By Eva Trieger
SOLANA BEACH, California –The title of North Coast Rep Theatre’s newest production bespeaks not simply the item, but the deep connections formed in Intimate Apparel. Lynn Nottage’s 2-time Pulitzer Prize winning play reveals what director Jasmine Bracey describes as a life in two worlds. This play explores the “world of dreams and desire, and a world of reality and compromise.” The common thread weaving this seamstress’ story together is that of wanting to be loved.
Esther (Nedra Snipes) has been on her own, sewing women’s intimate apparel for over 20 years. She is a hard-working decent woman, living in a rented room in Lower Manhattan at the turn of last century. She sews beautiful corsets and intricately adorned undergarments for Mrs. Van Buren (Madeleine Barker) and for her friend, the harlot, Mayme (Arizsia Staton). Though she is growing long in the tooth and still unmarried, Esther doesn’t want to encourage the men her landlady, Mrs. Dickson (Teri Brown) seems to push at her. What’s more, Esther doesn’t want to listen to Mrs. Dickson’s advice on love, marriage and future. Esther has plans for her future, a future that she has dreamed of and saved for all of her adult life.
A tender sort of relationship flourishes when Esther purchases her beautiful, ornate fabrics from Mr. Marks (Jonathan Fisher Jr), an Orthodox Jewish man. Their exchanges include comments about the materials and origins of each of the beautiful textiles, as well as the laws and traditions of Judaism as they relate to interactions between men and women. The internal struggle is present, yet the dictates of Mr. Mark’s world prevail, making this relationship all the more poignant.
When Esther receives a letter from a laborer on the Panama Canal she becomes swept up in the optimism and vulnerability of finding true love. With every letter she receives from George Armstrong (Donald Paul), Esther finds herself forming a greater attachment to a man she’s never met. Enlisting the help of friends and employers, Esther corresponds with George, starting an inevitable chain of events.
Each member of this profoundly talented cast delivers a performance worthy of the most coveted awards. The comedic lines and facial expressions give way to expressions of fear, dismay or betrayal. The pacing of lines and movement underscore the heightened emotions mirroring the plot lines. Everything about this show is crisp, authentic and palpable.
Madeline Barker has credits from Connecticut, New York, and Maine. She earned an MFA in Acting at Brown University and is enjoying her NCRT debut.
Teri Brown is also debuting at North Coast Rep. She has performed in Arkansas, Atlanta, Virginia, Minnesota and New York. Ms. Brown graduated Carnegie- Mellon University.
Jonathan Fisher Jr, also hits NCRTs floorboards for the first time. He has previously been seen in Oregon and Sacramento. No small feat…he was an 11-game winner on Jeopardy in 2021 and 2022!
Donald Paul comes to NCRT from Florida, and won awards at San Jose Stage and Capital Stage Company. His television credits include Chicago PD, Raising Dion, Law & Order and many others. Paul earned his degree at the University of Maryland.
Nedra Snipes is new to NCRT but not to acting. She has appeared in North Carolina, Portland, New York, and Atlanta.
Snipes graduated from Howard University and The Juilliard School.
Arizsia Staton, another first-timer at NCRT earned her MFA at University of California at Irvine. She has performed in Utah, Michigan, and Arizona. As this article goes to press, Ms. Staton is writing and curating a book of stories, short plays and poems.
The desire to stitch together a life of meaning, warmth and love is truly a universal goal, and Intimate Apparel reminds us that this human drive lives within each of us regardless of social class, ethnicity or spiritual beliefs.
Tickets for Intimate Apparel may be purchased online at northcoastrep.org or via phone at 858.481.1055. Intimate Apparel runs through February 4.
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Eva Trieger is a freelance writer specializing in coverage of the arts. She may be contacted via eva.trieger@sdjewishworld.com