We thought we had many more years to enjoy August Wilson's life and work. I had a whole bag of questions I wanted to ask this sensitive, intellectually robust and turbulent man. I thought there would be time; if time ran out, I expected it would be from my death, not his.

Bob Donaldson, Post-Gazette The name of August Wilson may someday grace some buildings in his hometown. Click photo for larger image.

So it caught us by surprise, even with the few weeks warning we were given. But we still have the 10 great plays of his Pittsburgh Cycle. And we have the legacy of his life, to commemorate as we can.

Wilson himself had the care to plan his Oct. 8 funeral service at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial. What a poignant site, its Civil War origins in mute counterpoint to Wilson's epic of the aftermath of slavery.

The service was beautifully arranged, from the leadership of the Rev. Dwight Andrews and participation by Wilson's fine national interpreters -- actors Phylicia Rashad, Charles Dutton, Anthony Chisholm and Ruben Santiago-Hudson and directors Marion McClinton and Kenny Leon -- to Pittsburgh input from Sala Udin and Chawley P. Williams and the moving music of Wynton Marsalis.

Wilson also had time in September, with his death imminent, to do an interview with playwright Suzan-Lori Parks, which appears this weekend in the November issue of American Theatre -- the right interviewer and the right venue -- alongside the text of the final play in the Pittsburgh Cycle, "Radio Golf."

And Broadway had time to plan a wonderful commemoration, the naming of the August Wilson Theatre on 52nd Street.

So what will Pittsburgh do?

We didn't make a very good start. It may not be fitting for me to point this out, since I was abroad and unable to attend, but the turnout for Wilson's magnificent funeral was only about 400, some 100 of whom were from out of town. Others went to the funeral home, and many have told me they didn't go to the funeral because it wasn't well publicized or they thought it was private (in Soldiers & Sailors?) or would be too crowded. But it was an opportunity missed.

Now there is a debate about proper Pittsburgh commemoration. Of course August Wilson's name must be honored not just on the stage but in a permanent, distinguished way. So far, there have been two admirable ideas of sufficient size: giving his name to the new African American Cultural Center, which has raised most of the money needed for what will be a major new building in the Cultural District, or to CAPA, the classy High School for the Creative and Performing Arts.

Of the two, I think the August Wilson African American Cultural Center, or some such formulation, is the better choice -- assuming there must be a choice, because two major institutions in the Cultural District with the same name would be confusing. As the center's head, Neil Barclay, points out, the breadth of the center's concerns is matched by the rich testimony in Wilson's plays to the power of art and music (think Romare Bearden, blues and jazz). There's another match in his chronicle of a century of Pittsburgh culture and his deep concern for education as a path to empowerment.

Those considerations also make CAPA appropriate -- the idea thrilled me when I first heard it. But the Cultural Center will have a more national impact. Artists from everywhere would be honored to perform at an institution named for August Wilson in his hometown.

So far, Barclay says, this is just an idea under discussion. He had an early talk with Wilson, but now it depends on the feelings of his family, who should have a controlling say in any use of his name.

There are other good ideas. The renaming of the New Granada theater in the Hill District is one, though only if there's a commitment to restore it as part of a sensitive redevelopment of that part of the Hill -- the very subject of "Radio Golf."

And Udin and the theaters of Pittsburgh have been discussing a celebration involving his plays. Of course, that legacy continues no matter what. Pittsburgh Playwrights will be back with its third annual Wilson sampler, "August in February" (Feb. 15), then stage "The Piano Lesson" at the end of the summer. And Kuntu Rep's "Seven Guitars" (May 18-June 3) will coincide with the Public Theater's "Gem of the Ocean" (May 25-June 25).

Here's another idea from theater fan Rusty Salminen, who has dared to think big. Stimulated by the precedent of Ontario's Shaw Festival, he proposes an August Wilson Festival, built upon the Pittsburgh Cycle, to be held each August involving many theaters. Each year would focus on one Wilson play and its decade. "The Festival would mine the riches of that decade," he suggests, "mixed with related new material. The variety keeps it fresh; the new works keep it vibrant."

Salminen's four-page letter suggests the festival should include not just theater but also dance, opera, music and art. For his example, he uses "The Piano Lesson," set in the 1930s. One or more companies could jointly stage it "in an actual 'shotgun' house uptown." Simultaneously, you could have "Porgy and Bess" at Heinz Hall or the Benedum, staged by the Pittsburgh Opera and Symphony. Perhaps the CLO could extend its season with "One Touch of Venus" starring Bernadette Peters or Vanessa Williams, or "High Button Shoes" -- a festival subsidy cushioning the risk.

Then Salminen imagines PMT collaborating with the Shona Sharif African Dance and Drum Ensemble on "The Green Pastures" at the Byham, with Pittsburgh Opera Theatre doing Duke Ellington's "Queenie Pie" at CAPA. The Public would do "one of those 1930s family dramas that Ted Pappas handles well" -- in repertory with a visiting show from the Goodman Theatre or some other company connected to Wilson's career. City Theatre could share similarly with Yale Rep ("both operate in converted churches, after all"). And PICT and Playhouse Rep could stage "King Lear" starring Bill Cosby!

The Cultural Trust would take a central role. It wants to make Pittsburgh a destination city for the arts, right?

Pittsburgh has a long history of nurturing major arts talents who go off to be produced elsewhere. This would be a chance to embrace a great artist who started here and create something big.

We can dream, can't we?

But now, we have buildings to name.

A Broadway invitation

Remember our Nov. 16, 1994, Times Square photo of Pittsburghers who work in show business in New York?

We're doing it again on Wednesday, Nov. 16, at noon, at 44th Street and Times Square. Help us spread the word to all those in New York who work in theater or film and who consider themselves Pittsburghers (which means Western Pennsylvanians), whether by birth, school (CMU, Point Park) or adoption (CLO, etc.).

For everyone who shows up, the Post-Gazette will contribute $10 to Equity Fights AIDS. We'll all sing "It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood," and while some go off to their matinees, we'll party.

Send me questions. And spread the word!