In spring 2025, the Golden Globe-winning actress Taraji P. Henson will finally make her hotly anticipated Broadway debut in a revival of the searingly poetic drama "Joe Turner's Come and Gone" by the late August Wilson.
Famed for her dynamic roles in films such as Hidden Figures and Empire, Henson is confirmed to play Bertha Holly, the kind-hearted but stern head of a boarding house in 1911 Pittsburgh. It's a part filled with quiet strength, something Henson has been bringing to screens, large and small, for years, and is now bringing to life eight shows a week on stage.
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Also sharing the screen with them will be Cedric the Entertainer, who is set to play Bertha's husband, Seth. It's not Cedric's first Broadway rodeo, but he starred in 2008's American Buffalo, and a return visit by the comedy icon is a fitting match with Henson's stage debut.
The revival will be directed by the always visionary Debbie Allen and produced by BroadwayBroadway heavyweight Brian Anthony Moreland. Together, the two of them bring new life into one of Wilson's most soul-stirring pieces.
"Joe Turner's Come and Gone is Wilson's signature masterpiece, an unapologetic examination of pain, identity, and hope," stated Moreland. "We are so humbled to return to the legacy of August Wilson.
Tumbling out of the Great Migration, 'Joe Turner's Come and Gone' plumbs issues of displacement, Black identity, and spiritual survival. One of Wilson's acclaimed Pittsburgh Cycle of 10 plays, the one opens an anguished American saga, nearly 110 years beyond the period it depicts.
With a director like Allen in the driver's seat, whose storytelling instincts are just as potent as her dance moves, and a cast like this one, the stage is set for a revival not just to be seen but felt.
Moreland, who also worked on recent productions of "The Piano Lesson" (featuring Samuel L. Jackson and Danielle Brooks) and a muscular Othello with Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal, knows the stakes and the expectations.
"With Debbie Allen's visionary direction and this exceptional cast, the entire company will create a soaring storied performance that remains in the hearts and minds of everyone who experiences it," he said.
The particular Shubert theater where the production will run has not yet been announced, but it's never too early to start getting excited. And with Henson and Cedric attached, tickets are bound to sell like hotcakes once the specifics of the curtain are revealed.
For Henson, this is not just a new chapter, but a homecoming of sorts, honoring Black storytelling in its most raw and real form, and bringing her powerhouse presence to the very soul of American theater.
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