Driving Miss Daisy
About the Play
The place is the Deep South, the time 1948, just prior to the civil rights movement. Having recently demolished another car, Daisy Werthan, a rich, sharp-tongued Jewish widow of seventy-two, is informed by her son, Boolie, that henceforth she must rely on the services of a chauffeur. The person he hires for the job is a thoughtful, unemployed black man, Hoke, whom Miss Daisy immediately regards with disdain and who, in turn, is not impressed with his employer’s patronizing tone and, he believes, her latent prejudice. But, in a series of absorbing scenes spanning twenty-five years, the two, despite their mutual differences, grow ever closer to, and more dependent on, each other, until, eventually, they become almost a couple. Slowly and steadily the dignified, good-natured Hoke breaks down the stern defenses of the ornery old lady, as she teaches him to read and write and, in a gesture of good will and shared concern, invites him to join her at a banquet in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. As the play ends Hoke has a final visit with Miss Daisy, now ninety-seven and confined to a nursing home, and while it is evident that a vestige of her fierce independence and sense of position still remain, it is also movingly clear that they have both come to realize they have more in common than they ever believed possible—and that times and circumstances would ever allow them to publicly admit.
Winner of the 1988 Pulitzer Prize and the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Off-Broadway Play.
Driving Miss Daisy is produced by special arrangement with Dramatists Play Service
DIRECTOR’S NOTES
Love stories never really grow old do they? Driving Miss Daisy by Alfred Uhry is structured as a series of vignettes that tell of an enduring, yet sometimes, volatile friendship that took place in the south during some difficult times. This play is enchanting, funny, witty and sometimes sad … all of the things that make good theatre. I would like to thank NVCP for choosing this play and allowing me to direct it. I hope you love these characters and this play as much as I do. – Judi Price
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Welcome to our first play of the new year. This well-known and insightful story is set in the Deep South of America and involves an elderly Jewish lady, her son and her Afro-American chauffeur. Told with humour and poignancy, it is bound to touch your hearts in a meaningful way. We are sure that your enjoyment of this play will bring you back to many more shows at Hendry Hall. If you would like to become involved with the North Vancouver Community Players, please pick up a membership form from the lobby and become a member of this wonderful community theatre. – Sue Worrow
| Character | Played by |
| Daisy | Barbara Wallace |
| Boolie | Andre Fex |
| Hoke | James R. Baylis |
| Director | Judi Price |
| Author | Alfred Uhry |
| Production Managers | Fran Heaney, Rosemary Hundal |
| Stage Manager | Kathy Bradley |
| Set Designer | Don Briard |
| Set Construction | Gord Pope, Don Briard |
| Set Painters & Decorators | Glynnis Brassil, Cali Haan, Robin Hilliard |
| Lighting Designer | Phillip Messenger |
| Sound Designer | Nigel Barker |
| Sound Consultant | Anne Marsh |
| Lighting and Sound Operators | Sandy Branning, Kathleen Denkewalter |
| Properties | Andrew Massil, Liz Massil |
| Costumes | Karen Bews, Mitchell Mackay |
| Make-Up | Leslie Whittaker |
| Graphic Artist | Linda Sharp |
| Publicity and Program | Anne Marsh |
| Front-of-House Coordinator | Liz Massil |
| Box Office | Mitchell Mackay |
| Photographer | Gary Schwartz |
| Videographer | Chris Wolfe |
| Original Performance Dates | February 11 to 26, 2011 |
| Venue | The Theatre at Hendry Hall, North Vancouver, BC |
| Production Length | 1 hour 40 mins |
| Production Style | Drama |
| Special Thanks To | In Memory of Dorothy Riley Levesque (coat rack loan), Sue and Brian Worrow |
| Judi Price | Director – The last two years Judi has travelled to the Catskill Mountains, New York to do a Beginners Improvisation Retreat, and the Masters Improvisation Retreat offered by Artistic New Directions out of New York City. Judi has directed four shows in a row from Spring 2010 to the present time and plans to take a break once Driving Miss Daisy opens. She would like to thank the cast and crew for the wonderful support she has received over the last two months. “Break a leg everyone!” |
| James R. Baylis | Hoke – James has studied and performed in theatre and film in Canada and the USA. Given the size of his voice, most roles that he has played were formidable characters from Othello to Tyrone. James has appeared in television and movies such as Da Vinci’s City Hall, Blood Ties, Smallville, The Peace Offering, Things We Lost in the Fire and Dark Angel. James has traced his African and Native North American heritage from Angola to South Carolina into Canada from 1720 till 1958. His ancestors settled inland of the north shores of Lake Erie in an area later known by fugitive slaves as the Pleasant Valley which extends east into Buxton, Ontario where sits Uncle Tom’s Cabin. You can imagine he has a lot to draw from and so wants to have fun. |
| Andre Fex | Boolie – Andre has been acting for about 10 years. He has done theatre, independent films, television, and commercials. You may remember him in NVCP’s Moon Over Buffalo in 2009 where he played Charlotte’s love sick lawyer Richard. His previous plays include Woody Allen’s Central Park West, David Mamet’s An Interview, and several other plays on the North Shore. His television work includes roles on series such as Masters of Science Fiction and The L Word. He also has done several independent films. Andre wishes to express his appreciation to everyone supporting our local theatre productions. |
| Barbara Wallace | Daisy – Easily identifiable on any stage by her pink follow spot (condition of casting), Barbara is delighted to be back at Hendry Hall in this great part. She finds it slightly ironic that she has driven Hoke to rehearsals. Her last show here was Three Tall Women, in which she played a ninety-something old lady with dementia. Come to think of it, she had dementia in The Stillborn Lover, still her favourite part at Hendry Hall, so she hopes this is not the shape of things to come. The camaraderie with other cast members has been outstanding, and with the dream team of talented technical personnel we are indeed very fortunate. Barbara thanks her husband for running lines with her for hours – as a result of which he now has a better Southern accent than she does. Since retiring from “day jobs” she has been able to get the occasional commercial work, but nothing beats live theatre. |