Audra McDonald Stars in “Ohio State Murders”

In 1949, the writer Adrienne Kennedy, now ninety-one, enrolled at Ohio State University, where she became enamored with “Tess of the d’Urbervilles” but, as one of only a few Black female students, was stung by racism within the institution. She revisited this time in her 1992 one-act “Ohio State Murders.” The play’s Broadway première is now in previews, starring the theatrical luminary Audra McDonald (above). Kenny Leon’s production marks Kennedy’s Broadway début, and the first show at the newly renamed James Earl Jones Theatre.