2026 season in May.
Patrons can purchase tickets to WUT performances online, in person at the Memorial Union Box Office or by phone at (608) 265-2787.