Gem of the Ocean

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Set in 1904, this is the haunting tale of a spiritually tormented young man who pays a visit to Aunt Ester, a former slave, on the eve of her 287th birthday. When Citizen Barlow comes to her home seeking asylum, she sets him off on a spiritual journey to find a city in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. On his way to the mythic city, he makes startling discoveries about guilt, duty, and redemption. Gem of the Ocean is the ninth work in August Wilson's ten-play cycle that has recorded the American Black experience and helped to define generations.