See Taraji P. Henson and Cedric the Entertainer in Rehearsal for Joe Turner's Come and Gone

Debbie Allen directs the revival of the August Wilson classic.

March 02, 2026 By Meg Masseron, Margaret Hall

Taraji P. Henson and Cedric “The Entertainer” (Emilio Madrid)

Get a first look at the upcoming Broadway revival of August Wilson's Joe Turner's Come and Gone with brand new rehearsal photos in the gallery below. Directed by Golden Globe and four-time Emmy winner Debbie Allen, it will play Broadway’s Barrymore Theatre, the same theatre where the play premiered at in 1988. Previews will begin March 30, with an official opening night set for April 25, for a run through July 12.

As previously reported, the production will star Oscar, Tony, and Emmy nominee Taraji P. Henson as Bertha Holly, six-time NAACP Image Award winner Cedric the Entertainer as Seth Holly, Joshua Boone as Herald Loomis, and Ruben Santiago-Hudson as Bynum Walker. They will be joined onstage by Savannah Commodore and Dominique Skye Turner, who will share the role of Zonia Loomis; Bradley Stryker as Rutherford Selig; Tripp Taylor as Jeremy Furlow; and Christopher Woodley and Jackson Edward Davis, who will share the role of Reuben Scott. Jasmine Batchelor, Rosalyn Coleman, Thomas Michael Hammond, Cayden McCoy, and Kevyn Morrow will serve as understudies.

Video: Bob Fosse Once Asked Debbie Allen to Play the Leading Player in Pippin

Set in 1911, Joe Turner’s Come and Gone takes place in a Pittsburgh boarding house run by the steady Seth and the open-hearted Bertha Holly—a refuge for Black travelers navigating the upheaval of the Great Migration. Among them is Herald Loomis, a man searching for his lost wife—and for the self he lost during seven years of illegal enslavement under Joe Turner. The work is the second in Wilson's American Century Cycle.

Photos: Joe Turner’s Come and Gone 1st Rehearsal

Allen will lead a robust creative team, including Oscar, Emmy, and Tony winning costume designer Paul Tazewell, Tony winning scenic designer David Gallo, Drama Desk nominated lighting designer Stacey Derosier, Tony nominated lighting designer Justin Ellington, and Oscar, BAFTA, and Emmy winning hairstylist Mia Neal.

The original production premiered on Broadway at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre in March 1988, running for 105 performances. Under the direction of Lloyd Richards, the cast included Delroy Lindo and future film star Angela Bassett. The production earned Tony nominations for Best Play, Best Director, Best Featured Actor, and took the Best Featured Actress Tony Award for L. Scott Caldwell.

A revival came to Broadway in 2009 playing just 31 previews and 69 performances at the Belasco Theatre. Despite the brief run, the play was an awards season darling, with Roger Robinson winning the Tony for Best Featured Actor in a Play and Brian MacDevitt winning the Tony for Best Lighting Design of a Play. The revival earned an additional four nominations, for Best Revival of a Play, Best Direction, Best Scenic Design, and Best Sound Design.

In 2024, Denzel Washington announced that, as a custodian on Wilson's legacy, Joe Turner's Come and Gone would be the fourth Wilson play adapted for the screen in his deal with Netflix. Existing films include Fences (2016), Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (2020), and The Piano Lesson (2024). No further film details on Joe Turner's Come and Gone have been announced at this time. The film versions of Fences and The Piano Lessons were both preceded by Broadway stagings with much of the same cast.

Casting for the forthcoming Broadway revival is by ARC Casting, and 101 Productions, Ltd. is serving as general manager. Brian Anthony Moreland is producing.

Click here for tickets.