By The Way, Meet Vera Stark

Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage (Ruined) pulls the curtain back on old Hollywood in her latest play, a sly satire hailed as “not-to-be-missed” by Vogue.

This “sharp-toothed comedy” (The Wall Street Journal) offers a glimpse into the life of Vera Stark, a headstrong African American actress who begins a career in the 1930s, at a time when her only shot at success lay in stealing small scenes in big Hollywood blockbusters. Seventy years later, film buffs are left to reflect on the life and legacy of this controversial star, whose eventual fame and fortune came at the price of perpetuating dangerous stereotypes. Hilarious and poignant, By the Way, Meet Vera Stark paints a vivid picture of the cultural climate that shaped this mysterious screen queen—and wonders who, in another time, she might have been.

Lynn Nottage, Playwright
Chuck Smith, Director

Cast
Patrick Clear, Mr. Slasvick/Brad Donovan
Chike Johnson, Leroy Barksdale/Herb
Taron Patton, Lottie McBride/Carmen Levy-Green
Ron Rains (TH '96), Maximillian Von Oster/Peter Rhys-Davies
Amelia Workman, Anna Mae Simpkins/Afua Assata Ejobo
Kara Zediker, Gloria Mitchell

Creative Team
Robert Christen, Lighting Design
Riccardo Hernandez, Set Design
Joshua Horvath, Sound Design
Mike Tutaj, Projection Design
Birgit Rattenborg Wise, Costume Design
Joseph Drummond, Production Stage Manager
Adam Belcuore, Casting