Today we’d like to introduce you to James Williams. Them and their team share their story with us below:
James is a founding member of Penumbra Theatre Company, James has been a regular on Twin Cities Stages for over 4 decades. He originated the role of Roosevelt Hicks on Broadway in August Wilson’s Radio Golf. Regionally, James has performed at Center Stage, The Goodman Theater, The Kennedy Center, Mark Taper Forum, Seattle Rep, Syracuse Stage, and Yale Repertory Theater. He’s appeared Off-Broadway in August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson and My Children!
My Africa! He received an Ivey Award in 2015 for Marcus or the Secret of Sweet and in 2008 for his portrayal of Troy Maxson in “Fences” He was also named 2008 “Artist of the Year” by the Minneapolis Star Tribune. James is a 2015 McKnight Fellow at the Playwright’s Center, a 2015 Fox Acting Fellow, and a 2018 Ten Chimneys Fellow.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has not been a smooth road. The life of an artist is filled with emotional and financial pitfalls. I’ve been blessed to have taken advantage of opportunities that presented themselves.
From college classmates who started theater companies to instructors who became mentors and eventually friends my 45 years in theater have taken me around the world. I’ve encouraged some people and disappointed others. I’m most grateful for the chance to earn a living by doing what I love, not a lot of people can say that
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
First and foremost, I am a storyteller; it is the way I see the world. It’s the way I’ve learned to process information. Some people look at a painting and see the brush strokes or the subtle interplay of colors on the canvas or the interaction of light and shadows. I create stories based in my mind from the subject matter I’m looking at. It’s not the smile of the Mona Lisa that intrigues me but the infinite possibilities behind her smile.
I did what they say can’t be done. I went from MN to Broadway. I got to say lines written for me by one of greatest playwrights that ever lived, August Wilson. I’m the only actor who can say I was in his first professional production and the World Premiere of his last play. He also named a character after me.
What makes you happy?
I’m still searching for that. Some Days it’s the sight of my partner’s smile or the sound of my grandsons playing. On other days it’s remembering conversations with my friend Marion McClinton or thinking of the early days of Penumbra Theatre.
It can be spending time with my brother in St. Louis or when I hear my mother’s wisdom in my conversations with young artists, or when I recognize my father in the raspiness of my voice. If I had written the story of my life it wouldn’t be this rich or full. it was an effort to get this far but it’s worth it.
Contact Info:
- Website: jamesjwwilliams.com
Image Credits
Nathan Yungerberg, Lia Chang, Michel Daniels, Joan Marcus, Rick Spaulding, Rich Ryan, Michel Daniels, Ann Marsden, and Jay Yamada
