17-year-old from Pittsburgh wins August Wilson Monologue Competition

NEW YORK, N.Y. – A 17-year-old from Pittsburgh has won the fifth annual August Wilson Monologue Competition, performing a section of the playwright’s “King Hedley II” with powerful skill.

Tambi Gxuluwe, who attends West Mifflin Area High School, took the first place trophy by beating out 14 other students during the finals Monday night at Broadway’s August Wilson Theatre.

The runner-up was Pablo Lopez from Los Angeles, and third place went to Branndin Phillips-Laramore from Chicago. The 15 finalists came from seven cities — Seattle, Pittsburgh, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Boston and Atlanta.

Each picked a 2- to 3-minute monologue from one of the 10 plays in Wilson’s “Century Cycle,” which chronicles the experience of black Americans in each decade of the 20th century.