August Wilson's "Jitney," set in 1977, focuses on a poor urban neighborhood where "urban renewal" just means demolition and neglect. The plot revolves around a company of unlicensed cabs trying to maintain service for an African-American community ignored by regular taxis.
"It is more relevant now than in some years since the play was written," said Roscoe Orman, the veteran actor who stars in a new staging of "Jitney" by Theatre Morgan at Morgan State University this weekend.
The tall, handsome Orman, familiar to successive generations of children as Gordon on "Sesame Street" since 1974, plays Becker, owner of the gypsy cab company.
"Since I first saw a production of 'Jitney' I started salivating about the possibility of playing this role," Orman said. "He's kind of heroic in a way, but, like all of August Wilson's characters, he is equally flawed."
This is Orman's second foray into Wilson territory. He appeared in the 1988 Broadway premiere of Wilson's "Fences" and a 2005 staging of the work at Madison Repertory Theatre in Wisconsin.
That Madison production was directed by Shirley Basfield Dunlap, associate professor and coordinator of theater arts at Morgan State. Dunlap quickly thought of Orman when preparing to cast "Jitney" for Theatre Morgan.
"Becker is all about the developing and nurturing of a community," Dunlap said, "and that's Roscoe himself. He's really given back to his community. I thought he would be a natural in this role."
Dunlap sees "Jitney" as doubly meaningful for audiences today in Baltimore, where cases can still be found of taxis refusing to stop for people of color.
"If you close your eyes, 1977 and 2012 could be the same," she said. "Men don't wear platform shoes, bell-bottomed pants or huge Afros, but the blight of neighborhoods is the same. And we still have jitneys in Baltimore; we just call them hacks."
Given that Becker in "Jitney" is a father figure in the play, literally and symbolically, Dunlap had that paternal element in mind, too, when engaging Orman. The "Jitney" production involves students in the cast, stage crew, and the design of sets and costumes.
"I wanted somebody that the students could learn from, someone with a sense of warmth who could share the good and not-so-good of being in this business," said Dunlap, who also directed the "Ain't Misbehavin'" production currently at