The Public Theater

This darkly comic fable of brotherly love and family identity won a Pulitzer Prize for playwright Suzan-Lori Parks.

Two African-American brothers, named Lincoln and Booth as a cruel joke, live together in one small room. By day, Lincoln works in whiteface as an Abraham Lincoln impersonator while Booth shoplifts. Their rivalries and resentments are played out through ruthless games of three-card monte. They are haunted by their pasts, but it is the legacy of their names that will ultimately lead to them to a tragic fate.

After a successful run at The Public, Topdog/Underdog moved to Broadway. It opened in the Ambassador Theater on April 7, 2002 with Mos Def succeeding Don Cheadle in the role of Lincoln. Off-Broadway, the show received Drama Desk nominations for Outstanding Play and Outstanding Actor in a Play for Jeffrey Wright. Jeffrey Wright also received a Lucille Lortel Award nomination for Outstanding Actor. The Broadway production was nominated for Tony Awards in the Best Play and Best Leading Actor in a Play (Jeffrey Wright) categories.