Black Bodies in White Spaces:

an essay by Dramaturg Afrikah Selah

Fairview is a thought-provoking comedy that speaks to the importance of examining the ways in which bias informs our understanding of the world. During a time where we have heavily overrelied on social media, film, and TV as a means to stay connected to the world, Fairview invites artists and audiences into a conversation that both encourages us to challenge the notion of what life is supposed to be like, and engages us in a critical examination of those representations in the world. Through the lens of the Black experience, Drury’s writing asks: What are the commonalities between Fairview and popular Black family sitcoms such as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Black-ish, The Cosby Show, and Family Matters? And how are we influenced and impacted by those shows?

In the 2014 IndieWire article, "Why White People Don’t Like Black Movies," author Andre Seewood points to this question, noting the sociological phenomenon of the Racial Empath Gap, which is the lack of empathy necessary to identify with someone outside of one’s own race. When paired with the white gaze or “… the ways in which whiteness dominates how we think and operate within a society” (Janice Gassam Asare, “Understanding the White Gaze and How It Impacts Your Workplace”), we must consider the narratives they create at the intersections of the policing and surveillance of Black bodies. Going as far back to the 16th century, the surveillance of commodified Black bodies has reinforced racism through objectification, projection, and policing. Over the course of four centuries, these intersections would manifest into American history and culture through minstrel shows, circus acts, and soon after, TV and social media. Simone Browne, author of the book Dark Matters: On the Surveillance of Blackness, dissects this further in the 2020 article “How Surveillance Has Always Reinforced Racism” stating: “If you think about TV, like Cops being taken off the air or Gone With the Wind or whatever it is, there are all these ways black life is framed that shapes people's viewing. I think it's what Judith Butler calls a 'racially saturated field of visibility,' where these stereotypes form our field of our vision.”

As Black family sitcoms have become part of pop culture, the depictions of Black people have moved from extremes, such as minstrel and negative stereotypes, to more assimilated and relatable Black characters most often written by white writers’ rooms. However, despite this growth of Black representation, we are haunted by the voyeurism of Black bodies in white spaces. With no space away from this white gaze, where can Black people exist without having their experiences reduced to mere entertainment for a white audience? Where are the spaces that allow for authentic representation, both on and off stage?

As American and Jamaincan poet and playwright Claudia Rankine has said: “Our bodies arouse fantasies in the white mind that rob us of our personhood. It is the image of Blackness that is seen, and that image of Blackness is not that of a sibling; it is not that of a child or a friend. It is a Black body that needs restraining, containing, or neutralizing.”

DOM CARTER* (Dayton) returns to SpeakEasy having previously been a part of BLKS. Recent credits include OTP (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre); Dracula

-A Feminist Revenge (Umbrella Stage); The Light, Twelfth Night (Lyric Stage); Greater Good (Company One); The Mountaintop, Mothers and Sons, Violet (Lexington Players); Jesus Hopped the A Train, Race (Hovey Players). Dominic is a graduate of The Atlantic Acting School and was the winner of 2021 AACT National Theater Best Actor. (he/him)

LYNDSAY ALLYN COX*

(Jasmine) is pleased to return to SpeakEasy having previously appeared in Men on Boats. Regional: Common Ground Revisited; Our Daughters, Like Pillars; Witch (The Huntington); Fabulation; Barbecue; By The Way, Meet Vera Stark (Lyric Stage); Bright Half Life (Actors’ Shakespeare Project); The Three Musketeers (Greater Boston Stage Company); Caroline, Or Change (Moonbox Productions); Winter People (Boston Playwrights' Theatre); Leftovers, The Overwhelming (Company One).

Directing: Chicken & Biscuits (The Front Porch Arts Collective); Tiny Beautiful Things (Gloucester Stage); Splash Hatch on the E Going Down (The Nora). Film: Consumed (directed by Sloane Turner). Education: BA in Theatre Performance with a minor in Vocal Music from Appalachian State University. Other: Named one of the ARTery 25 by WBUR's The ARTery. lyndsayallyncox.com. (she/they)

WHO'S WHO - CAST

YEWANDE ODETOYINBO*

(Beverly) returns to SpeakEasy having previously appeared in Once On This Island and The View UpStairs, and co-choreographed Choir Boy. Area credits include: The Light, Breath & Imagination [co-production with Front Porch Arts Collective], The Wiz, Little Shop of Horrors (Lyric Stage); Passing Strange, Caroline, or Change, Parade (Moonbox Productions); Macbeth in Stride (A.R.T); Hair (New Rep); Show Boat (Reagle Music Theatre and Fiddlehead Theatre); Finish Line, The Gay Agenda (Boston Theatre Company); In the Heights, Seussical, Ragtime (Wheelock Family Theatre); Fannie Lou Hamer: Speak On It! (Merrimack Rep); Waitress (Barnstormers Theatre). Education: BFA, Musical Theater, Howard University; MFA, Musical Theater, Boston Conservatory at Berklee. Thank you to the SpeakEasy family and Pascale for having me back; Susan for the home away from home; and Mom, Dad, Yemisi, and the best friends who remain her biggest fans! (she/her)

VICTORIA OMOREGIE

(Keisha) is thrilled to make her SpeakEasy debut! Victoria grew up in Dorchester and holds a BA in Acting from Boston University ‘22. Some of her previous credits include: The Bomb-itty of Errors (Actors’ Shakespeare Project); Anthony and Cleopatra (New York Classical Theatre); LORENA: A Tabloid Epic (Boston Playwrights Theatre); The Legend Of Georgia McBride, In The Red and Brown Water (Boston University). Victoria believes in the power of identity: knowing where you come from, to know where you are going, and is excited to explore identity through Fairview. She thanks her Family, Friends, and God for the support and love that pushes her to keep on keeping on! To Pascale and the SpeakEasy community, thank you for this experience! www. victoriaomoregie.com (she/her)

He went to China for basketball but quickly finds himself playing a very different game.

WHO'S WHO - PRODUCTION TEAM (cont.)

JAMES CANNON (Sound Designer) returns to SpeakEasy after previously working on The View UpStairs. Other recent local credits: Head Over Heels, The Colored Museum, Dracula -- A Feminist Revenge Fantasy, Rent (Umbrella Stage); The Rocky Horror Show, Passing Strange, Late, Sister School, Jonathan, The Good Deli (Moonbox Productions); NIGHTTOWN: An Operatic Reimagining of James Joyce's Ulysses (Lowell House Opera); Swing! (Boston Conservatory at Berklee); Maytag Virgin, The Waverly Gallery (Hovey Players). When not designing, James is an avid cook and a producer/composer who loves hip hop music. (he/him)

MAEGAN A. CONROY* (Production Stage Manager)

SpeakEasy credits: The Scottsboro Boys (ASM, 2018 remount). Selected previous credits: The Chinese Lady, Guards at the Taj (Central Square Theater); The Legend of Georgia McBride (Greater Boston Stage Company); The Effect, A Measure of Normalcy (Gloucester Stage); Much Ado about Nothing, Ugly Lies the Bone (Shakespeare & Company); Erma Bombeck: At Wit’s End; The Rise and Fall of Holly Fudge; Wild Horses; Until the Flood; Nina Simone: Four Women; The Wickhams: Christmas at Pemberley; Tiny Beautiful Things; The Heath; Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley; Native Gardens; The Royale (Merrimack Repertory Theatre). (she/her)

CORI COUTURE (Audio Description Coordinator/Primary Audio Describer) is overjoyed to return to SpeakEasy after shepherding the company through its first audio described season last year, and most recently describing its production of English. Cori has provided audio description for TV, film, and about 100 Boston-area live shows. At WGBH’s Descriptive Video Service, she described PBS shows, movies, and narrated description for Paramount, Disney Parks, NASA, and the 9/11 Museum. Cori proudly identifies as a person with a disability (spina bifida). Her message: people with disabilities lead fulfilling lives and can have any job! (she/her)

PAUL DAIGNEAULT (Producing Artistic Director) was the recipient of the 2014 Elliot Norton Prize for Sustained Excellence, which is presented by the Boston Theater Critics Association. Since founding the award-winning SpeakEasy Stage in 1992, he has produced over 150 Boston premieres. As a director, he is especially proud of his projects that have centered gay and queer stories as well as his passion for contemporary American musicals. His work as a teacher has brought him to Boston College, the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, Emerson College, and 20 years at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee. He was honored in 2007 with the Boston College Arts Council's Alumni Award for Distinguished Achievement and served as the college's 2011-2012 Rev. J. Donald Monan S. J. Professor in Theatre Arts. (he/him)

ERIK D. DIAZ** (Scenic Designer) is thrilled to be back at SpeakEasy working on this incredible show, having last designed Once on this Island. Erik’s work has been seen nationally at Skylight, Kingsman Shakespeare, Omaha Playhouse, Connecticut Rep, Playhouse on the Square, and NSMT. Regional credits: Evita (Skylight); Chicken & Biscuits (Front Porch); Alma (Central Square Theater); Heisenberg (TheatreWorks); Mary Poppins (CSFAC); All Is Calm (GBSC). TV: HGTV's Designed to Sell. Erik lives in Dedham with his wife Holly and sons Ezra and Zander, where he is the Director of Technical Theatre and Design at the Noble and Greenough School. Proud Member USA - 829. www.DESIGNBYDIAZ.com (he/him)

ANDREA DOANE (Secondary Audio Describer) returns to SpeakEasy having been part of the audio description team for Heroes of the Fourth Turning and English this season, and for People, Places & Things; Once on This Island; and The Inheritance in 2021-22. Andrea has audio described productions at the Wang Center, The Opera House, The Huntington, Wheelock Family Theatre, and ArtsEmerson. In collaboration with the Cultural Access Consortium, she has also co-led training workshops for audio describers in the New England area. In addition, Andrea has been honored with the Bay State Council of the Blind’s Outstanding Service Award for her work in providing theatre access through audio description. (she/her)

REBECCA GLICK (Wardrobe Supervisor) is thrilled to return to SpeakEasy, having served as the Assistant Costume Designer for Fun Home and Admissions and the Wardrobe Supervisor for The Inheritance. She has been a member of the wardrobe team for many shows at both SpeakEasy and the North Shore Music Theatre. Some of her favorite productions include Allegiance and Once (SpeakEasy) and Kinky Boots (NSMT). Rebecca has also designed for The Young Company at Greater Boston Stage. (she/her).

WHO'S WHO - PRODUCTION TEAM (cont.)

AJA M. JACKSON** (Lighting Designer) SpeakEasy: Once on this Island. Off-Broadway: A Commercial Jingle for Regina Comet. Select regional credits: The Art of Burning (The Huntington); Hear Word (A.R.T.); The Cake, Breath and Imagination (Lyric Stage); Nat Turner in Jerusalem (Actors’ Shakespeare Project); Passing Strange (Moonbox Productions); Lost in Yonkers (Hartford Stage); Behold, A Negress (Everyman Theater); Under the Radar Festival (The Public Theater); Pimpinone and Ino (Boston Early Music Festival). Aja is also the Resident Lighting Designer and a core collaborator for the site-specific movement company HOLDTIGHT, a lecturer at Boston University, and a proud member of USA-829. IG: @ajamjackson | www.ajajacksonlighting.com (she/her)

BECCA JEWETT (Costume Designer) returns to SpeakEasy Stage having previously designed The Sound Inside. She is currently the Costume Shop Manager at Merrimack Rep. Recent design credits include A Christmas Carol (MRT); The Colored Museum (Umbrella Stage), Trayf, We Will Not Be Silent, Heartland (New Rep); Last Night at Bowl-Mor Lanes (Greater Boston Stage). Becca also designed masks for A Story Beyond (Liars & Believers). Other credits include working in the Crafts Department at the Glimmerglass Festival (2014-2017); serving as the Costume Shop Manager for Commonwealth Shakespeare (Summer 2018) and working as the Assistant Dyer Painter at the Santa Fe Opera (2019-present). (she/her)

ALEX LEONDEDIS (Assistant Director) is pleased to be making his SpeakEasy debut with this production. He currently serves as the company’s Artistic and Literary Fellow for the 2022-2023 Season. He is a Boston-based actor, director, teaching artist, and theatre-maker. Recent acting credits include Romeo in Romeo and Juliet (Sh!t-Faced Shakespeare); Albert: The Musical (Boston Theatre Marathon); and Medusa Reclaimed (The Nora). He also directed Anne Eats the Beetle (From The Basement Theatre Collective). Alex holds a BFA in Contemporary Theatre from Boston Conservatory at Berklee. Huge thanks to Pascale for her incredible mentorship and to the whole SpeakEasy team! leondedis.com. (he/him)

COTY LENNON MARKEE (Sound Board Operator/Run Crew) is pleased to return to SpeakEasy, having worked on all Season 31 shows as well as Heroes and English this year. Recent sound credits include serving as A1 for Preludes (Lyric Stage) and Sound Tech for Life of Pi (ART). Other local credits include shows with Central Square Theater, Moonbox Productions, The Huntington, Company One, and Seacoast Rep. Coty is so happy that theatre is back in full swing and can’t wait to see what happens next! (he/him)

AMANDA O'DONNELL (Fight & Intimacy Choreographer) is excited to be making her SpeakEasy debut! Recent fight direction credits include Spring Awakening (Brandeis University); The Tempest (Wayland High School); and Marian (Theatre III). Amanda has also performed with Ghosts & Gravestones, Characters. io, Walking Shadow Shakespeare Project, Rosalita’s Puppets, Flat Earth Theatre, The Harlot Queens, and King Richard’s Faire. She holds an MFA in Theatre Education from Emerson College (her thesis: A Girl Worth Fighting For: Stage Combat and the Adolescent Female Sense of Self). amandaodonnell.com (she/her)

TY RUWE (Assistant Stage Manager) is pleased to make their SpeakEasy debut. They are a Bostonbased actor and teaching artist who trained with Central Square Theater's Youth Underground. They have since acted, stage managed, and taught for several YU pieces, as well as interned and stage managed for The Theater Offensive's True Colors OUT Youth Theater. They have assistant stage managed The Half Life of Marie Curie and Ada and the Engine (Central Square Theater) and stage managed NonPlayer Character (MIT). Currently they are existing, vibing, and thriving while figuring out what to do with a Psychology degree. (they/them)

AFRIKAH SELAH (Dramaturg) is pleased to make their SpeakEasy debut. Afrikah is a Black and queer multi-hyphenate cultural worker based in Massachusetts, focusing on producorial dramaturgy, new play development, and arts writing. Their work centers community, identity, and dialogue, often experimenting with multicultural devised, adaptation, and ritual theatre processes. They are an alum of the BIPOC Critics Lab and the Front Porch Arts Collective’s Young Critics Program. Currently, they serve as the NNPN New Work Producer in Residence at Company One Theatre, whose mission is to build community at the intersection of art and social change. (they/them)

WHO'S WHO - PRODUCTION TEAM (cont.)

EMME SHAW (Props Supervisor) is thrilled to be back at SpeakEasy, having worked on English and the Elliot Norton Award-winning BLKS. Recent regional credits include Paradise Blue (Gloucester Stage); Miss Holmes Returns (acting and designing - Greater Boston Stage Company); and Reparations (Broadway World Award - Gloucester Stage). Emme is a classically trained actor from CMU and the props supervisor for the Boston College Theater Department. (she/her)

REED SIMIELE (Lead Electrician) is making his SpeakEasy debut with Fairview. Reed holds a BA in Theatre from Western Carolina University and served as the Master Electrician at Northern Stage before beginning a freelance career in 2022. (he/him)

KIRA TROILO (Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Consultant)

SpeakEasy credits: Once On This Island (Andrea), The Color Purple (Olivia), Admissions (AD), TJ Loves Sally 4Ever (choreographer). A Boston-based creative, Kira is the founder and owner of Art & Soul Consulting, a new approach to equity, diversity, and inclusion for theatre and the arts. As a certified EDI Consultant, she offers a variety of services and workshops aimed at creating safer, more inclusive creative environments. She also maintains a blog (biracialmom.com) where she writes frequently about her experiences as a Black biracial woman, creative professional, and mother. She is also currently working on her first novel. artandsoulconsulting.com (she/her)

SPEAKEASY STAGE COMPANY operates under the NEAT rider to the Small Professional Theater contract with Actors’ Equity Association and is a member of NEAT (The Producer’s Association of New England Area Theatres). SpeakEasy is also proud to be the Pavilion Resident Company at the Boston Center for the Arts, and is a member of ArtsBoston, BAMA, StageSource, TAMA, and the Theatre Communications Group. www.SpeakEasyStage.com

THE BOSTON CENTER FOR THE ARTS (BCA) is a not-for-profit performing and visual arts campus that supports working artists to create, perform, and exhibit new works; develops new audiences; and connects the arts to community. For more information, visit bcaonline.org.

*MEMBER OF ACTORS’ EQUITY ASSOCIATION (AEA) was founded in 1913 as the first of the American actor unions. Equity’s mission is to advance, promote, and foster the art of live theatre as an essential component of our society. Today, Equity represents more than 49,000 actors, singers, dancers, and stage managers working in hundreds of theatres across the United States. Equity members are dedicated to working in the theatre as a profession, upholding the highest artistic standards.

Equity negotiates wages and working conditions and provides a wide range of benefits including health and pension plans for its members. Through its agreement with Equity, this theatre has committed to the fair treatment of the actors and stage managers employed in this production.

AEA is a member of the AFL-CIO and is affiliated with FIA, an international organization of performing arts unions. For more information, visit actorsequity.org.

**Member of United Scenic Artists, Local USA 829.