Intimate Apparel to Play Mark Taper this Summer
by Broadway Staff • May 26, 2004
The acclaimed Roundabout Theatre Company production of Lynn Nottage's Intimate Apparel, starring Viola Davis, is moving to the West Coast. The drama will play at Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles from July 25 through September 12, replacing the originally announced world premiere of Sybille Pearson's Be Bold as part of the Taper season.
Intimate Apparel takes place at the dawn of the 20th century when opportunities for African-American women were in short supply. It centers on 35-year-old Esther Davis, who has a gift for sewing exquisite lingerie that offers her a rare life of independence. Unfortunately, Esther is lonely and risks it all to wed a Caribbean stranger whom she knows only through a romantic exchange of letters. When she realizes that he may not be the same person who wrote those impassioned thoughts, Esther must answer a series of difficult questions about herself and her place in society.
Intimate Apparel takes place at the dawn of the 20th century when opportunities for African-American women were in short supply. It centers on 35-year-old Esther Davis, who has a gift for sewing exquisite lingerie that offers her a rare life of independence. Unfortunately, Esther is lonely and risks it all to wed a Caribbean stranger whom she knows only through a romantic exchange of letters. When she realizes that he may not be the same person who wrote those impassioned thoughts, Esther must answer a series of difficult questions about herself and her place in society.
Directed by Daniel Sullivan, Intimate Apparel opened off-Broadway on April 11 to positive reviews. The play has won the American Theatre Critics Association's Francesca Primus Award Best Play, the Steinberg New Play Award, the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Off-Broadway Play and the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best Play. In addition to Davis, the cast includes Arija Bareikis, Lynda Gravatt, Russell Hornsby, Corey Stoll and Lauren Velez. The entire cast is moving with the show.
Intimate Apparel is currently running at Roundabout's Laura Pels Theatre through June 13.