By The West End has been standing in for the Hill District, circa the 1950s, as Denzel Washington and company continue to shoot a movie version of August Wilson’s “Fences” in Pittsburgh.
The Paramount Pictures production moved last week from the Hill, the original setting for the Pulitzer Prize-winning play that takes place in 1957. On Thursday, onlookers could see vintage automobiles on South Main Street and scene set-up for Becky’s Fruit Market on Wabash Street, as well as extras in period clothing.
“Fences” began its Pittsburgh filming schedule in April, with Mr. Washington as director and star, along with Broadway co-stars including Viola Davis. The shoot is using a screenplay by the late Mr. Wilson, a Pittsburgh native known for his cycle of 10 plays set in each decade of the 20th century, with nine of the plays set in the Hill District.