''Fairview'' is a 2018 comedy play written by

Jackie Sibblies Drury Jackie Sibblies Drury is an American playwright. ''The New York Times'' called Drury's 2012 play '' We Are Proud to Present a Presentation About the Herero of Namibia, Formerly Known as Southwest Africa, From the German Sudwestafrika, Between the ...

. The play was co-commissioned by Berkeley Rep and Soho Repertory Theatre.McNulty, Charles
"Review: Playwright Jackie Sibblies Drury daringly deconstructs the theater of black identity in 'Fairview' at Berkeley Rep"
''Los Angeles Times'', October 15, 2018 The play follows a

middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Commo ...

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

family as they prepare for a birthday dinner for their grandmother only to be watched by four White people.

Plot

Act One

The play begins with a Black woman, Beverly, setting up a birthday party for her mother in an upper-middle class house. Her family slowly joins her onstage, including her husband Dayton, her sister Jasmine, and her daughter Keisha. Beverly receives a phone call from her brother, Tyrone, telling her that he cannot come to the birthday party. Beverly becomes so upset with things going awry and family conflict that occurs that she faints.

Act Two

Act two has the Black actors mimic the same actions on the set from act one as a group of White characters commentate on race. Two of the White people, Jimbo and Mack, discuss which race they would be if they were not White and are challenged by a third White character, Suze. Bets, another White woman, questions the concept of race. Suze, who was raised by a Black woman, says that she would choose to be African-American because she holds a lot of empathy for them. As the White characters begin to argue, Beverly faints in the background action. The White characters continue their conversation as the audience sees the Black characters engage in action that continues where act one left off. As the act ends, the White characters disappear.

Act Three

The actions of the Black characters are continued in act three as Beverly’s mother enters the scene, played by the same White woman who played Suze in act two. Keisha is notably uncomfortable as her grandmother is played by a White woman. Tyrone then appears, played by the same White actor who played Jimbo. The White actor who played Mack appears as Erika. A second, jazzier version of the grandmother appears, played by the same White actress who played Bets. While all of the White actors enter the play as Black characters, Keisha becomes more and more uncomfortable as White people are trying to fit into Black misfortune. The play ends with Keisha breaking the fourth wall and speaking to the audience about how Black people need to tell their own stories and how White people need to participate as listeners.

Production

The play premiered

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

Soho Repertory Theatre The Soho Repertory Theatre, known as Soho Rep,The official website'now use "Soho", with a lowercase h, as do most articles from th''New York Times''/ref> is an American Off-Broadway theater company based in New York City which is notable for prod ...

, running from June 17, 2018 through August 12, 2018. The play was produced at

Berkeley Repertory Theatre Berkeley Repertory Theatre is a regional theater company located in Berkeley, California. It runs seven productions each season from its two stages in Downtown Berkeley. History The company was founded in 1968, as the East Bay's first resident pr ...

, Berkeley, California in October and November 2018, again directed by Sarah Benson (the Artistic Director of Soho Rep) and choreographed by

Raja Feather Kelly Raja Feather Kelly is an American dancer and choreographer based in Brooklyn who is notable for his "radical downtown surrealist" productions which combine "pop and queer culture". He has choreographed numerous theatrical productions, including ' ...

. The play was produced at Polonsky Shakespeare Center, Brooklyn, New York by

Theatre for a New Audience The Theatre for a New Audience (TFANA) is a non-profit theater in New York City focused on producing Shakespeare and other classic dramas. Its off-Broadway productions have toured in the U.S. and internationally. History Theatre for a New Audienc ...

starting on June 2, 2019, directed by Sarah Benson and choreographed by Raja Feather Kelly. The play's run was extended from June 30 to July 28.Clement, Olivia
"Encore Off-Broadway Run of 'Fairview' Extends at TFANA"
Playbill, May 16, 2019 The play was produced in London at the

Young Vic The Young Vic Theatre is a performing arts venue located on The Cut, near the South Bank, in the London Borough of Lambeth. The Young Vic was established by Frank Dunlop in 1970. Kwame Kwei-Armah has been Artistic Director since February 201 ...

from November 28, 2019 to January 18, 2020. The production was directed by Nadia Latif.

Awards and honors

In April 2019, ''Fairview'' won the 2019

Pulitzer Prize for Drama The Pulitzer Prize for Drama is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. It is one of the original Pulitzers, for the program was inaugurated in 1917 with seven prizes, four of which were a ...

. The Pulitzer committee called the play "a hard-hitting drama that examines race in a highly conceptual, layered structure, ultimately bringing audiences into the actors' community to face deep-seated prejudices." The play was nominated for the 2019

Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. Fo ...

s: Outstanding Play; Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play (Charles Browning), Outstanding Director of a Play (Sarah Benson), Outstanding Set Design of a Play (Mimi Lien), Outstanding Lighting Design for a Play (Amith Chandrashaker) and Outstanding Sound Design in a Play (Mikaal Sulaiman).