# Meet the Browns (play)

Meet the Browns is a 2004 American stage play written, produced and directed by Tyler Perry. It stars David & Tamela Mann as Mr. Brown & Cora, as they head off to see Brown's side of the family. The play is a spin off of 2003's Madea's Class Reunion, where it's revealed at the ending that Brown is Cora's long-lost father. The live performance released on VHS and DVD on October 27, 2004 was recorded live in Cleveland at the Palace Theatre in October 2004.

## Plot

The play begins with Brown's (David Mann) brother, L.B., and his wife, Sarah, in their house very early in the morning. Their daughter, Milay (whose real name is Millie Jean), soon comes in after being awakened at her own house by her parents. She soon learns that her grandfather (Brown and L.B.'s father) had died, and they need help preparing for the funeral. After a little convincing, Milay decides to help with funeral arrangements.
The next morning, Sarah and Milay are talking together while L.B. is upstairs crying. We soon learn that Milay was divorced and had a son who died. But before more can be learned, Mr. Brown and Cora come in and get acquainted with everyone. Everyone is surprised to learn that Brown is Cora's father and that Madea is her mother. Soon after, Will and his wife, Kim, come in. Will's overly drunk mother, Vera (singer Nicci Gilbert) comes in after them crying hysterically. She jumps upon seeing Brown, believing it was he that had died. When she is told it is her father that has died, she nearly collapses, and begins to cry again. Vera begins to insult Cora about her weight, and Cora starts yelling and pulls out a gun, and begins to act like her mother Madea, very crazy.
Meanwhile, the ladies are at the church when Tracey Stevens walks in. She tells them that she is pregnant and the father is a married man. Sarah gives Tracey her number and address and tells her to stop by any time. Soon only Cora is left in the church when Rev. Henry Oliver walks in. Cora soon takes a liking to the reverend as the two develop a romance.
Later, Tracey comes to the house and goes off with Sarah. Milay's ex-husband, Gerald shows up, giving his sympathy and planning to come to the funeral. Milay is outraged, mainly because Gerald didn't have the decency to come to their own son's funeral. Once Gerald leaves, Tracey then comes back and sees Will, stating that he is her baby's father. The revelation startles everyone, especially Kim, who storms out in tears.
Sarah, in a musical number, prays to God and hopes her family will be healed. After continuing to angrily reject Will's apologies, Sarah speaks to Kim, who tells her to make a list with every good thing Will had ever done for her along with every bad one. She continues, saying that if the bad outweighed the good, then she was free to let Will go. But if the good were to outweigh the bad, then she should fight completely for her marriage. Later, Tracy reveals that she is not pregnant and reveals her intentions, and Will and Kim finally reconcile. Gerald and Milay also reconcile. In a special feature on the DVD while Brown is teaching the guys how to play golf Madea calls "The Brown's House" looking for Cora and Brown telling them that she is in jail and she will tell them what she did in the next play, Madea Goes to Jail.

## Musical numbers

All songs written and/or produced by Tyler Perry and Elvin D. Ross.
* "Find A Good Woman (You'll Find a Good Thing") – Will, Brown and L.B.
* "Ain't Nothing Like a Good Man" – Vera, Kim and Tracy
* "Heart to Heart" – Cora
* "Give It to Jesus" – Sarah
* "Don't Give Up on Me" – Will
* "I'll Fly Away" - Sarah and Cora
* "In The Morning (When I Rise)"- L.B., Brown, Henry
* "What Happened to The Man"- Milay and Gerald
* "Silent Night" (ad-lib) - Brown
* "This Is Your Grandaddy" (ad-lib) - Brown
* "Ain't Nothing Like Family" - Sarah, Gerald, Will, Brown, Cora and Company

## Film adaptation

A film adaptation of the play was released on March 21, 2008. The film altered almost all the plot details found in the play with most of its storyline coming from the 2006 play, What's Done in the Dark.

### Differences from the stage play

* Despite being the title characters, the Browns are only supporting characters and are only included in the story's subplot. In addition to this, they are only seen near the beginning of the film and near the end.
* The only characters that appear in the film are Mr. Brown, Cora, LB, Sarah, Will, and Vera.
* LB is more laid-back and friendlier than he is in the play
* Mr. Brown is not the central character or protagonist. He is only comic relief.
* Madea only appears in the film, as she did not appear in the stage play. (Although she did appear in a flashback in the very beginning & in a recorded phone call towards the middle of the play.)

## TV series

The TV series is based on the play and the film of the same name by Tyler Perry. The TV series involves several main characters from the film including, Mr. Brown, Cora Simmons, Will Brown, and features Vera Brown in a recurring role. David Mann, Tamela Mann, Lamman Rucker, and Jenifer Lewis all respectively reprise their characters from the film. L.B. does not make an appearance at any point in the series, although he is mentioned once in an episode of House of Payne.

## Tour dates

Scheduled shows :
| Date | City | Venue |
| August 31, 2004 | New Orleans | Saenger Theatre |
| September 1, 2004 | New Orleans | Saenger Theatre |
| September 2, 2004 | New Orleans | Saenger Theatre |
| September 3, 2004 | New Orleans | Saenger Theatre |
| September 4, 2004 | New Orleans | Saenger Theatre |
| September 5, 2004 | New Orleans | Saenger Theatre |
| September 7, 2004 | Philadelphia | Merriam Theater |
| September 8, 2004 | Philadelphia | Merriam Theater |
| September 9, 2004 | Philadelphia | Merriam Theater |
| September 10, 2004 | Philadelphia | Merriam Theater |
| September 11, 2004 | Philadelphia | Merriam Theater |
| September 12, 2004 | Philadelphia | Merriam Theater |
| September 15, 2004 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| September 16, 2004 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| September 17, 2004 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| September 18, 2004 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| September 19, 2004 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| September 21, 2004 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| September 22, 2004 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| September 23, 2004 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| September 24, 2004 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| September 25, 2004 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| September 26, 2004 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| September 28, 2004 | Philadelphia | Merriam Theater |
| September 29, 2004 | Philadelphia | Merriam Theater |
| September 30, 2004 | Philadelphia | Merriam Theater |
| October 1, 2004 | Philadelphia | Merriam Theater |
| October 2, 2004 | Philadelphia | Merriam Theater |
| October 3, 2004 | Philadelphia | Merriam Theater |
| October 5, 2004 | Columbus | Palace Theatre |
| October 6, 2004 | Columbus | Palace Theatre |
| October 7, 2004 | Cleveland | Palace Theatre |
| October 8, 2004 | Cleveland | Palace Theatre |
| October 9, 2004 | Cleveland | Palace Theatre |
| October 10, 2004 | Cleveland | Palace Theatre |
| October 12, 2004 | Houston | Verizon Wireless Theater |
| October 13, 2004 | Houston | Verizon Wireless Theater |
| October 14, 2004 | Houston | Verizon Wireless Theater |
| October 15, 2004 | Houston | Verizon Wireless Theater |
| October 16, 2004 | Houston | Verizon Wireless Theater |
| October 17, 2004 | Houston | Verizon Wireless Theater |
| October 26, 2004 | Baltimore | Morgan State University |
| October 27, 2004 | Baltimore | Morgan State University |
| October 28, 2004 | Baltimore | Morgan State University |
| October 29, 2004 | Baltimore | Morgan State University |
| October 30, 2004 | Baltimore | Morgan State University |
| October 31, 2004 | Baltimore | Morgan State University |
| November 2, 2004 | New York | Beacon Theatre |
| November 3, 2004 | New York | Beacon Theatre |
| November 4, 2004 | New York | Beacon Theatre |
| November 5, 2004 | New York | Beacon Theatre |
| November 6, 2004 | New York | Beacon Theatre |
| November 7, 2004 | New York | Beacon Theatre |
| November 9, 2004 | Chicago | Arie Crown Theater |
| November 10, 2004 | Chicago | Arie Crown Theater |
| November 11, 2004 | Chicago | Arie Crown Theater |
| November 12, 2004 | Chicago | Arie Crown Theater |
| November 13, 2004 | Chicago | Arie Crown Theater |
| November 14, 2004 | Chicago | Arie Crown Theater |
| November 16, 2004 | Newark | Newark Symphony Hall |
| November 17, 2004 | Newark | Newark Symphony Hall |
| November 18, 2004 | Newark | Newark Symphony Hall |
| November 19, 2004 | Newark | Newark Symphony Hall |
| November 20, 2004 | Newark | Newark Symphony Hall |
| November 21, 2004 | Newark | Newark Symphony Hall |
| November 23, 2004 | Atlanta | Atlanta Civic Center |
| November 24, 2004 | Atlanta | Atlanta Civic Center |
| November 25, 2004 | Atlanta | Atlanta Civic Center |
| November 26, 2004 | Atlanta | Atlanta Civic Center |
| November 27, 2004 | Atlanta | Atlanta Civic Center |
| November 28, 2004 | Atlanta | Atlanta Civic Center |
| January 4, 2005 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| January 5, 2005 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| January 6, 2005 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| January 7, 2005 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| January 8, 2005 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| January 9, 2005 | Washington, D.C. | Warner Theatre |
| January 11, 2005 | Akron | Akron Civic Center |
| January 12, 2005 | Columbus | Veterans Memorial Auditorium |
| January 13, 2005 | St. Louis | Fox Theatre |
| January 14, 2005 | St. Louis | Fox Theatre |
| January 15, 2005 | St. Louis | Fox Theatre |
| January 16, 2005 | St. Louis | Fox Theatre |
| January 18, 2005 | New York | Beacon Theatre |
| January 19, 2005 | New York | Beacon Theatre |
| January 20, 2005 | New York | Beacon Theatre |
| January 21, 2005 | New York | Beacon Theatre |
| January 22, 2005 | New York | Beacon Theatre |
| January 23, 2005 | New York | Beacon Theatre |
| January 26, 2005 | Miami | James L. Knight Center |
| January 27, 2005 | Miami | James L. Knight Center |
| January 28, 2005 | Miami | James L. Knight Center |
| January 29, 2005 | Miami | James L. Knight Center |
| January 30, 2005 | Miami | James L. Knight Center |
| February 1, 2005 | Greenville | Peace Center for the Performing Arts |
| February 2, 2005 | Greenville | Peace Center for the Performing Arts |
| February 4, 2005 | Hampton | Hampton Coliseum |
| February 5, 2005 | Hampton | Hampton Coliseum |
| February 6, 2005 | Hampton | Hampton Coliseum |
| February 10, 2005 | Jacksonville | Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts |
| February 11, 2005 | Jacksonville | Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts |
| February 12, 2005 | Jacksonville | Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts |
| February 13, 2005 | Jacksonville | Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts |
| February 17, 2005 | Kansas City | Kansas City Music Hall |
| February 18, 2005 | Kansas City | Kansas City Music Hall |
| February 19, 2005 | Kansas City | Kansas City Music Hall |
| February 20, 2005 | Kansas City | Kansas City Music Hall |
| February 22, 2005 | Detroit | Fox Theatre |
| February 23, 2005 | Detroit | Fox Theatre |
| February 24, 2005 | Detroit | Fox Theatre |
| February 25, 2005 | Detroit | Fox Theatre |
| February 26, 2005 | Detroit | Fox Theatre |
| February 27, 2005 | Detroit | Fox Theatre |
| March 8, 2005 | Tampa | Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center |
| March 9, 2005 | Tampa | Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center |
| March 10, 2005 | Tampa | Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center |
| March 11, 2005 | Orlando | Orange County Convention Center |
| March 12, 2005 | Orlando | Orange County Convention Center |
| March 13, 2005 | Tallahassee | Tallahassee-Leon County Civic Center |
| March 15, 2005 | Dallas | Bruton Theatre |
| March 16, 2005 | Dallas | Bruton Theatre |
| March 17, 2005 | Dallas | Bruton Theatre |
| March 18, 2005 | Dallas | Bruton Theatre |
| March 19, 2005 | Dallas | Bruton Theatre |
| March 20, 2005 | Dallas | Bruton Theatre |
| March 29, 2005 | Beaumont | Beaumont Civic Center |
| March 30, 2005 | Beaumont | Beaumont Civic Center |
| March 31, 2005 | San Antonio | San Antonio Municipal Auditorium |
| April 1, 2005 | San Antonio | San Antonio Municipal Auditorium |
| April 2, 2005 | Austin | Frank Erwin Center |
| April 3, 2005 | Austin | Frank Erwin Center |
| April 7, 2005 | Memphis | Orpheum Theatre |
| April 8, 2005 | Memphis | Orpheum Theatre |
| April 9, 2005 | Memphis | Orpheum Theatre |
| April 10, 2005 | Memphis | Orpheum Theatre |
| April 12, 2005 | Montgomery | Joe L. Reed Acadome |
| April 13, 2005 | Montgomery | Joe L. Reed Acadome |
| April 19, 2005 | Phoenix | Dodge Theatre |
| April 20, 2005 | Phoenix | Dodge Theatre |
| April 21, 2005 | Hollywood | Kodak Theatre |
| April 22, 2005 | Hollywood | Kodak Theatre |
| April 23, 2005 | Hollywood | Kodak Theatre |
| April 24, 2005 | Hollywood | Kodak Theatre |
| April 26, 2005 | Sacramento | Sacramento Memorial Auditorium |
| April 27, 2005 | Sacramento | Sacramento Memorial Auditorium |
| April 28, 2005 | Oakland | Paramount Theatre |
| April 29, 2005 | Oakland | Paramount Theatre |
| April 30, 2005 | Oakland | Paramount Theatre |
| May 1, 2005 | Oakland | Paramount Theatre |
| May 3, 2005 | Las Vegas | Aladdin Resort and Casino |
| May 4, 2005 | Las Vegas | Aladdin Resort and Casino |
| May 5, 2005 | Las Vegas | Aladdin Resort and Casino |

## Original touring cast

* David Mann as Leroy Brown
* Tamela Mann as Cora Jean Simmons
* Kendrick Mays as Larry Brown (L.B.)
* Joyce Williams as Sarah Brown
* Tamika Scott as Milay Brown
* Terrell Carter as Will Brown
* Demetria McKinney as Kim Brown
* Nicci Gilbert as Vera Brown
* Terrell Phillips as Gerald
* Euclid Gray as Rev. Henry Oliver
* Trina Braxton (credited as Trina E. Braxton) as Tracey Stevens
After Tamika Scott left production, Trina Braxton assumed her role.

## The band

* Mike Frazier - Musical Director / Bass Guitar
* Eric Morgan - Drums
* Donnie "D-Major" Boynton - Keyboards
* Clarence Hill - Keyboards