SMART PEOPLE at 2nd Stage-One of the Smartest Shows I've Seen

I'll make this simple:  SMART PEOPLE by Lydia Diamond is brilliant.  You don't have to be Sherlock to find this play entertaining, engaging and well crafted. The levity doesn't deter from the gravitas gravitas & grasp of the issues concerning racism in all its colors and connotations.  Diamond's sparkling 4 character play is set in Boston '07 and ends on the inauguration of Pres Obama in '09; a time line for systemic racism in our nation regardless of our 1st African-American Pres is at a precipice of implosion.  Acknowledgement, recognition, discussion and resolutions for a just society are sovereign issues at the center of Diamond's fierce writing. The play entwines 4 very accomplished, articulate & attractive actors.  All 4 are at the top of their class.  I bestow valedictorian honors to Tessa Thompson (Creed, Dear White People) who plays Valerie.  Valerie's aspirations as an actress are fraught with Shakespearean tragedy.  She is relagated to stereotypical roles for black actresses (with poor elocution.)  Brian, a white college prof feels diminished teaching & would choose to focus on his studies proving whites are racist with a pre-disposition to hate.  Jackson is a black, surgeon who also runs a free clinic with the little free time he has.  Ginny, "1/2 Chinese & 1/2 Japanese"is a psychiatrist & has published statistical studies supporting the subversive role Asian women have in American society.  All 4 are  talented in their respected fields which doesn't preclude them from sabotaging themselves.  Scenic designer Riccardo Hernandez (The Gin Game) & lighting designer, Jason Lyons' (Hand to God) help illuminate this thought provoking play.  Everything adds up to a winning combination.