Zoom friendly 'Smart People' rounds out APT's reading series

By Lindsay Christians, The Capital Times

Everybody in Lydia Diamond’s 2014 play “Smart People” is exceptional.

Jackson, a young Black surgical intern at Harvard Medical School, runs a clinic in Chinatown when he’s not working 10-hour emergency room rotations.

Ginny, an Asian American professor of psychiatry with a genius grant, gets involved with a cocky white neurobiologist who quotes his own rave reviews in class. Valerie, a classically trained Black actress, brings research and nuance to her work even when no one asks for it.

Every one of these “smart people” is constantly aware of (and negotiating with) how others see them. This makes the play a brilliant fit for staging on Zoom, where we’ve spent most of this year having conversations with people while staring at our own reflections.

Continue Reading