Review: DRIVING MISS DAISY at Barrington Stage Company

Barrington Stage Company (BSC) kicks off its 2026 season on the St. Germain Stage with DRIVING MISS DAISY by Alfred Uhry about the relationship of an elderly Southern Jewish woman, Daisy Werthan, and her African-American chauffeur, Hoke Coleburn, from 1948 to 1973. The play was the first in Uhry's Atlanta Trilogy, which deals with Jewish residents of the city in the early 20th century. The play won the 1988 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

Presented in collaboration with Palm Beach Dramaworks, the production is directed by BSC's founding and former Artistic Director Julianne Boyd and stars Debra Jo Rupp as Daisy Werthan, Ray Anthony Thomas as Hoke Coleburn, and Matthew W. Korinko as Boolie Werthan.  Each of the performers is well suited for and displays a deep level of knowledge and comfort with their character.  The action plays out in a series of vignettes presented over 80-minutes in one act without intermission on a handsome and functional set designed by Bert Scott.  With lighting designed by David Lander, Men’s Costumes designed by Brian O’Keefe, Daisy’s Costumes Designed by Sara Jean Tosetti, Sound designed by Alexander Sovronsky, Projection Design by Tim Brown, and Production Stage Management by Renee Lutz.   Cast and Crew deliver a high-quality production that is both simple and sublime; historically accurate, topically relevant; and well worth seeing.

Uhry wrote his Atlanta Trilogy based on his own experience. He set his three plays in the context of major events that happened in Atlanta: PARADE, based on the 1913–1915 trial and eventual lynching of Leo Frank; THE LAST NIGHT OF BALLYHOO, following the events at the city's 1939 GONE WITH THE WIND premiere; and Driving Miss Daisy, addressing the impacts associated with the 1958 Hebrew Benevolent Congregation Temple bombing and the city’s dinner honoring Martin Luther King Jr.'s October 1964 Nobel Peace Prize.

Barrington Stage Company (BSC) Artistic Director, Alan Paul said: "When Debra Jo and Julie approached me about doing DRIVING MISS DAISY, my interest was piqued.  It's fair to say that Daisy has become an American classic, and when you watch the show, you will see how contemporary and relevant its themes still are.  This play endures because it speaks to the best of who we can be.  Alfred Uhry's beautifully observed characters remind us that empathy, respect, and friendship can emerge in the most unexpected places.