Cedric the Entertainer has spent much of the last eight years on the storied CBS lot in Los Angeles filming his hit sitcom, The Neighborhood, which is wrapping up its 155-episode run in May. “After you do television for eight seasons, the idea of becoming a TV dad is appealing,” the actor confesses to Gold Derby. “You can get very comfortable with the money, the work schedule, and you know the networks are going to be like, ‘Man, eight seasons. It was great. Let’s throw you right into something else.’”
But Cedric has never been one to rest on his laurels. “I was looking for the opportunity to stretch and do something different,” he says of his post-Neighborhood plans.
That opportunity came along in the form of Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, Debbie Allen’s new revival of August Wilson’s celebrated 1986 play. The show casts Cedric as Seth Holly, the owner of a Pittsburgh boarding house in the 1910s. Oscar nominee Taraji P. Henson plays his wife, Bertha, while Tony winner Ruben Santiago-Hudson plays their longtime tenant, Bynum Walker.
“I just want to be out of the box of a regular comedian,” Cedric says of his return to Broadway after headlining a 2008 production of David Mamet’s American Buffalo opposite John Leguizamo and Haley Joel Osment. “I’m the entertainer — I do it all!”
Gold Derby: This is your second time on Broadway after American Buffalo 18 years ago. Was this always something you wanted to return to?
Cedric the Entertainer: Definitely. We had a short run last time, [because there] was the big financial crisis. We had a lot of Wall Street money in the play, and they all ran for cover, so it wasn’t a fulfilling run. I’ve had the desire to come back and do Broadway since then.
Were you familiar with Joe Turner’s Come and Gone before this project?
No, this is one of the lesser-reproduced August Wilson plays. I know Fences, of course, and The Piano Lesson and Jitney. I had an opportunity to be in the film version of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, but I didn’t get to shoot that because of The Neighborhood. Joe Turner was something I didn’t know much about until I got the script. I was quite surprised [to learn] that it was one of August’s favorites.
Now that we’re performing it, I could see why. I really love the storytelling and the set-up of looking for yourself after coming out of slavery and trying to put your feet on the ground. It’s this idea of, “Who am I in the world, and what am I going to do to find that true guiding light?”
Your character, Seth Holly, is at times the straight man and at times the comedic relief. How did you and Debbie Allen build this version of the character?
You come to Broadway, and you want to be taken seriously. I told her that when I did Mamet, people wanted to laugh at me even though I played this straight role. I’m trying to show my audience I got this range. She was like, “Lean into it — make Seth a person.”
He’s a curmudgeon and he’s really sincere, but because he’s those things all the time, he actually ends up being funny. Everybody knows that grandfatherly uncle that’s a hard ass, but makes you laugh, because if you know him, you know he’s just talking. We wanted to be very respectful to August Wilson, and not turn it into jokes, but we also knew Seth is somebody who could be funny in the way that he delivers his lines.
We love the balance we’ve given to these characters. People who have seen the play before have told me it always felt a lot darker. Me and Taraji chose this love affair as opposed to married people who get along to go along. We decided to be in love, so it’s a lot of touching, hugging, talking to each other, and little giggles.
Speaking of your chemistry with Taraji, you’ve worked together before. How has that long-term friendship impacted the characters?
That was really important. We did Talk to Me with Don Cheadle, and there’s a scene where she cheats on him with me. Then we played husband and wife in Larry Crowne with Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts. Just knowing each other over the years and respecting the other one’s work, we came into rehearsal giving each other those props.
It’s kind of a brother-sister thing. We ended up being in trouble a lot with Debbie! Playing too much and getting caught on our phones like mischievous little kids. That made us have these inside jokes where we would laugh at with each other. Debbie noticed it and was just like, “Hey, do that — be playful. Y’all driving me crazy, but I like it.”
Ruben Santiago-Hudson was friends with Wilson. Has he shared any stories or insights that have changed how you saw this show?
Yeah, he had so many great insights on how August would see a character. He told me, “[August Wilson] would love the way you’re doing Seth, because he was a funny personality. Even though he was a great writer, he had a mischievous sense of humor.” For me to have Ruben, this great griot of theater, but even more so, August Wilson, just brings comfort. He’s able to explain how August thought about things and give you a perspective on how to go out and attack the play.
The Neighborhood is a multi-camera sitcom filmed with a live studio audience. How does that compare to performing on a Broadway show?
The biggest thing with a sitcom is you have this ability to stop, start, and redo it. You’ve also got a stand-in, so you can send somebody out there for you and let them work on where you walk. Broadway is the true dojo of acting; you’re there, you’re workshopping it, and you’re the one trying to develop your character. Once those lights come up, you are out there with your fellow castmates on a tightrope until it’s done. Everything counts; everybody has to do their job and be in accord.
Do you get nervous before these shows? Do you have any pre-show rituals?
No, I don’t really get nervous anymore. I do like to get there a couple of hours ahead of time; I stretch, light a candle, put on some music — some Stevie Wonder or Grover Washington Jr. I’ve got my yoga mat, so I’ll get down on the floor and do some stretches. I scan the script even though I know it well and go through scenes to make sure I’m hitting the words exactly right. You can get comfortable saying things the way you would say it, but when you go and look at the script, you’ll be like, “No, I’ve been actually transposing those words.”
Denzel Washington is producing the film versions of the Pittsburgh Cycle. Have there been talks among the cast about possibly acting in the movie?
We believe Debbie is slated to direct the film version, so we’re all jockeying for the parts! We know Denzel’s going to do it. It’s about finding good favor, because we all want to be in the movie.
