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By The Way, Meet Vera Stark at The Naples Players September 16, 2022.Naples, FL. This 2011 comedy from two time Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, Lynn Nottage, draws upon the screwball films of the 1930’s to take a funny and irreverent look at racial stereotypes in Hollywood. From October 19 - November 6, and sponsored locally by Riptide Brewing Company, By the Way, Meet Vera Stark will be in the Tobye Studio at The Naples Players. It’s the Golden Age of Hollywood, and aspiring starlet Vera Stark (Rudeline Voltaire) works as a maid to Gloria Mitchell (Jennifer Mance), an aging star grasping at her fading career. 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 the actress’ legacy in Hollywood and the impact that race had on her controversial career. This fast-paced, sly satire will take you on a seventy-year journey through Vera’s life and the cultural climate that shaped her. The Naples Players is delighted to work with equity, diversion, and inclusion consultant, Sonya McCarter. She says, “I am excited to see this beautiful, thought-provoking play brought to the esteemed stage of The Naples Players. This play is rich with humor and social commentary; with imagery that evokes a sense of nostalgia for what was and a yearning for what can be; and with complex characters that demand to be seen and heard. This play deserves an audience that is as diverse as its cast. It's important to tell stories that represent the diverse communities in which we live and it is equally important to create a space that invites those communities to participate in the beautiful exchange of words, emotions and experiences that live theatre facilitates. I am thrilled to collaborate with The Naples Players as they continue to pursue this lofty goal.” Show director Christine Cirker adds that she is “thrilled to return to TNP to direct Lynn Nottage’s By the Way, Meet Vera Stark. The play delightfully visits 1930’s Hollywood, a 1973 TV Talk Show, and a 2003 Film Colloquium— revealing the often overlooked journey of actors of color; inviting us to recognize and understand some of the obstacles they faced. After seeing how Naples’ audiences embraced The Cake last season, I'm confident that they will experience By the Way, Meet Vera Stark with the same curiosity and joy. Each of us has an individual journey. Discovering Vera Stark’s journey is a fun way to grow in our understanding of others. In this time of information and technology, this play is a human experience— one that can only prove to make us more aware of ourselves and communities beyond ourselves. For me, that describes “art”— and it is also what brings me back to the theatre again and again.” Director Christine Cirker, and consultant Sonya McCarter will be joined by the following team: scenic designer, Starlet Jacobs, assistant scenic designer, Sapphira Koerner, lighting designer, Jarret Bertoncin, sound designer, DJ Potts, costume designer, Dayne Sabatos, stage manager, Patricia Puia, and assistant stage manager, KC Allen. Christine will lead an all-star ensemble cast of Naples favorites, many of whom have become regular staples of The Naples Players most popular shows. The cast includes (in alphabetical order): NATHAN EICHHORN, CELENE EVANS, JILLIAN KEITH, JENNIFER MANCE, REUBEN MORGAN, ASEEM UPADHYAY, RUDELINE VOLTAIRE with understudies: TODD MILLER AND ALICIA SCHWARTZ. A Red Carpet event open to the public is slated for Wednesday, October 19 from 6:30pm-7:30pm and features local vendors, food, drinks, and live music from the band Chariot. From October 19 - November 6, performances are Wednesdays & Thursdays at 7:30pm, Fridays & Saturday at 8pm, and Sunday at 2pm. General public tickets are on sale for $47 at the TNP Box Office. Season ticket holders are offered a price of $37. Those interested can visit NaplesPlayers.org anytime or call the TNP Box Office at (239) 263-7990. Rudeline Voltaire as Vera Stark Rudeline Voltaire as Vera Stark Nathan Eichhorn as Slavick/Brad Celene Evans as Lottie/Carmen Jillian Keith as Anna Mae/Afua Jennifer Mance as Gloria Reuben Morgan as Leroy/Herb Aseem Upadhyay as Max/Peter Rudeline Voltaire as Vera Stark Todd Miller (understudy for U/S Slavik/Brad & Max/Peter) Alicia Schwartz (understudy for U/S Lottie/Carmen, Anna Mae/Afua, & Vera) ABOUT THE NAPLES PLAYERS The Naples Players is a non-profit community theatre committed to the enrichment, education, and entertainment of our community through a superior theatre experience. For more than 67 years, the theatre has served as the cultural jewel of Downtown Naples, Florida.
September 16, 2022.Naples, FL. This 2011 comedy from two time Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, Lynn Nottage, draws upon the screwball films of the 1930’s to take a funny and irreverent look at racial stereotypes in Hollywood. From October 19 - November 6, and sponsored locally by Riptide Brewing Company, By the Way, Meet Vera Stark will be in the Tobye Studio at The Naples Players.
It’s the Golden Age of Hollywood, and aspiring starlet Vera Stark (Rudeline Voltaire) works as a maid to Gloria Mitchell (Jennifer Mance), an aging star grasping at her fading career. 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 the actress’ legacy in Hollywood and the impact that race had on her controversial career. This fast-paced, sly satire will take you on a seventy-year journey through Vera’s life and the cultural climate that shaped her.
The Naples Players is delighted to work with equity, diversion, and inclusion consultant, Sonya McCarter. She says, “I am excited to see this beautiful, thought-provoking play brought to the esteemed stage of The Naples Players. This play is rich with humor and social commentary; with imagery that evokes a sense of nostalgia for what was and a yearning for what can be; and with complex characters that demand to be seen and heard. This play deserves an audience that is as diverse as its cast. It's important to tell stories that represent the diverse communities in which we live and it is equally important to create a space that invites those communities to participate in the beautiful exchange of words, emotions and experiences that live theatre facilitates. I am thrilled to collaborate with The Naples Players as they continue to pursue this lofty goal.”
Show director Christine Cirker adds that she is “thrilled to return to TNP to direct Lynn Nottage’s By the Way, Meet Vera Stark. The play delightfully visits 1930’s Hollywood, a 1973 TV Talk Show, and a 2003 Film Colloquium— revealing the often overlooked journey of actors of color; inviting us to recognize and understand some of the obstacles they faced. After seeing how Naples’ audiences embraced The Cake last season, I'm confident that they will experience By the Way, Meet Vera Stark with the same curiosity and joy. Each of us has an individual journey. Discovering Vera Stark’s journey is a fun way to grow in our understanding of others. In this time of information and technology, this play is a human experience— one that can only prove to make us more aware of ourselves and communities beyond ourselves. For me, that describes “art”— and it is also what brings me back to the theatre again and again.”
Director Christine Cirker, and consultant Sonya McCarter will be joined by the following team: scenic designer, Starlet Jacobs, assistant scenic designer, Sapphira Koerner, lighting designer, Jarret Bertoncin, sound designer, DJ Potts, costume designer, Dayne Sabatos, stage manager, Patricia Puia, and assistant stage manager, KC Allen. Christine will lead an all-star ensemble cast of Naples favorites, many of whom have become regular staples of The Naples Players most popular shows. The cast includes (in alphabetical order): NATHAN EICHHORN, CELENE EVANS, JILLIAN KEITH, JENNIFER MANCE, REUBEN MORGAN, ASEEM UPADHYAY, RUDELINE VOLTAIRE with understudies: TODD MILLER AND ALICIA SCHWARTZ.
A Red Carpet event open to the public is slated for Wednesday, October 19 from 6:30pm-7:30pm and features local vendors, food, drinks, and live music from the band Chariot.
From October 19 - November 6, performances are Wednesdays & Thursdays at 7:30pm, Fridays & Saturday at 8pm, and Sunday at 2pm. General public tickets are on sale for $47 at the TNP Box Office. Season ticket holders are offered a price of $37. Those interested can visit NaplesPlayers.org anytime or call the TNP Box Office at (239) 263-7990.
Rudeline Voltaire as Vera Stark
Nathan Eichhorn as Slavick/Brad
Celene Evans as Lottie/Carmen
Jillian Keith as Anna Mae/Afua
Jennifer Mance as Gloria
Reuben Morgan as Leroy/Herb
Aseem Upadhyay as Max/Peter
Todd Miller (understudy for U/S Slavik/Brad & Max/Peter)
Alicia Schwartz (understudy for U/S Lottie/Carmen, Anna Mae/Afua, & Vera)
ABOUT THE NAPLES PLAYERS
The Naples Players is a non-profit community theatre committed to the enrichment, education, and entertainment of our community through a superior theatre experience. For more than 67 years, the theatre has served as the cultural jewel of Downtown Naples, Florida.