Photo: John Lamparski/Getty; Mike Coppola/Getty
John David Washingtonis following in his father’s footsteps.
The former pro football player and actor, 38, will make his Broadway debut later this month when August Wilson’sThe Piano Lessonbegins performances Sept. 19 at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre. His dad,Denzel Washington, won a Tony Award 12 years ago for his work in another of Wilson’s plays:Fences.
Denzel went on to direct and star in a 2016 film version ofFences, earning an Oscar nomination for his performance.
“Am I nervous when [my father is] watching me on stage? I don’t know yet. Maybe. I might not even be thinking about it because I’m thinking about the notes from my director,” John said at a press conference Wednesday while promotingThe Piano Lesson. “I don’t know if I have time to be nervous about what he thinks.”
However, John does think about how the 67-year-old film star influenced him as an actor.
When asked what he has learned from Denzel, theBallersalum replied: “The freedom to fail, to find out, flourish in that failure. In that being uncomfortable, you’ll find the greatest parts of yourself as an artist.”
John Lamparski/Getty
InThe Piano Lesson, John will star alongside Oscar nomineeSamuel L. JacksonandThe Color PurplestarDanielle Brooks. Samuel’s wifeLaTanya Richardson Jacksondirects, and John said that he has learned a lot in the process.
“I feel like I’m in grad school,” John said. “This is an education for me. I feel like I’m becoming a different artist, an artist that I’ve been wanting to be.”
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John, who had a brief NFL career before becoming an actor, compares performing in the Pulitzer Prize-winning play to his work on the football field, saying that he’s been having “sleepless nights” as his first night on Broadway quickly approaches.
“So what does getting it right mean? It means the truth of it,” he added. “To tell [my performance] fully and truthfully within the rules of the great writer August Wilson.”
For more information and tickets, visitPianoLessonPlay.com.
source: people.com
