Fences

Troy Maxson is finally seeing real progress at age 53. The former Negro Leaguer great is on the verge of becoming the first black garbage truck driver in Pittsburgh. It's a small achievement, but it's one of the few allowed to a black man in the 1950s. His life is not all smooth sailing, though. He and his son keep fighting over the boy's future, and Troy can't get him to understand the value of a steady paycheck over the possibility of a career in football — but maybe that's just Troy's own deferred dreams talking. August Wilson's Pulitzer Prize-winning drama Fences is about a man who has grown embittered over the years, becoming a cold and distant tyrant in his own home. The Black Rep performs Fences at 7 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday (January 4 to 21) at Washington University's Edison Theatre (6445 Forsyth Boulevard; www.theblackrep.org). Tickets are $15 to $45.