Daphnes's Dive

Dalphne’s Dive is playing at the Signature Theatre located at 480 West 42nd Street. It runs one hour and forty minutes with no intermission. The play closes on June 5, 2016.

The playwright is Quiara Algeria Hudes. She won a Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2012 for “Water by the Spoonful”. Quiara wrote the book for the musical “In the Heights”.

Donyale Werle is the scenic designer. She won a Tony Award for Peter and the Starcatcher (2012) and was nominated for a Tony Award for Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson (2011).

Thomas Kail is the director. He has been nominated for a Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award for Hamilton (2016).

Dalphne Rubin-Vega was nominated for a Tony Award for Anna in the Tropics (2003) and Rent (1997).

The play takes place in North Philly.

Ruby (Samira Wiley) comes out and says I’m 11 and leaves.

Daphne (Vanessa Aspillaga) owns the building her bar is in. She is cleaning the counter when a regular customer comes in. Pablo (Matt Saldivar) is an artist. He has been trying to get Daphne to let him look thru the trash from the building. He is inspire by the trash and puts it in his paintings. She complains to him about the tenants. One plays the piano, which she says is ok however the other tenant deals in drugs and the FBI and the police came on separate days to search the apartment. The police arrested the husband and wife. Social services took the children. Ruby was one of the children. She jumped out of the window when they came.

Another regular Rey (Gordon Joseph Weiss) comes in for a beer. His motorcycle is outside.

Jenn (K. K. Maggie) comes in with a bikini top and shorts, both in red, white and blue. She is always protesting for justice.

Inez (Daphne Rubin-Vega) is Daphne’s sister. She is complaining about her house and next door neighbor. You can see she has money by her hair and the clothes she has on. Her husband Acosta (Carlos Gomez) is the final person to come into the bar. He is a successful business man. He gives back to his community by doing different things.

The lights dim and things are taken off the stage or added on.

Ruby comes out when it is done and says I am 11, 15, 20, 29 and 11.

The actors age as time goes by.

This is a remarkable play about people who remain in each other life for 18 years. They more or less become a family, looking out for each other.

No, I am not telling you what happens to them over the years. Why spoil the show, go see it for yourself. You won’t be disappointed.

The cast does a brilliant job especially Vanessa Aspillaga. As she leaves the stage she is still in character, her face says it all. She is amazing.

Review by Rozanna Radakovich.

Photos by Annazor.

To read a candid interview with the cast, scroll down to the left for recent photos. Click on recent photos for this and other shows.