Berkshire on Stage

“Stop talking,” says Nancy Pelosi to the newly elected Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, whom she has invited to her office.  But discussion is the point of this seventy-seven minute intermission-less series of confrontations between the two women from 2018-2022, currently playing at Barrington Stage Company’s St. Germain Stage.

N/A by Mario Correa, was first produced at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater in June, 2024, directed by Diane Paulus.   Though N is clearly Nancy Pelosi and A is AOC, Correa chooses not to name these characters because he doesn’t want the actors to mimic them or “to feel too bound by history.”  (Moira O’Sullivan:  Interview with the Playwright) But from the moment AOC (Diane Guerrero) walks onstage (dressed by designer Mika Eubanks in a dark gray pantsuit, suede boots, orange blouse, large earrings, wearing red “Beso” lipstick and loudly celebrating her victory Face-timing with her fans), we have no doubt about her identity.  Ditto for Pelosi (Kelly Lester), who enters in a hot pink skirt, blazer, matching heels, wearing a pearl necklace and earrings, with perfectly-styled hair (thanks to wig-designer Brittany Hartman).

Correa used different aspects of his life in crafting this play.  Written during Covid when actors could not touch or be near each other, he found a subject that would allow characters to keep their distance as they sparred.  Having spent seven years “on the Hill” as a young staffer to a middle-aged progressive Republican Congresswoman, his mined his experience to create the play’s language and the horse-trading that happens there.   And as a Latino immigrant, Correa deeply understands the passion that fuels AOC’s determination to fix our broken immigration system.   

Seeking a way to leaven the tension in the room, Correa turns to comedy, relying on quips delivered by Pelosi.  With her deep voice, dry humor, and condescending tone, Lester is a master of put downs.  In the first few scenes, she is on her turf, determined to squash AOC like a pesky bug.  But as the play proceeds and AOC’s popularity grows, Lester/Pelosi loses the moral high ground and is forced to try to justify working within the system to an adversary bent on destroying it.  Unfortunately she needs the younger woman’s vote to regain her position as House Speaker.   Ultimately the tables have turned and in a complete reversal it is Pelosi who visits AOC’s office and AOC who doesn’t have time for her.  We watch Lester employing her bag of tricks as she tries to cajole, to placate, to compromise, while doing her utmost to maintain her dignity in the face of an onslaught she cannot control.  And in the end, we feel sorry for this brave and powerful fighter, who accomplished so much in her many years as a Congresswoman.

Diane Guerrero’s AOC is a force of nature.  Refusing to back down because she knows she is doing the right thing, Guerrero, who resembles AOC in countless ways, succeeds in shifting the balance of the play, which Correa correctly recognizes as essential to its success.   The actress is so convincing, so human and empathetic, that considering what is going on in our country at this moment, we are aching to join her, no matter that her idealistic goals seem to be pie-in-the-sky unattainable.

The simple but sleek set, designed by Brian Prather, is dominated by Pelosi’s office:  a desk and two chairs.   An imposing triple archway is the central entrance/exit for the characters and two Corinthian columns on either side of the platform stage suggest the Capitol.  Though the set can feel claustrophobic, Sound Designer Brandon Bulls is able to create the world beyond the office by means of recorded voices, applause, even violent attacks, establishing the date and place without the need for projections mentioned in the script.   Lighting Designer Wheeler Moon collaborates with Bulls to quickly register the passing of time between scenes, offering loud sound effects, music and even politicizing the lights with areas of red and blue.  With their help, director Birenboim is able to steer this play forward without unnecessary pauses, on to its climax and conclusion.

For the play’s audience,  an important question is whether the confrontations between these two women repeat what we already know about their differences:   generational (at 28, AOC was the youngest member ever elected to Congress), experiential (new to the job vs. decades of experience), political (progressive vs. center), racial and economic, ideological vs. practical, emotional vs. cold-blooded/steely—or whether we are encouraged to consider other possibilities.

For this reviewer, the answer is that as the scenes build to a dramatic climax (following Aristotle’s linear formula), the combination of balanced writing, stunning performances, and Birenboim’s sharp direction force us to re-evaluate and question the right path forward.  

N/A runs from June 4—June 22 at Barrington Stage Company’s St. Germain Stage, 36 Linden St. Pittsfield.  For tickets call 413-236-8888 or online at barringtonstageco.org.

Barrington Stage Company presents N/A by Mario Correa.  Director:  Katie Birenboim.  Cast:  Diane Guerrero (A) and Kelly Lester (N).  Scenic Design:  Brian Prather; Costume Design:  Mika Eubanks; Lighting Design:  Wheeler Moon; Sound Design:  Brandon Bulls;  Wig Design:  Brittany Hartman.  Production Stage Manager:  Rebecca C. Monroe.

The performance runs 77 minutes with no intermission.