Jitney - Leeds Playhouse / Old Vic & Tour

The production at the National in 2001, brought over from the US was superb. Looking forward to this. Would love to see some more too: Seven Guitars sounds great.

Straight in and row H stalls booked for first preview today.

I'm still 571 in the queue, 21 mins to go...

EDIT: there were still plenty of tickets available when I got in.

Thanks, just got one

Was at the first preview tonight. My first time seeing an August Wilson play - had only seen the film of Fences prior.
I thought it was very good overall. Wil Johnson in particular I thought delivered the performance of the night - exceptional.
It took a while to “tune in” to the show and it does start very quiet, and the accents are quite strong. Once it gets going though it really gets going! Another strong outing at the Old Vic

Runtime: 2 hours 55. They are advertising it as 2:30 plus a 20 minute interval so maybe a few minutes to tighten.

I saw it on Friday too. I think I just tuned into the way they were speaking. I thought it was a good production of a play I was unfamiliar with, but would agree the ending is a bit weak (even if it's telegraphed earlier in the play).

I loved this. A terrific slice of life character play, beautifully performed.

Some spoilers follow. . .

At a Jitney (unlicensed) cab office, that serves an area where licensed cabs won't go, in Pittsburgh in the Seventies, we follow the lives of the drivers and everyone who passes through. . .

The characterisations are beautifully done, the language needs tuning in to (it happens fast), and the dramas of each character are movingly realised.

I've now seen four of August Wilson's Pittsburgh plays (and read one other), and would rank this one third of the four I've seen.

What this one lacks, that say, "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" (the National's version was nigh on perfect, with its visual hierarchy of status, from the top to the bottom of the stage) does better, is a fully climaxing central plotline and a fully realised social context that drives that climax.

By contrast, this play simmers and bubbles rather than explodes. And this play sidelines the racism that is a major context of Wilson's plays, to focus on multiple plots, the foremost of which is about the dangers of gossip.

That said, Sule Rime is on fire as the strutting, dressed-to-the-nines, too-cool-for-school gossipper, Turnbo, and gave one of my favourite performances among a sterling cast.

Wil Johnson's performance as the man in charge of the Jitney office, all restrained dignity, is overwhelmingly moving when he lets loose emotionally!

And Geoff Aymer is so convincing as optimistic, huffing and puffing, Korean war veteran, Doub, that I honestly and rarely couldn't spot the actor beneath the character, not even once.

I wouldn't miss this wonderfully realised character study, even though I feel Wilson has written plays that succeed on more layers than this one.

4 stars from me.

I saw this last night and enjoyed it. Random question, I googled photos of the show when it was in Leeds and it had the same set design, but with some subtle but interesting differences like a different furniture layout and different signs on the wall etc. I'm curious why they would make these small changes?

The gap is presumably where 4000 miles was supposed to be running until it got canned.

I went on the first day, had a cheap dress circle side ticket (PWC preview, had I known it wasn't going to sell well, I'd have waited and tried for a stalls ticket!). Maybe because I was tired, but I didn't enjoy it that much. I had real trouble hearing the actors, it felt very quiet, not sure if the microphones were turned too low. The heavy accents did not help either. As a non native speaker, I struggle with heavy accents and Shakespeare sometimes, but this was harder than usual.
Previous visit for the 47th also sat in the dress circle and had a bit of trouble hearing. This has only ever happened to me at the Old Vic, so in future I will avoid non stalls seats there...

About 10 minutes in I was really considering just walking out of this. I couldn’t understand a word anyone was saying, one actor in particular I didn’t understand at all for the length of the play (the one that kept putting his feet up on the table - thankfully he wasn’t in it much). Once things got going either my ears tuned in or they relaxed with the accents and I ended up loving it. Very glad I persevered!

Looks like Old Vic will announce new show soon as a application for an assistant director on an unnamed show running from 7th September to 29th October is up.

It's a solid production of a solid play.

Sounds like the understudy has been on for Booster for awhile and he's the weak point, to a large extent just because he's too young but the ending doesn't land with the weight it should because he lacks the presence amongst the men for it to seem significant.

I thought this started a bit slow, but once it picked up I really enjoyed the play. Old Vic wasn't particularly full and they had closed the Baylis Circle, but the audience were very appreciative. Understudy Blair was still on for Booster. I was quite keen to see Leemore since I really liked him in Small Island, I wonder if he'll be back for the last 2 weeks of shows?