On stage: Foothill stages ‘Intimate’ play readings for Black History Month.
As part of Foothill college’s Black History Month celebration, the theater arts department is presenting staged livestreamed readings of the acclaimed Lynn Nottage play “Intimate Apparel.”
The play tells of the betrayal of Esther (Nique Eagen), a young Black seamstress in 1905 who is wellknown in New York City for her sewing skills. Over the years, she’s managed to save much of the money she earns by stuffing it into a quilt. Her plan is to find a good man for herself, then use the money she’s saved to open a beauty parlor where Black women will be treated as well as the White women she sews for.
Esther has been corresponding with a Caribbean man named George (Jordan Zion), who convinces her to marry him sight unseen, but when he arrives in New York, he’s nothing like his letters said he would be.
Esther has feelings for the Hasidic shopkeeper Mr. Marks (Shir Ben Zeev), from whom she buys a lot of her cloth. Both of them know a union is impossible because of their differing cultures.
Rounding out the cast are Kyra Knibbs as the narrator, Rebecca Haley Clark as Mrs. Dickson, Marcie Rich as Mrs. Van Buren and Deborah Feisa as Mayme.
Written in 2004, “Intimate Apparel” ran off Broadway and won several awards for Viola Davis. who played Esther.
Foothill’s staged readings of the play will be performed through Sunday at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are free, although donations are welcome.
To request a ticket, email theatreboxoffice@fhda.edu with “Intimate Apparel Ticket” as the subject line and your name and preferred show date in the body of the message. Ticket requests must be made before 5 p.m. on the preferred date.
For more information, visit www.foothill.edu/theatre