Plot Summary
The Piano Lesson marks the directorial debut of Malcolm Washington and is the latest Netflix drama, adapting August Wilson’s 1987 play of the same name. The story revolves around a conflict between siblings Berniece and Boy Willie over an heirloom piano kept at their uncle Doaker’s house.
What’s the significance of the piano?
The piano, both in the film and the play, serves as a deeply symbolic artifact. It was carved by the Charles family’s ancestor during their time in slavery.
The piano physically chronicles significant events in the lives of the enslaved Charles family, but more importantly, it embodies a spiritual connection to their ancestors and stands as a poignant reminder of the family’s past. “You feel that? That’s your family. Your blood,” says Boy Willie to his niece Maretha, as he shows her the intricate engravings on the piano.
This is why Boy Willie’s father, with the help of his brothers, stole the piano from the Sutter household that owned them at one point in time. The act was not just about reclaiming what rightfully belonged to their family but also a symbolic gesture of liberation from slavery, fittingly carried out on the day of American Independence.
Why are the siblings at odds over the piano?
Throughout the story, the piano takes on different meanings for different characters.
For Boy Willie, the piano represents a tangible path to a better future. He sees it as a way to fund the purchase of land—a lesson his father imparted about how owning land offers stability, independence, and dignity. For Boy Willie, selling the piano is a step toward self-sufficiency and respectability.
For Berniece, however, the piano represents the family’s collective memory, the sacrifices of their ancestors, and the suffering they endured during slavery.Their father sacrificed his life for the piano. To her, selling the piano would mean disregarding their family’s history and pain.
What does the ghost symbolize in The Piano Lesson?
Sutter, the recently deceased descendant of the Sutter family, manifests as a ghost haunting the Charles family during the siblings’ conflict over the piano. He represents the lingering specter of slavery, a haunting reminder of its effects on the Charles family.
The piano, reclaimed by Berniece and Boy Willie’s father and their familial history engraved by their ancestor without the slave owner’s consent, stands as a symbol of resistance. However, when Boy Willie considers selling it, Sutter’s ghost reemerges, signifying how unresolved traumas from slavery still haunt and shape their present.
What happened at the end of The Piano Lesson?
After a long and heated argument between Berniece and Boy Willie, both Berniece and her daughter Maretha spot Sutter’s ghost in the house. Berniece, desperate to rid the family of the ghost, calls on Avery, a preacher who wishes to marry her, to bless the house.
Avery begins the blessing while the Charles family and Boy Willie’s friend Lymon watch. Boy Willie, skeptical of the ghost’s existence, dismisses it as a figment of Berniece’s imagination. To prove his point, he taunts the ghost and ventures upstairs. However, Sutter’s ghost appears and physically attacks him, choking him.
Realizing that Avery’s blessing isn’t enough to banish the ghost, Berniece decides to take action. Breaking her vow to never play the piano again—a vow tied to the pain her family endured—she begins to play, invoking the spirit of her ancestors. Through her prayers and music, the ancestors lend their strength, ultimately banishing Sutter’s ghost.
After his encounter with the ghost, Boy Willie comes to appreciate the piano’s true significance. He abandons his plan to sell it, entrusting Berniece and Maretha with the responsibility of playing the piano and keeping their ancestors’ memories alive.