August Wilson’s Fences

A gripping story of family, race and the American Dream.

A Headlong, Leeds Playhouse, Lyric Hammersmith Theatre and HOME Manchester production

Directed by Daniel Bailey

“You born with two strikes on you before you come to the plate.”

Troy is a former baseball player who could’ve gone pro. He spends his days collecting garbage and his evenings spinning stories for family and friends. He is funny, charismatic and fiercely proud. He’s also a man with flaws, shaped by a lifetime battling a world that denies his dreams. And the scars run deep.

His wife, Rose, sees America changing. She dares to believe life can be different and dreams that their son, Cory, will have the freedom that Troy never did. But as Rose works to break the cycles holding her family back, Troy’s frustration and bitterness threatens to tear them apart.

Alive with rhythms of blues and jazz, humour and heartbreak, Fences is August Wilson’s Pulitzer prize-winning masterpiece. Set in the 1950s, it is a timeless and deeply human portrait of grief, love and what it means to be a family in post-war Black America.

Our associate partner Headlong returns to the stage with August Wilson‘s landmark play, Fences. One of the defining plays of the 20th century, it returns to the UK for the first time in over a decade in a vital new production directed by award-winning director Daniel Bailey (Red Pitch, West End).

This production is generously supported by Charles Holloway OBE.

August Wilson’s Fences is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals Ltd. on behalf of Samuel French Ltd. www.concordtheatricals.co.uk

“Fences is a rich and profound play, with charming humour laced through it, and it’s been exquisitely staged in this production. I’ve not seen such stunning acting, masterful direction or jaw-dropping design in a long time. Meanwhile, the presence of live music in the show is expertly delivered and gorgeously atmospheric. 

The show brought the whole audience to their feet when I saw it in Leeds, and rightly so! I couldn’t be prouder that we’re bringing it to Oxford.”

Mike Tweddle, Oxford Playhouse Artistic Director