Anna Lucasta

Anna Lucasta is a 1944 American play by Philip Yordan. Inspired by Eugene O’Neill’s Anna Christie, the play was originally written about a Polish American family. The American Negro Theatre director Abram Hill and director Harry Wagstaff Gribble adapted the script for an all African American cast, and presented the first performance on June 16, 1944. The play moved from Harlem to Broadway’s Mansfield Theatre, running August 30, 1944 – November 30, 1946. – Wikipedia

The title role is undertaken by Debbie Allen. Miss Allen…. avoids sentimentality, managing to keep the character insouciant and abrasive. The portrait is amusing and at moments even touching, particularly when she is asserting her individual rights.

The three young men in her life are forcefully played by Carl Crudup, Neville Richen and Caries Cleveland, each making a stock character seem authentic. Elizabeth Van Dyke and Rony Clanton are stalwart as a sympathetic sister‐in‐law and her timid husband. Neil Harris is a hearty scene‐stealer as the bluff, greedy brother‐in‐law. The actors are most convincing when indulging in crafty family business, trying to outfox one another. No matter what their ethnic origin, the Lucastas are an irrepressibly competitive, highly theatrical clan. – Mel Gussow, NY Times