August Wilson House

The Daisy Wilson Artist Community is a nonprofit corporation whose mission is to promote the literar It was a phenomenal success!

The exhibits, performances, and seminars at the August Wilson House are produced within the literary, artistic and professional tradition of August Wilson. For example, each April, we have an August Wilson Birthday Block Party, open to the public, with streets blocked off, inclusive of food trucks, vendors, tech spaces, performing arts, fun and fellowship for all ages. For example in August 2016,

the August Wilson House partnered with Board Member, Mark Clayton Southers' Pittsburgh Playwrights Theater Company to produce August Wilson's "Seven Guitars" in the backyard of the House. In the future, we expect that talented faculty members from regional universities will operate educational workshops at the August Wilson House, with graduate students who are pursuing a Masters in Fine Arts. We anticipate that these students will mentor emerging cultural arts students enrolled at the Creative Arts Performing Academy (CAPA) High School. Professional artists will engage in residencies at the August Wilson House, while sharing their works-in-progress with the Community. Student artists will be expected to learn from the philosophy of August Wilson, engage in educational teleconferencing, receive technical support from the universities, and produce academic works in completion of their respective curriculum. Seminars offered at the August Wilson Home will include such items as resume-building, literary production, musical composition, speech and singing lessons, musical performances and spoken word delivery and visual arts production, with technical feedback from invited guests, and even some dance lessons from participating program instructors. We expect that the Community’s activities will be conducted by faculty members from local educational institutions, visiting professors and professionals who have expertise and background on the particular subject matter, visiting artists and celebrities who have consented beforehand to provide guidance and feedback to the students, and volunteer members of relevant local community groups. The programs at the August Wilson House will be for the benefit of the student participants as well as the public in general. Our intention is to nurture, develop, support, and otherwise assist cultural artists to flourish and then one day give back to the Community with their own experience and input, creating a cycle of quality cultural arts developments and opportunities that have not previously existed for talented members of the community. We believe that establishing an institution that supports talented artists, students, scholars and arts professionals is one of the best ways to honor the legacy of the late August Wilson, who despite having talents that were promising and obvious at an early age, was denied access to such support and encouragement.

05/23/2026

Thank you for continuing to show up for the August Wilson house and for the community!

05/23/2026

SMALL BUSINESS SUPPORT IN ACTION

As part of the 10th Annual August Wilson Birthday Celebration Block Party, presented by Dollar Bank, we’re excited to share that ALL vendor fees have officially been refunded to participating vendors.

That means every vendor who paid to participate in this year’s Block Party will receive back:
✅ Their vendor fee
✅ Their payment processing fees

Refunds are being sent back to the original payment method used during registration and may take up to 7 business days to appear depending on your bank or payment provider.

A HUGE thank you to Dollar Bank, Morton Stanfield, & Jason Jones for making this possible and for continuing to invest directly into small businesses, entrepreneurs, and the community as we celebrated 10 years of the Block Party.

This is what community partnership looks like. 🖤

Vernard Alexander
Orlana Darkins Drewery

American theater history lives on 1727 Bedford Avenue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

August Wilson House (@augustwilsonhouse) preserves and activates the childhood home of legendary playwright August Wilson.

Born and raised in Pittsburgh’s historic Hill District, Wilson lived in a two-room apartment with his mother and five siblings. When he was four years old, his mother, Daisy, taught him how to read at the kitchen table.

Wilson started his career as a poet, joining the Centre Avenue Poets Theater Workshop. After co-founding the Black Horizon Theater with Rob Penny, he began to produce plays. As opportunities drew him away from his hometown, his work filled with scenes and memories of the Hill District.

The neighborhood provided inspiration for nine of his 10 plays in the “Pittsburgh Cycle,” which documented African American life in the 20th century. This earned him two Pulitzer Prizes, in 1987 for “Fences” and 1990 for “The Piano Lesson.”

But as his career rose, Wilson’s childhood home fell into disrepair. His beloved Hill District lost about 75% of its residents through policies that drove unemployment and urban displacement.

Prior to his death, Wilson knew of the desire to restore his childhood home. But he never wanted it to become a museum—rather, he wanted the space to be directly “useful” to the community and a place of refuge for artists.

After renovations led by family, community members, and historic preservationists, August Wilson House opened to the public as a community arts center in 2022.

“Our tagline is, ‘claim what is yours,’” says executive director Denise Turner. “We want people to find creativity around every corner of the house and take a little piece of that with them.”

Today, AWH offers free arts programming, playwriting Fellowships, and has an accessible outdoor theater where Wilson’s plays are remounted. Its “Art for August” program commissions visual artists to create works inspired by the playwright.

At the center of the house lies a historical reproduction of Wilson’s apartment, kitchen table and all. It is here that visitors get a true sense of where it all started.

05/14/2026

Thank you Mellon Foundation!

American theater history lives on 1727 Bedford Avenue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. August Wilson House (@augustwilsonhouse) preserves and activates the childhood home of legendary playwright August Wilson. Born and raised in Pittsburgh’s historic Hill District, Wilson lived in a two-room apartment with his mother and five siblings. When he was four years old, his mother, Daisy, taught him how to read at the kitchen table. Wilson started his career as a poet, joining the Centre Avenue Poets Theater Workshop. After co-founding the Black Horizon Theater with Rob Penny, he began to produce plays. As opportunities drew him away from his hometown, his work filled with scenes and memories of the Hill District. The neighborhood provided inspiration for nine of his 10 plays in the “Pittsburgh Cycle,” which documented African American life in the 20th century. This earned him two Pulitzer Prizes, in 1987 for “Fences” and 1990 for “The Piano Lesson.” But as his career rose, Wilson’s childhood home fell into disrepair. His beloved Hill District lost about 75% of its residents through policies that drove unemployment and urban displacement. Prior to his death, Wilson knew of the desire to restore his childhood home. But he never wanted it to become a museum—rather, he wanted the space to be directly “useful” to the community and a place of refuge for artists. After renovations led by family, community members, and historic preservationists, August Wilson House opened to the public as a community arts center in 2022. “Our tagline is, ‘claim what is yours,’” says executive director Denise Turner. “We want people to find creativity around every corner of the house and take a little piece of that with them.” Today, AWH offers free arts programming, playwriting Fellowships, and has an accessible outdoor theater where Wilson’s plays are remounted. Its “Art for August” program commissions visual artists to create works inspired by the playwright. At the center of the house lies a historical reproduction of Wilson’s apartment, kitchen table and all. It is here that visitors get a true sense of where it all started.

05/12/2026

Tonight’s FB Live featured the introduction to Ty Greenwood’s Playwright Panel Discussion. Ty is one of the two August Wilson House Playwrights in Residence, and his play, Paradox of Education, recently ran April 4–29, 2026 at Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company.

The introduction to the evening’s event was beautifully done by Denise Turner, Executive Director of August Wilson House. It was a wonderful evening celebrating theater, storytelling, and the power of the arts in our community. 🎭📖

05/11/2026

WHAT. A. DAY.

To everyone who came out, showed love, performed, vended, volunteered, sponsored, judged, danced, ate, supported, and celebrated with us — THANK YOU for making the 10th Annual August Wilson Birthday Celebration Block Party, presented by Dollar Bank, an unforgettable success.

Rain or shine, Pittsburgh SHOWED UP… and for 10 years strong, this community continues to prove what culture, legacy, and unity look like.

🛍️ VENDORS: As part of Dollar Bank’s incredible 10-year commitment, vendor fee reimbursements are coming your way within the next 14 days — please keep an eye out for your refund. This is Dollar Bank continuing to invest directly in small businesses and community.

A HUGE thank you to the people behind the magic:
✨ Briana L. White
✨ Vernard Alexander
✨ Jacquea Mae Music
✨ Gerald Watkins
✨ DJ Blakk Steel
✨ Selecta
✨ August Wilson House Board
✨ Orlana Darkins Drewery

And thank you to our incredible sponsors and partners:
🏦 Presenting Sponsor: Dollar Bank
Special thanks to Morton Stanfield and Jason Jones for helping us celebrate 10 years in a major way.

👏 UPitt Library System
👏 University of Pittsburgh
👏 Chase Bank
👏 Highmark Wholecare
👏 Highmark Health Plan
👏 UPMC Health Plan
👏 McAuley Ministries
👏 Penguins Foundation

🎤 To every performer who hit the stage — THANK YOU for bringing your gifts, energy, and artistry.

🧀 To all Mac & Cheese Contest participants — you brought the heat!

🏆 CONGRATULATIONS to Goated Wings — officially crowned Cheesiest in the Burgh!

From live music and local vendors to house tours, the Kids Zone, farmers market, poetry slam, Mac & Cheese showdown, and community love all day long… this was more than a Block Party — this was LEGACY.

Thank you for rocking with us for 10 years.
We’re already building bigger for what’s next.

05/09/2026

Come on out to the August Wilson Block party! We are here til 6pm. Lots of food trucks. Kids activities and tons of vendors. Come thru!

05/09/2026

🏆✨ AWH AWARDS ✨🏆

During the 2026 August Wilson Birthday Celebration Block Party, we proudly took time to honor and celebrate individuals whose work, service, creativity, and commitment continue to uplift our community and carry forward the spirit of August Wilson. 🩵

The AWH Awards recognize those who lead with purpose, inspire through action, and help preserve the culture, history, and legacy of the Hill District and beyond.

Thank you to all of our honorees, supporters, volunteers, performers, vendors, sponsors, and every person who joined us for this unforgettable 10th Anniversary Celebration. Because of YOU, the legacy lives on.

📍August Wilson House
🎉 August Wilson Birthday Celebration Block Party 2026
❤️ Celebrating Legacy • Community • Culture • Excellence

05/09/2026

Bill Henry Band live @ the August Wilson Birthday Celebration Block Party 🎊

05/09/2026

Good morning! It’s August Wilson Block Party day. We are getting ready to set up in the rain but looking at the rain dying off as we move into the Block Party so that is the good news.!

- Volunteers will see you at 7 AM.
- Food, vendors, and vehicles see you between seven and eight.

- All other vendors see you at 8:30 lined up on Bedford. Please remember you are dropping off your items in your spot and then going to park and coming back to set up. Due to the rain you may want to bring plastic or a tarp to put over your items while you park your car. You must move your car prior to setting up your tents.

- Performers, please follow instructions Given as to what time to arrive :

Looking forward to a great day!

Claim ownership or report listing

Want your school to be the top-listed School/college in Pittsburgh?

Click here to claim your Sponsored Listing.

Location

Pittsburgh

Contact the school

Click here to send a message to the school

Website

http://AugustWilsonHouse.org/

Address

1727 Bedford Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA
15219

August Wilson House

Share

Location

Contact the school

Website

Address