The Signature Theatre revival of Lynn Nottage's By the Way, Meet Vera Stark will star Jessica Frances Dukes, recently seen Off-Broadway in Is God Is, as Vera. Directed by Kamilah Forbes, the play charts a 70-year journey through the life of an actor whose career begins with a portrayal of a slave in an antebellum epic.
By the Way, Meet Vera Stark runs January 29, 2019, through March 3 with a February 19 opening night in The Irene Diamond Stage at The Pershing Square Signature Center.
The cast also features Jenni Barber (Sunday in the Park with George) as Gloria, Tony Award nominee Manoel Felciano (Amélie, Sweeney Todd) as Max/Peter, Warner Miller (Luke Cage) as Leroy/Herb, Carra Patterson (Jitney) as Anna Mae/Afua, Heather Alicia Simms (Fabulation, or The Re-Education of Undine) as Lottie/Carmen, and David Turner (The Boys in the Band) as Brad/Slavick.
It’s the Golden Age of Hollywood, and aspiring starlet Vera Stark works as a maid to Gloria Mitchell. Worlds collide when Vera lands a trailblazing role in an antebellum epic starring…her boss. While Vera’s portrayal of a slave turns out to be groundbreaking, decades later scholars and film buffs still grapple with her legacy in Hollywood and the impact that race had on her controversial career.
The creative team for the Off-Broadway revival is made up of Clint Ramos (scenic design), Dede M. Ayite (costume design), Matt Frey (lighting design), Mikaal Sulaiman (sound design), Katherine Freer (projection design) and Daniel Kluger (composition). The production stage manager is Laura Wilson and casting is by Caparelliotis Casting.
With By the Way, Meet Vera Stark, two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Nottage continues her playwriting residency at the Signature. The Off-Broadway theatre is currently reviving Nottage's play Fabulation, which continues a twice-extended run through January 13. Check out photos from the production below.
