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Alex Vause

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Alex Vause
Orange Is the New Black character
Laura Prepon as Alex Vause
First appearance"I Wasn't Ready"
Season 1, episode 1
July 11, 2013
Portrayed byLaura Prepon
Rachel Resheff (at age 10)
In-universe information
ParentsDiane Vause (mother)
Lee Burley (father)

Alexandra 'Alex' Vause is a fictional character played by Laura Prepon on the Netflix series Orange Is the New Black. She is a love interest of the protagonist Piper Chapman throughout the series. The character is loosely based on the real ex-girlfriend of Piper Kerman, author of Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison. She is a main character in seasons one, three, and four and a recurring character in season two.

Inspiration

The character of Vause is loosely based on Cleary Wolters, ex-girlfriend of Piper Kerman, the author of Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison, which led to the Orange is the New Black series. In Kerman's book, Vause is given the name Nora Jansen. In actual fact, Kerman and Wolters did not serve their sentences together and they did not reunite in prison as depicted in the series, with the exception of a short period in the care of US Marshals.[1] Wolters remarked that "the only similarity between myself and [Vause] is my black glasses."[2] In 2015, HarperOne released Wolters' memoir entitled Out of Orange.[3][4]

Storylines

Season 1

Vause is introduced in the first episode through flashbacks; she and Chapman were both involved in crimes involving drug money. At the end of the first episode, the audience sees that Vause and Chapman are both serving their sentences in the same prison, Litchfield Penitentiary.[5] The two begin a romantic and sexual relationship in episode six; they are also both involved in a dispute with another inmate, Tiffany "Pennsatucky" Doggett (Taryn Manning), who locks Vause in a dryer and then attempts to kill Chapman in the season finale. Vause was raised solely by her mother and, in the ninth episode 'Fucksgiving', Vause's father is seen to be an influence on her being involved in the drug cartel.[6] When Chapman realises that Vause was the one who told authorities about her illegal drug activities, they break off their relationship. Vause then becomes sexually involved with another inmate, Nicky Nichols (Natasha Lyonne).[6][7][8]

Season 2

In the first episode, Vause promises Chapman that she will lie to protect her in the upcoming trial of her former boss Kubra Balik. She breaks this promise, however, and, after testifying against Balik, Vause manages to secure release from prison while Chapman remains incarcerated.[9] After discovering that Balik was not imprisoned for his crimes, Vause fears for her life; she is also unable to leave her apartment due to the terms of her parole.[10][11] She visits Chapman in prison and confides in her that she is scared; Chapman then gets Bloom to tell Vause's parole officer that Vause is breaking her parole, which lands her back in prison, where she is safe from Balik's retribution.

Season 3

Vause appears in every episode of the third season.[12] Chapman reports Vause to a parole officer and she is sent back to Litchfield prison; Chapman does eventually admit to doing this and the two begin frequently having hate sex.[13][14] Chapman and Vause reconcile and officially resume their relationship, but become more distant again as the season progresses; Chapman becomes romantically involved with a new inmate, Stella Carlin (Ruby Rose), and this upsets Vause.[15][16] Vause becomes increasingly concerned that Balik has sent someone into the prison to spy on her and bring her harm; she suspects that this person is Lolly Whitehill (Lori Petty) and attacks her in the toilet. It turns out that Whitehill is completely delusional and thinks that Vause is from the National Security Agency.[17][18] In the season finale, Vause is confronted by Balik's henchman Aydin and her fate is left ambiguous.[19]

Critical commentary

Horatia Harrod of The Daily Telegraph comments that Prepon's character is popular with viewers of Orange is the New Black, in fact, more so than Chapman is "it’s puzzling that Alex’s phoney bad-girl shtick seems to have won her a fan following, while Piper is reviled."[20] Rolling Stone's Mac McClelland describes Vause as the femme fatale of the television series.[21] Digital Spy describes a 'power shift' in the third season between Chapman and Vause and how this impacts positively on both characters "the power dynamic of Piper and Alex's relationship is so dramatically shifted that everything about them feels fresh. Alex is more vulnerable than we've ever seen her, utterly shattered to find herself back in jail."[13]

Not all reviews were complimentary, however, as Vanity Fair's Joanna Robinson opined that Vause's role was "poorly integrated into the larger plot of Litchfield" in Season 3 and went on to say "I found myself getting tired of Alex’s frenetic plot. With so many rich and well-developed inmates (and guards!) at Litchfield, maybe Alex's story has run its course."[19]

Prepon won the Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film at the 18th Satellite Awards for her performance as Vause.[22]

See also

References

  1. ^ Callahan, Maureen (May 10, 2015). "Real-life Alex on 'OITNB' feared show would ruin her life". New York Post. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  2. ^ Truesdell, Jeff (June 5, 2015). "Meet the Real-Life Alex Vause of Orange Is the New Black". People. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  3. ^ Whitney, Erin (July 5, 2015). "Cleary Wolters, The Real Alex Vause, Shares Her Story For The First Time". Huffington Post. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  4. ^ Mejia, Paula (July 5, 2015). "Q&A: The Real-Life Alex Vause Discusses Prison, Memoir 'Out of Orange'". Newsweek. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  5. ^ Schaefer, Megan (June 3, 2014). "'Orange Is The New Black' Season 1 Recap: Everything To Know Before The Season 2 Premiere". International Business Times. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  6. ^ a b Reid, Joe (June 3, 2014). "Your Guide to Catching Up to 'Orange Is the New Black' in Time for Season Two". The Wire. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  7. ^ Henderson, Danielle (August 29, 2013). "Orange Is the New Black Season 1 Finale Recap: I Saw the Light". Vulture. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  8. ^ Davis, Ali (July 25, 2013). ""Orange is the New Black" recap (1.13): Can't Fix Crazy". After Ellen. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  9. ^ Piccoli, Dana (June 6, 2014). ""Orange is the New Black" recap (2.1): Thirsty Bird". After Ellen. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  10. ^ Henderson, Danielle (June 18, 2014). "Orange Is the New Black Season 2, Episode 11 Recap: How About I Kill the Bitch?". Vulture. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  11. ^ Zernike, Kate (July 11, 2014). "'Orange Is the New Black' Recap: 'Go Ahead, Girls, Take a Break From Your Values'". The New York Times. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  12. ^ "'I'm in every episode of season three!' Laura Prepon says her Orange Is The New Black alter ego Alex Vause WILL be back next year". Daily Mail. June 10, 2014. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  13. ^ a b Dibdin, Emma (June 12, 2015). "Orange is the New Black season 3 review: Episodes 1-3 blend comedy and tragedy". Digital Spy. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  14. ^ Amatangelo, Amy (June 14, 2015). "Orange is the New Black Review: "Mother's Day"/"Bed Bugs and Beyond"". Paste. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  15. ^ Dornbush, Jonathon (June 17, 2015). "A Tittin' and a Hairin". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  16. ^ Steiner, Chelsea (July 8, 2015). ""Orange is the New Black" recap (3.10): A Tittin' and a Hairin'". After Ellen. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  17. ^ Dornbush, Jonathon (June 15, 2015). "'Fear, and Other Smells'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  18. ^ Lawler, Kelly (June 13, 2015). "'Orange is the New Black' binge recap: It's not all fun and games". USA Today. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  19. ^ a b Robinson, Joanna (June 24, 2015). "Did Laura Prepon Just Spoil Her Character's Cliffhanger on Orange Is the New Black?". Vanity Fair. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  20. ^ Harrod, Horatia (June 6, 2014). "Orange is the New Black, episode one, review: 'a sparkling return to form'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  21. ^ McClelland, Mac (June 3, 2015). "Laura Prepon on Playing the Femme Fatale of 'Orange Is the New Black'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  22. ^ Kilday, Gregg (February 23, 2014). "Satellite Awards: '12 Years a Slave' Wins Best Motion Picture". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
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