Erie
Organized by Mike Franz, University of Mississippi & Zach Dailey, University of Houston-Downtown

Join scholars and archival experts for a special invited talk exploring the enduring legacy and future impact of August Wilson on American theatre. Featuring Isaiah Wooden (Swarthmore College), Khalid Y. Long (Howard University), and Bill Daw (University of Pittsburgh), in collaboration with the August Wilson Archive at the University of Pittsburgh, this conversation will highlight Wilson’s profound influence on theatrical practice, scholarship, and cultural memory. Drawing from archival materials and recent scholarship, the speakers will reflect on Wilson’s artistic vision, his deep ties to Pittsburgh, and the continued relevance of his work in shaping contemporary performance and Black theatrical traditions.

Participants
Isaiah Wooden, Swarthmore College
Khalid Y. Long, Howard University
Bill Daw, August Wilson Archive

Isaiah Matthew Wooden is a scholar-artist, writer, and Associate Professor and Chair of Theater at Swarthmore College. He is the author of Reclaiming Time: Race, Temporality, and Black Expressive Culture (2025) and co-editor of August Wilson in Context (2025), Tarell Alvin McCraney: Theater, Performance, and Collaboration (2020), and “Manifestos for Black Theatre, Then and Now,” a special section of Theatre History Studies (2024). Additionally, he served as the volume editor for the Methuen student edition of A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry (2025). Wooden’s articles and essays on contemporary art, drama, and performance have appeared in numerous scholarly and popular publications. As a director and dramaturg, he has collaborated on projects in venues ranging from the Uganda National Theatre to the Kennedy Center, including works by Lorraine Hansberry, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Tarell Alvin McCraney, Lynn Nottage, and Robert O’Hara.

Dr. Khalid Y. Long is the Associate Dean of Research and Creative Endeavors, Associate Professor and Interim Chair of Theatre Arts in the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts at Howard University. Long specializes in African American/Black diasporic theatre, performance, and literature through the lenses of Black feminist/womanist thought, queer studies, and performance studies. Accordingly, his work addresses the intersections of race, class, gender, and sexuality within marginalized and oppressed communities. Long teaches a range of courses, from theatre history and dramaturgy to dramatic criticism, global performance, and Black cultural production. Long's books include Contemporary Black Theatre and Performance: Acts of Rebellion, Activism, and Solidarity (Methuen Drama) and August Wilson in Context (Cambridge University Press). Additionally, he is co-editor of a special edition of tBTR: The Black Theatre Review, "A Cultural Experience: The Role of Theatre at Historically Black Colleges and Universities" (Spring 2025). Long is also co-editor of a special edition of the Journal of American Drama and Theatre (JADT) for Spring 2026 that focuses on "100 Years of W. E. B. Du Bois' Principles of a Real Negro Theatre."

William Daw is the Curator of the Curtis Theatre Collection at the University of Pittsburgh Library System. He has managed this collection of rare books, theatre ephemera, and archival collections for the past 20 years. He was part of the team that processed the August Wilson Archive and created the finding aid for the collection.