In 1905, New York City held a place for anyone who dreamed of fortune, adventure, freedom or even love. The city was energetically emerging into a new period in American history. On Wednesday at 8 p.m., SMU’s Meadows School of the Arts brought a taste of this time and place to its Dallas stages with its production of the award-winning play, “Intimate Apparel.”
“Intimate Apparel,” written by Lynn Nottage, was directed by SMU by senior Molly Murphy. While Murphy appeared on stage to introduce the play, most of her work was put into the preparation for the big night. “We interviewed for the position of senior director back in September,” she said.
Since September, Murphy has been in charge of practically every logistic. She chose the costume and set designers, set the rehearsal times and sat in on the auditions for character parts. The six-person cast was chosen in November and the production, just like New York in 1905, took off with a zealous energy.
“This cast is so hard-working,” Murphy said. “We had practice everyday from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.” The production also demanded the help of more than 30 crew members.
Despite the long hours and hard work, Murphy enjoyed directing the play. “The play was totally worth the work and attention to detail that it required. I just hope the audience agrees with me,” she said.
On Wednesday night, all the hard work certainly showed underneath the bright stage lights of the Greer Garson Theatre. Before the lights brightened, Murphy politely introduced herself, the performance and asked that all cell phones be turned off.
In the silence of the theater, the play began with the lead character of single seamstress, Esther Williams, played by senior Bianca Denis. The opening scene introduced the audience to Esther, as well as her boisterous and comic landlord, Mrs. Dickson, played by junior Ozioma Akagha. Both are black women living in New York and wanting to find a husband.
The play quickly introduced Esthers’ small social circle. This circle includes dynamic characters such as a black prostitute, Mayme, played by sophomore Beverly Johnson, a Jewish cloth-salesman, Mr. Marks, played by sophomore Sean O’Connor and a wealthy, white socialite, Mrs. Van Buren, played by junior Cheryl Lowber.
One day, Esther receives a letter from a gentleman, George Armstrong, played by junior Erick Carter. He is working on the Panama Canal and writes that he has heard of Esther’s undergarments. Their relationship develops through months of letters. Esther relies on Mrs. Van Buren and Mayme to read the letters because she herself does not know how. Before Act I concludes, Esther has decided she loves George and will marry him when he comes to New York.
After a 15-minute intermission, Act II began with a dismayed and unhappily married Esther. George is not the man she imagined and has the money she saved from selling her custom-made intimate apparel. The play ended with Esther back to where she was at its beginning: alone and impoverished.
Around 10:30 p.m., the audience began to rise from their seats after a long applause for the cast and crew. Murphy thanked everyone for coming and hoped they enjoyed the show. SMU senior Rafael Alvarez and Fareed Osmanzai, 36, did.
“Even though it is a period play,” said Osmanzai, “the themes such as race and marriage are timeless.”
A Navy Seal and a native of Afghanistan, Osmanzai appreciated the cultural diversity of the cast, especially at a school like SMU. “I had the sense that SMU was not very diverse,” he said. “So I was impressed when the characters had a range of ethnicities. It was this racial interaction that reflected an expanding city like New York during that time.”
While the play had a positive message about racial divides and social status, the ending was anything but a typical romance. Alvarez said it was the dilemmas of love and loss that made the play “realistic and enjoyable.” He also said that the lack of a fairy-tale ending “made the play less predictable.”
Themes of love, risk and entrepreneurship seamlessly wove together on stage to make SMU’s production of “Intimate Apparel” a success.
“The heart of this play is universally and timelessly applicable,” said Murphy. “Esther’s life is about taking the leap and taking a chance. Whether living in New York in 1905 or going to school in Dallas today, risk is an element of life to which anyone can relate.”
