Geva's production of "The Piano Lesson" is the worst kind of show to review: everything is so good that it's tough to know where to start. From a gorgeous set, to a uniformally excellent cast, to the tight directing, to the great costuming and lighting, there's absolutely nothing for an uppity critic to pick on. And it doesn't hurt that the play itself is a knockout, too.

"The Piano Lesson" is the fourth in August Wilson's American Century cycle, in which he documented African-American life throughout the 20th Century over 10 plays, one decade at a time. "Piano" is set in the 1930's and continues Wilson's examination of the repercussions of blacks migrating to the North, specifically focusing the dramatic tension involved with trying to create a future by letting go of the past.

The play tells the story of Boy Willie, a young black man still living in the South who comes to Pittsburgh on one of his money-making schemes. He sets up camp in the house of his uncle Doaker, which is also the home of his sister, Berniece, and her daughter, Maretha. In short order, Boy Willie explains that he's tired of working as a hired hand, barely avoiding the long arm of the law, and he plans to buy up a sizable chunk of land from the family that formerly owned his ancestors as slaves. But in order to do that, he needs an equally sizable amount of cash, which he plans to get by selling the family's ornate piano.

Berniece isn't having it. As we learn throughout the show, the piano is more than an instrument on which Maretha clumsily practices. It is quite literally a symbol of the blood, sweat, and tears poured out by the family over generations of slavery. The piano has cost the family dearly, and even though Berniece personally refuses to touch it, she'll be damned (again, possibly quite literally) if she'll let Boy Willie sell it to some rich white man buying up all the black people's instruments. (A sly reference by Wilson to The Man's eventual co-opting of black spiritual and soul music?)

The conflict betweenBoy Willie and Berniece builds as more details of the family's incredibly tragic past come to light. Berniece is completely paralyzed by her history. She won't move on and marry another man, even though her husband was killed years ago. She can't let go of any of Boy Willie's perceived slights. She recoils at the thought of touching the piano lest she take on the burden it laid upon her foremothers. Meanwhile, Boy Willie can't think about anything but what lies ahead, desperate to secure himself and his heirs a chance at a new life. It all comes to a head in one of the most dramatic conclusions to a play I have ever seen, expertly staged here, with the visuals and sound creating an exhilarating, chilling climax.

The best characters are neither all good or all bad, all right or all wrong. Boy Willie and Berniece fit that description. The sentiment of the crowd (and myself) initially seemed to lie with Berniece's side of the argument; despite her outer strength, she's a remarkably sympathetic character. But in the playbill, a quote from Wilson himself illuminates the fact that Boy Willie is perhaps in the right here. Once you look past his aggressive nature, his brashness, his actions are arguably nobler than Berniece's. The wild ending complicates the matter and leaves no clear "message," but pat solutions are for less interesting playwrights.

Wilson's strengths are abundantly clear here. His layered narrative approach leaves the viewer slightly concerned in the beginning that perhaps he doesn't have enough background to fully appreciate the story (what is the "Curse of the Yellow Dog"? How do I keep track of the umpteen family members mentioned in every scene?), but all you need to know is revealed naturally throughout the course of the play. Not a single line of dialogue is wasted, and some of the older characters - Doaker, his vagabond brother Wining Boy - drop pearls of wisdom that may not ever directly influence the story, but give us a sense of where things ultimately head (pay particular attention to Doaker's speech on the difference between the white man and the black man, and what that likely means for Boy Willie). And all of the various characters and subplots intersect nicely, creating unexpected revelations about who these people are and where they're going.

Stand-outs in the cast include Carl Cofield, who commands the stage as Boy Willie, employing a kind of yelp into his delivery to underscore the urgency in his character's actions. Roslyn Ruff's Berniece is graceful yet forceful, and even in her moments of weakness you know that Berniece is not a woman you would ever like to cross. Chuck Patterson's raspy voice initially seems problematic for Doaker, but by the time he breaks into song and gleefully jerks his body while talking about the life of a railroad man, you realize there's nobody else you'd rather see in the role. 

The Piano Lesson

Through May 11

Geva Theatre Center, 75 Woodbury Blvd.

$17-$54 | 232-4382, gevatheatrecenter.org