By The Way, Meet Vera Stark
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''By the Way, Meet Vera Stark'' is a play by
Lynn Nottage Lynn Nottage (born November 2, 1964) is an American playwright whose work often focuses on the experience of working-class people, particularly working-class people who are black. She has received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama twice: in 2009 for he ...
. The play concerns an African-American maid in the 1930s who becomes a film star.


Background

Nottage received the 2010 Edgerton Foundation New American Play Award for this play.


Productions

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 ...
at Second Stage Theater on May 9, 2011, and closed on June 12, 2011. Directed by
Jo Bonney Jo Bonney is an American theater director who has worked Off-Broadway, regionally and internationally, primarily focused on the development of new plays. Early life and education Bonney was born in Australia, the daughter of a Qantas airline p ...
, the cast featured
Sanaa Lathan Sanaa McCoy Lathan (; born September 19, 1971) is an American actress. She is the daughter of actress Eleanor McCoy and film director Stan Lathan. Her career began after she appeared in the shows ''In the House'', '' Family Matters'', ''NYPD Bl ...
(Vera Stark), Stephanie J. Block (Gloria Mitchell), Daniel Breaker (Leroy Barksdale/Herb Forrester), David Garrison (Fredrick Slasvick/Brad Donovan), Kimberly Hebert Gregory (Lottie/Carmen Levy-Green), Kevin Isola (Maximillian Von Oster/Brian Blaze), and
Karen Olivo KO, formerly named and credited on stage and screen as Karen Olivo until 2022, (born August 7, 1976) is an American stage and television actor, theater educator, and singer. In 2008, KO originated the role of Vanessa in '' In the Heights'' on Br ...
(Anne Mae/Afua Assata Ejob). Sets were by Neil Patel and costumes by ESosa.Brantley, Ben
"Review. A Black Actress Trying to Rise Above a Maid"
''New York Times'', May 10, 2011
The play ran at the
Geffen Playhouse The Geffen Playhouse is a not-for-profit theater company founded in Los Angeles, California by Gilbert Cates in 1995. It produces plays in two theaters in Geffen Playhouse, which is owned by University of California Los Angeles. The Playhous ...
in Los Angeles in September 2012, directed by Jo Bonney, starring Sanaa Lathan with Amanda Detmer (Gloria).Virini, Bob
"Review: ‘By the Way, Meet Vera Stark’"
''Variety'', September 27, 2012
The play was produced at the
Goodman Theatre Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of the Chicago theatre scene, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization. Part of its present theater complex occupies the ...
in Chicago, Illinois, from April 27 to June 2, 2013. The play was produced Off-Broadway at Signature Theatre in New York City from January 29 to March 10, 2019.


Overview

According to Second Stage, "Lynn Nottage draws upon the screwball films of the 1930s to take a funny and irreverent look at racial stereotypes in Hollywood. ''By the Way, Meet Vera Stark'' is a 70-year journey through the life of Vera Stark, a headstrong African-American maid and budding actress, and her tangled relationship with her boss, a white Hollywood star...desperately grasping to hold on to her career." The title character of Vera Stark is based in part on black actress
Theresa Harris Theresa Mae Harris"Harris-Robinson"
''Camarillo Star''. August 25, 1933. p.  ...
.


Critical response

Ben Brantley Benjamin D. Brantley (born October 26, 1954) is an American theater critic, journalist, editor, publisher, and writer. He served as the chief theater critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1996 to 2017, and as co-chief theater critic from 2017 t ...
, reviewing the Off-Broadway production for ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'', wrote: "There are moments throughout ''Vera Stark,'' directed by Jo Bonney, that provoke hearty laughter and troubling thoughts at the same time. But none of them come close to matching the fully inhabited, spiky ambivalence of Ms. Lathan as she appears in the second half...But much of the comic material here feels stereotyped in itself, bringing to mind lively but formulaic sketch routines from satiric variety shows like ''In Living Color.'' As directed by Ms. Bonney, the acting swings wildly between proper characterization and caricature...More enjoyably, the second act includes a clip from the film that Vera finally made (as imagined by Tony Gerber) and the priceless 1973 talk-show sequence, in which Mr. Garrison is perfect as a fatuous Merv Griffin-esque host." ''Charles McNulty'', in his review of the Off-Broadway production for the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'', wrote: "The subject of racism in the film industry might not seem like an ideal fit for a comedy with a screwball twist, but Nottage is too clever to preach and too much a fan of the cinematic era she’s writing about not to entertain. The giddiness of the romp isn’t easy to sustain, but her sneaky cultural critique is delivered with an ingenious wink...Nottage is attuned to the specific hardships of African American actors coveting fame throughout history, and her irony detector can’t help beeping as it surveys all the social progress that has been made. But she’s also aware of how anyone in the public eye is forced to sell a part of his or her soul. In this regard, she’s an equal opportunity satirist, sending up the performing seal in all of us." Bob Verini, in his review for ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' of the Geffen Playhouse production, wrote: "Nottage and Bonney seem to lack much appreciation of, or respect for, the Tinseltown milieu...The second half nevertheless proves richer and more satisfying. For starters three academics, hilariously doubled by Carroll, Gregory and Dandridge, practically come to blows at a modern-day seminar on the meaning of a career that ended in lousy roles, humiliation and eventual disappearance...All the pieces of Nottage’s puzzle never quite click together, and it’s rather ironic for a work whose theme is personal and professional authenticity to keep bringing in so much that’s downright bogus."


Awards and nominations

;2012
Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Awards are among the most esteemed honors in New York theater, recognizing outstanding achievements across Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off-Broadway productions within the same categories. The awards are considered a signific ...
Nominations *Outstanding Play, Lynn Nottage *Outstanding Actress in a Play, Sanaa Lathan *Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play, Stephanie J. Block *Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play, Kimberly Hebert Gregory *Outstanding Director of a Play, Jo Bonney *Outstanding Costume Design, ESosa ;2012
Lucille Lortel Awards The Lucille Lortel Awards recognize excellence in New York Off-Broadway theatre. The Awards are named for Lucille Lortel, an actress and theater producer, and have been awarded since 1986. They are produced by the League of Off-Broadway Theatres ...
"2012 Lortel Awards"
lortelaward.com, accessed January 27, 2016
*Outstanding Lead Actress, Sanaa Lathan (winner) *Outstanding Costume Design, ESosa (winner) *Outstanding Featured Actress, Kimberly Hébert Gregory (nominee) *Outstanding Director, Jo Bonney (nominee) ;2011 AUDELCO Award Nominations *Lighting Design, Jeff Croiter *Set Design, Neil Patel *Costume Design, ESosa *Sound Design, John Gromada *Director/Dramatic Production, Jo Bonney *Playwright, Lynn Nottage *Supporting Actor, Daniel Breaker *Supporting Actress, Kimberly Hebert Gregory *Dramatic Production of the Year ;2011 Audelco Award Winner *Lead Actress, Sanaa Lathan


References

{{reflist 2011 plays Plays by Lynn Nottage Plays set in Los Angeles