Erykah Badu is set to hit the screen soon. Today (May 31), Netflix announced that the “On & On” singer will be joining the cast of the feature film adaptation of The Piano Lesson.
Badu joins the likes of Samuel L. Jackson, John David Washington, Ray Fisher, Danielle Deadwyler, Michael Potts, and Corey Hawkins in this post-Depression-era story.
The Piano Lesson takes place in 1936 in Pittsburgh following the Great Depression. The story chronicles the members of the Doaker Charles household and their family piano, which contains carvings and messages from an enslaved ancestor of the Charles family.
Jackson and Washington have previously starred in a Broadway adaptation of The Piano Lesson. This show recently concluded its run at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre after playing 27 previews and 124 regular performances. This edition of The Piano Lesson is the highest-grossing revival of a play on Broadway and the highest-grossing August Wilson production on Broadway ever.
The show also earned two Tony awards — Best Revival Of A Play and Best Performance By An Actor In A Featured Role In A Play, the latter for Samuel L. Jackson’s performance.
At the time of writing, Badu’s role in the upcoming film adaptation of The Piano Lesson has not yet been specified.
