By the Way, Meet Vera Stark
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Link to a Daily Iowan article
About By the Way, Meet Vera Stark
Two-time Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Lynn Nottage serves up old Hollywood in the hilarious and poignant comedy, By the Way, Meet Vera Stark.
Vera Stark, a headstrong black American actress begins a career in the 1930s, at a time when her only shot at success lay in stealing small scenes in musical pageants, screwball comedies, and antebellum romances. But did her legacy, whose eventual fame and fortune came out of perpetuating dangerous stereotypes, come at a price? By the Way, Meet Vera Stark paints a vivid picture of a mysterious screen queen—and wonders who, in another time, she might have been.
By the Way, Meet Vera Stark was presented by special arrangement with Dramatists Play Service, Inc., New York.
Cast
| Role | Name |
|---|---|
| Vera Stark | Emelia Asiedu |
| Gloria Mitchell | Catie Councell |
| Lottie McBride/Afua Assata Ejobo | Tempestt Farrar |
| Mr. Slasvick/Brad Donovan | Eli Jolley |
| Leroy Barksdale/Her Forrester | Randryck Lewis |
| Anna Mae Simpkins/Carmen Levy-Green | Miriam Randolph |
| Maximillian Von Oster/Peter Rhys-Davies | Zach Twardowski |
Artistic Team
| Title | Name |
|---|---|
| Director | Tlaloc Rivas |
| Scenic & Lighting Designer | Jess Fialko |
| Assistant Lighting Designer | Alexander Michel* |
| Costume Designer | Hayley Ryan |
| Assistant Costume Designer | Chelsea Regan |
| Sound & Projection Designer | Wade Hampton* |
| Projection Designer | Ted Brown* |
| Dramaturg | Luke White |
| Assistant Dramaturg | Clara Reynen* |
| Dialect Coach | Greg Walker |
| Stage Manager | Samantha Paradis |
| Assistant Stage Manager | Jacob Sikorski |
*Undergraduate student. UI Theatre is dedicated to providing hands-on theatre experience for both undergraduate and graduate students.