Immerse in The Story
Director's Notes
Program notes from A Raisin in the Sun Director, Tasia A. Jones
A Raisin in the Sun is, at its core, a play about the depths of the familial bond and the human drive for progress. Each of the Youngers is trying to grow in a place too small to contain their power or their passions. This sense of containment creates inevitable tension as they each try to move their family forward the best way they know how. They just don't agree on the plan for progression.
Though most productions place Walter Lee Younger, Jr. at the center of this story because of the depth of his passion, I see two mothers, Ruth and Lena, quietly holding their family together and carrying the weight of the world as they do it. They understand that the roots of a family are what bind, but life cannot thrive if the soil is not tended. Their plan to move the family forward involves creating a fertile and open space where each family member can cultivate their dreams.
This play has had many productions and will continue to be one of the most important and well-crafted plays in the American Theater Canon. My hope is that this production illuminates not just the pain this family must endure but the love they have for one another that ultimately ensures their mutual growth.
–Tasia A. Jones
Portable Prologues Podcast
Host Orange Schroeder talks to the directors and actors to bring you background information that will make you appreciate each APT performance even more! Listen on Apple Podcast or Spotify! Produced by Buzz Kemper, Audio for the Arts.
Director Tasia A. Jones joins actors Gina Daniels and Deanna Reed-Foster to discuss the American Players Theater production of Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun. Enhance your experience and appreciation by listening to this lively interview before or after your 2022 theater visit to Spring Green, Wisconsin.
Review: A Raisin in the Sun is a portrait of resilience
As the Younger family prepares to leave a life full of suffering that’s familiar, we know the road will not be smooth. Institutional racism has altered its language and face in the years since “Raisin” premiered, but it’s a no less powerful force. This production leaves us with is a glimmer of hope, embodied by Mama, that their resilience and determination will be enough. - Lindsay Christians, The Cap Times
Season Selects: A Raisin in the Sun
Fast Facts
Playing: Hill Theatre | August 5 - October 7
Featuring: Gina Daniels, Alys Dickerson, Tim Gittings, Charence Higgins, Rasell Holt, Chiké Johnson, Gavin Lawrence, Derrick Moore & Deanna Reed-Foster.
Genre: American Classic / Period Drama
Go If You Liked: Death of a Salesman (2016), A View From the Bridge (2017), August Wilson’s Fences (2019)
Last at APT: First time!
Behind the Scenes with Sara Becker & Alys Dickerson
Learn how a professional voice and text session works with APT's Director of Voice and Text, Sara Becker, and APT actor and educator Alys Dickerson.