The stars of critically acclaimed HBO series The Wire are beefing up the cast of an upcoming drama called Treme, with the likes of Wendell Pierce and Clarke Peters joining the latter’s roster.  Not a few days back, it was reported that CSI: Miami’s favorite coroner Khandi Alexander will also be heading to New Orleans.

This comes as no surprise, however, as the producer of The Wire David Simon created Treme, a post-Katrina drama that looks at the iconic New Orleans neighborhood that has produced a lot of famed musicians.

Pierce, a New Orleans-native himself, will be the trombone-playing Antoine Batiste, the struggling musician trying to score gigs to support his girlfriend and their newborn baby.  Peters, meanwhile, will play Albert Lambreaux, “a big chief of the White Feather Nation.”  Alexander will reportedly take on the role of Batiste’s ex-wife.  Both Peters and Alexander have worked with Simon on Emmy-winning miniseries The Corner.

With such heavyweights on its helm, Treme is being groomed to be HBO’s next hit.  Other than the area’s music scene, it will also delve into political corruption, the public housing controversy, the crippled criminal-justice system, clashes between police and Mardi Gras Indians, and the struggle to regain the tourism industry after Katrina.

“It’s basically a post-Katrina history of the city.  It will be rooted in events that everybody knows,” says The Wire and Treme creator.  “What it’s not going to be is a happy stroll through David Simon’s record collection. It should not be a tourism slide show.  If we do it right, it [will be] about why New Orleans matters.”

No premiere date has been set for Treme.

For its part, the Baltimore-set urban police drama The Wire recently earned the nods of the Television Critics Association with four nominations, including Program of the Year, Achievement in Drama, Individual Achievement in Drama for Simon, and the Heritage Award for its social impact.

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