''P-Valley'' is an American

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

television series created by

Katori Hall Katori Hall (born May 10, 1981) is an American playwright, screenwriter, producer, actress, and director from Memphis, Tennessee. Hall's best known works include the hit television series '' P-Valley'', the Tony-nominated '' Tina: The Tina Turner ...

. The series is an adaptation of Hall's play ''Pussy Valley'', and follows several people who work at a strip club in the Mississippi Delta. It stars

Brandee Evans Brandee Evans (born June 2, 1985) is an American actress and former choreographer, best known for her leading role in the Starz drama series ''P-Valley''. Life and career Evans was born in Memphis, Tennessee. Her mother suffers from multiple scl ...

Nicco Annan Nicco Annan is an American actor, dancer, and choreographer. He is best known for his portrayal of Uncle Clifford on the Starz drama series ''P-Valley'', an adaptation of the Katori Hall play ''Pussy Valley'', in which Annan originated the role. ...

, J. Alphonse Nicholson, and

Elarica Johnson Elarica Johnson (; born 21 August 1989) is an English actress and model, best known for playing Hailey (aka Autumn Night) in ''P-Valley.'' Johnson also starred in ''A Discovery of Witches'', in which she played Juliette Durand. She played Kylie ...

. It premiered on Starz on July 12, 2020, and was renewed for a second season two weeks after its premiere. The second season premiered on June 3, 2022. In October 2022, the series was renewed for a third season. ''P-Valley'' has received critical acclaim and garnered nominations from the

GLAAD Media Award The GLAAD Media Award is an accolade bestowed by GLAAD to recognize and honor various branches of the media for their outstanding representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and the issues that affect their liv ...

s, Independent Spirit Awards,

TCA Awards The TCA Awards are awards presented by the Television Critics Association in recognition of excellence in television. There are eleven categories, which are presented every summer towards the end of the organization's summer press tour. Due to ...

, and the

NAACP Image Awards The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. Similar to ...

Premise

The series follows the lives of employees working at a strip club called The Pynk in the fictional city of Chucalissa,

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

Cast

Main

as Mercedes Woodbine, a tough veteran stripper planning to leave The Pynk to open a dance gym *

as Uncle Clifford Sayles, the

non-binary Non-binary and genderqueer are umbrella terms for gender identities that are not solely male or femaleidentities that are outside the gender binary. Non-binary identities fall under the transgender umbrella, since non-binary people typically ...

owner and proprietor of The Pynk experiencing financial problems that threaten the club's survival *

Shannon Thornton Shannon Thornton (born July 24, 1987) is an American actress. Her first television acting role was on '' Blue Bloods'' in 2010. She also had recurring roles on ''Rise'', ''Dynasty'', and ''Power''. In 2020, she gained wider prominence as a lead cas ...

as Keyshawn Harris / Miss Mississippi, a dancer and influencer experiencing abuse by her boyfriend and father of her children, Derrick *

as Hailey Colton / Autumn Night / Lakeisha Savage (seasons 1-2), a hurricane survivor who moves to Chucalissa from Texas after losing her daughter * Skyler Joy as Gidget, a former dancer at the Pynk * J. Alphonse Nicholson as LaMarques / Lil Murda, an aspiring rapper and Uncle Clifford's love interest *

Parker Sawyers Parker Sawyers (born May 24, 1984) is an American actor. Career His first leading film role was starring as a young Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th presid ...

as Andre Watkins, an associate at a commercial investment company trying to secure land for The Promised Land Casino and Resort * Harriett D. Foy as Patrice Woodbine, a devout Christian, Mercedes' mother, and newly appointed mayor of Chucalissa *

Tyler Lepley Tyler Lepley (born March 24, 1987) is an American actor, best known for his portrayal of Benjamin "Benny" Young on the Tyler Perry produced prime time soap opera '' The Haves and the Have Nots''; which is the first scripted television series to ai ...

as Diamond (season 1; recurring season 2), The Pynk's bouncer and an

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror , image ...

veteran * Dan J. Johnson as Corbin Kyle, the co-owner of a valuable piece of land sought for purchase, and the biracial half-brother of Wayne and Wyatt *

Isaiah Washington Isaiah Washington IV is an American actor and media personality. Following a series of film appearances, he came to prominence for portraying Dr. Preston Burke in the first three seasons of the series ''Grey's Anatomy'' from 2005 to 2007. Wash ...

as Mayor Tydell Ruffin (season 1; guest season 2), Chucalissa's mayor who is determined to bring economic development to the city *

Loretta Devine Loretta Devine (born August 21, 1949) is an American actress, singer and voice actor. She is known for numerous roles across stage and screen. Her most high profile roles include Lorrell Robinson in the original Broadway production of '' Dreamg ...

as Ernestine Sayles (season 1; recurring season 2), Uncle Clifford's grandmother and former owner of Earnestine's juke joint, renamed the Pynk *

Morocco Omari Morocco Omari (born May 7, 1975) is an American film, television, and theater actor, screenwriter, producer, and a director. He was born in Chicago, Illinois. He is best known for his role as Tariq in the Hip-Hop television drama series ''Empire ...

as Big L (season 2; recurring season 1), an employee at The Pynk and Uncle Clifford's trusted advisor and righthand man * Dominic DeVore as Duffy (season 2; recurring season 1), Gidget's ex-boyfriend and Roulette's love interest * Jordan M. Cox as Derrick Wright (season 2; recurring season 1), Keyshawn's abusive boyfriend * Psalms Salazar as Whisper (season 2), a new dancer at The Pynk

Recurring

* Bertram Williams Jr. as Woddy, Lil Murda's manager * Brandon Gilpin as DJ Neva Scared, the teenage DJ of The Pynk * Angela Davis as Eloise (season 1; guest season 2), Mayor Ruffin's assistant and former dancer at the Pynk. * Steve Coulter as Tommy Bailey (season 1; guest season 2), police sheriff. * Azaria Carter as Terricka, Mercedes’ daughter and Patrice's granddaughter. * Helen Goldsby as Shelle, Terricka's adoptive mother. * Thomas Q. Jones as Mane, the leader of Chief-Fi-Chief gang. * Ashani Roberts as Dr. Britney Seagram-Watkins, Andre's wife. * Josh Ventura as Wayne Kyle, the son of a prominent businessman and co-owner of a cotton plantation. He is the brother of Wyatt and half-brother of Corbin. * Taylor Selé (season 1) and Sherman Augustus (season 2) as Cedric "Coach" Haynes, Mercedes' frequent client. * Cranston Johnson as Montavius (season 1), Hailey's abusive ex-boyfriend *

Blue Kimble Blue Kimble (born January 3, 1983) is an American actor, model, and former football player. Life and career Kimble was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. Before acting, he was a football player and played in the Arena Football League and the Na ...

as Rome (season 2; guest season 1), a music executive who worked with Keyshawn and Lil’ Murda. *

Gail Bean Gail Mitchell, known professionally as Gail Bean, is an American actress. Bean co-starred in the series '' Paradise Lost'' and the film '' Unexpected''. She has also acted in '' Insecure'', ''Love in the Time of Corona'', ''Atlanta'', and '' Detr ...

as Roulette, a new dancer at The Pynk (season 2) *

John Clarence Stewart John Clarence Stewart (born August 16, 1988) is an American actor and singer, best known for his role as Simon on ''Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist'' (2020-21). Prior to that, Stewart was recognized for portraying Alex Wesley on ''Luke Cage'' (201 ...

as Thaddeus Wilks / Big Teak (season 2), a member of Lil Murda's gang the Hurt Village Hustlas, recently released from prison on parole *

Shamika Cotton Shamika Cotton is an American actress from Cincinnati, Ohio. She is perhaps best known to television viewers as Michael Lee's drug-addicted mother Raylene Lee in the acclaimed HBO series ''The Wire''. Career Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, Shamika ...

as Farrah Haynes (season 2), the wife of Mercedes' frequent client, Coach * Miracle Watts as Big Bone (season 2), The Pynk's new bartender

The Pynk Staff

* Cherokee M. Hall as Extra Extra, a dancer at the Pynk * Cmayla Neal as Jupiter, a dancer at the Pynk * Chinet Scott as Brazil, a dancer at the Pynk * Sharae Monique Williams as Peanut Butter, a dancer at the Pynk * Melo J as Toy, a dancer at the Pynk * Joselin Reyes as Maite (season 1) a former seamstress for the Pynk dancers. * Toni Bryce as Nineveh (season 2; guest season 1), the current seamstress for the Pynk dancers.

Special Guest

* Megan Thee Stallion as Tina (season 2) *

Joseline Hernandez Joseline Hernandez (born November 3, 1986), also known as "The Puerto Rican Princess", is a Puerto Rican reality television personality, rapper, and actress. She came to prominence as a main cast member of the VH1 reality series '' Love & Hip ...

as Herself (season 2)

Episodes

Series overview

Season 1 (2020)

Season 2 (2022)

Production

Development

''P-Valley'', a television adaptation of

's play ''Pussy Valley'', first went into development at Starz in August 2016 after being shopped around to several networks. On November 26, 2018, it was announced that the network had given a series order to the adaptation with

Chernin Entertainment Chernin Entertainment is an American film and television production company founded and owned by former News Corporation president and chief operating officer Peter Chernin, also CEO and chairman of the company. Jenno Topping is the current Head ...

producing the series and

Karena Evans Karena Evans (born December 17, 1995) is a Canadian director and actress. She garnered recognition for directing the music videos for Drake's 2018 ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart-topping singles, "God's Plan", "Nice for What", and "In My Feelings". ...

set to direct the first episode. The eight-episode first season was made using all women directors. The series premiered on July 12, 2020, and was renewed for a second season on July 27, 2020. Season two had ten episodes with production starting in June 2021. On February 2, 2022, Hall announced that season two would take place a few months after the season one finale and would include the COVID-19 pandemic. The second season premiered on June 3, 2022. On October 20, 2022, Starz renewed the series for a third season.

Casting

On November 26, 2018,

, Shannon Thornton, and J. Alphonse Nicholson were cast, with Evans as Mercedes and Annan as Uncle Clifford, and Thornton and Nicholson as series regulars. On February 20, 2019,

was cast as Andre Watkins,

was cast as Autumn Night, and Harriett D. Foy was cast as Patrice Woodbine. On March 19, 2019,

was cast as Diamond and Dan J. Johnson was cast as Corbin Kyle. On April 24, 2019,

was cast in a recurring role. On June 24, 2019,

was cast in a recurring role and Skyler Joy was cast as Gidget. On June 25, 2019, Thomas Q. Jones was cast in a recurring role. On July 29, 2019, Josh Ventura was cast in a recurring role. Psalms Salazar and Gail Bean were announced as new cast members for season 2 on February 2, 2022. Morocco Omari, Jordan M. Cox, and Dominic DeVore were promoted to series regulars.

, and Miracle Watts were announced as recurring cast members on March 15, 2022. In 2021, Washington announced he would not return for the second season, stating that he had been fired by

Lionsgate Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Lionsgate, is a Canadian-American entertainment company. It was formed by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, domiciled in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is currently headquartered ...

. Showrunner

disputed that Washington was fired in an April 2022 interview with '' EW''. After the season 2 finale it was announced that Elarica Johnson, whose character moved away from Chucalissa, would not return to the series.

Choreography

Jamaica Craft serves as the show's choreographer. Before becoming a professional choreographer, she started her career dancing at TLC in Atlanta. The show has several body doubles and background dancers including Tess Artiste, Ashley Fox and Judy Gray. Professional exotic dancer Spyda is the stunt double for Brandee Evans.

Reception

Critical response

Review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

reported an approval rating of 100% for the first season based on 32 reviews, with an average rating of 8.7/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "A stunning, lyrical piece of neon noir, ''P-Valley'' explores the unseen lives of strippers in Mississippi through Katori Hall's singular gaze, celebrating the beauty of the craft without sugarcoating the challenges." On

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

, it has a weighted average score of 85 out of 100 based on 16 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". Referred to as a

Southern Gothic Southern Gothic is an artistic subgenre of fiction, country music, film and television that are heavily influenced by Gothic elements and the American South. Common themes of Southern Gothic include storytelling of deeply flawed, disturbing or ...

by critics, season one was praised for its portrayal of the Black women strippers' lives. Hannah Giorgis of ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

'' wrote, "''P-Valley'' is lush, resplendent, and sometimes haunting. All of the women's strife occurs against the backdrop of sweeping southern vistas or kaleidoscopic lighting, often with eerily bouncing beats soundtracking their dances." Similarly, Tambay Obenson reviewed the show for IndieWire, "These are richly crafted characters in what is essentially a quasi-family. It's obvious Hall did her homework, talking to dozens of strippers over six years, to make the production as authentic as possible." Critics also noted the portrayal of social issues. Eric Deggans stated in a review for

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

, "...between the storylines about domestic abuse and a secret casino project, we see takes on colorism, closeted gay men and the struggle to survive when you're poor, Black and outside polite society in the South." Brandee Evans' acting received positive reception. Writing for The Ringer, Allison Herman stated, "Evans is more than capable of carrying the show herself, and discovery of a freshly minted actress adds to the thrill."

's portrayal of Uncle Clifford was named to ''THR'''s list of Best TV Performances of 2020. The second season received mainly positive critical reception. It holds an 90% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on ten critic ratings with an average rating of 8.0/10.

Ratings

Season 1

Season 2

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Official website
* {{Starz Shows 2020 American television series debuts 2020s American black television series 2020s American drama television series 2020s American LGBT-related drama television series English-language television shows Starz original programming Television series based on plays Television shows set in Mississippi LGBT African-American culture Works about the sex industry Television series by Chernin Entertainment Southern Gothic television series Television shows filmed in Atlanta