Joe Turner's Come and Gone

The Obamas came to see it last weekend! Need any more recommendation? O.K., here's one: August Wilson's play — the second, chronologically, in his 10-play cycle about the black experience in the 20th century — is not an easy evening nor an entirely explicable one. But its poetry and mystery are intoxicating, and it is one of the rare occasions when American theater rises to greatness.

See pictures of Barack Obama's college years.

See pictures of classic plays and musicals at LIFE.com.

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