Category Archives: Theatre

Review: Lobster Man at the Samuel French OOB Short Play Festival

Many many moons ago a friend of mine kept me abreast on his ten-minute play that he was working on. Over the years his ten-minute play was featured in some incarnation or another in a small handful of cities throughout the continental United States. A couple of these productions were originally posted on his YouTube Channel but have since been set to private or disappeared entirely.

In any case here is the first trailer of the ten-minute (now one-act) play of Lobster Man:

Now why a trailer? Because the playwright’s piece of Lobster Man was one of the Top 40 in the Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival. But what is this Festival about?

The Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival started in 1975 and is Manhattan’s oldest, continuous short play festival. […] The Festival has given emerging playwrights the opportunity to have their work produced. […]

The Festival has served as a doorway to future success for many aspiring playwrights, and has helped launched the work of notables as Theresa Rebeck, Shirley Lauro, Sheila Callaghan, Bekah Brunstetter, Steve Yockey, Saviana Stanescu, and David Johnston. In many cases, Festival participation has sparked agent contracts for Festival finalists and all of the final forty plays selected to be perform in New York are guaranteed to be seen by an Artistic Director of a major theater, a professional playwright, and a theatrical agent. Many past Festival playwrights have gone on to win major Playwriting awards and honors, as well as to have major theatrical productions of their works staged.

I was already impressed with Lobster Man in the first conception… and now with this most recent incarnation, Jonathan Cook just seems to be getting better and better as playwright in the years that I have known him.
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Review: Sister Act the Musical – Chicago Tour Stop

Last night a friend of mine and I went to see the first performance of the Chicago Stop of Sister Act the Musical… and honestly it was loads of fun to watch.

My friend mentioned that he thought the musical was “fun” and “cute” which is probably the best words to describe the show. It was entertaining, but there were a few gaffes along the way… but that was more on the technical end of the spectrum. So meh.

In any case… the cast recording I have at home is actually the West End Cast, so there was a song or two that I expected to hear that I didn’t… and the replacement songs wasn’t bad, but for some reason I simply wasn’t as thrilled. Guess my heart is just not American enough 😉

ANYWAY.

For anyone not really familiar with the original movie that the musical was based off of starring Whoopi Goldberg:

A lot of the primary characters (ok many of them) are included in the musical, however don’t expect to hear any of songs made popular via the movie to be in the musical. Instead the score as composed by Alan Menken and lyrics by Glenn Slater and with a book written by Cherie Steinkellner and Bill Steinkellner (and with additional book material by Douglas Carter Beane) brings a fresh take of the music with catchy tunes and moving pieces.
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Review: Moraine Valley Community College’s Avenue Q

Show: AVENUE Q
Music and Lyrics: Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx
Book: Jeff Whitty 		Location: Moraine Valley Community College

Over the weekend I had the pleasure of seeing a friend of mine perform as Brian in Moraine Valley Community College’s production of Avenue Q. I knew he could sing and I knew he could do comedy, but boy that boy can sing! I knew he was talented and committed to his craft but I never fully appreciated to what extent.

No matter what character he plays Brian Whitlock has managed to do something that you rarely see in community theatre and do it consistently: he has been able to melt into his character to the degree where I as an audience member that knows him forgets that this is my friend on stage and instead just see him as the character he plays. Don’t even get me started with his stage presence… I mean seriously, there were times when I know I should be watching others on stage because it is their moment, but Brian just kept stealing my focus at times, he’s just that strong of an actor.

Somehow he managed to sneak a moment to play with one of the puppets (Princeton) during the song: There is Life Outside Your Apartment… but it was a blink or you miss it moment. So when I realized what was going on, I didn’t get a chance to really analyze it, this would probably be a moment where I would love to see the show again so I could simply focus on that moment.

When in the show did this happen? Well it was during the following lyrics:

And a homeless man
Who only wants to
Buy something to eat!
Sorry, can’t help you.

But that was all I was able to decipher… but speaking of puppetry…

Those that were given the task to man the puppets, for the most part I was very impressed with. I don’t know how many of the actors that are required to work with the puppets actually walked in knowing any kind of puppeteering… except for a few moments here and there (which I will explain later), the puppetry in this cast was outstanding for a community theatre production.

Even with the two man puppets (Trekkie Monster and Nicky) the puppeteers did a more than respectable job with their puppets, it was rather impressive. Then again when there is someone on the Production Team (Linda Roberts of Roberts Marionettes) whose job is strictly Puppeteer is it any wonder that she would really put together a strong crash course on puppeteering?

Outside of Brian Whitlock playing Brian… there were other highlights of the production of Avenue Q, including Kendra Sowa who portrays Kate Monster. From the audience some of the comments from around me included how cute and sweet Kendra was and as thus how cute and sweet Kate Monster came out to be. The emotional capacity from pain (in A Fine Fine Line) to passion (You Can Be as Loud as The Hell You Want) to everything else in between she is a talent that just shines onstage.

But what about the remainder of the cast?
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Review: Those Thrilling Days of Yesteryear’s The War of the Worlds

Show: THE WAR OF THE WORLDS
Book: H G Wells 		Location: Those Thrilling Days of Yesteryear
Director: Pam Turlow

Earlier this week, I decided to watch / listen to a group of volunteers recreate the radio program by H.G. Wells: The War of the Worlds. I have always been a fan of old-time radio programs ever since I started to learn how to drive… and as thus would listen to the radio often (particularly late late at night).

So when friends of mine told me about this production that they were all a part of… I figured “why not?” I have been listening to other radio program of a similar notion via 780 WBBM, but to see it live is something else.

But before I go on from the website of Those Thrilling Days of Yesteryear:

[They] are a group of Chicagoland actors and performers who share a common interest—to perform old time radio programs for the community.

[…]

The entire company is made up of volunteers who donate their time to recreate these shows from the Golden Age of Radio for the Chicagoland community. It takes quite some effort to browse through the thousands of old time radio episodes, select a favorite, listen and type out the script—many of these are not available in print and have to be painstakingly transcribed—gather sound effects, then rehearse and mount the production.

Although we are only to give these historical programs a new life a few times a year, we strive to make sure that it’s well worth the wait.

It would appear that most (if not all) of their productions take place at the Oak Park Arms in Oak Park, Illinois… and have been doing so since September of 2002. The majority of their eclectic programming come from the Golden Age of Radio.

What is there to say about it?
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Review: Xanadu at Drury Lane Theatre

Show: XANADU
Music and Lyrics: Jeff Lynne & John Farrar
Book: Douglas Carter Beane 		Location: Drury Lane Theater
Director: Rachel Rockwell
Music Director: Roberta Duchak

A sold out show… Who would have thought? Particularly what was originally considered a total flop when the original film came out turned out be quite a hit on Broadway and various theatre groups throughout the country.

Not to be confused with Zanna Don’t, the off Broadway production about a fairy that helps people in Heartsville fall in love (and how homo sexuality was the norm while heterosexuality was forbidden… But that’s a different story / post)… Xanadu is a call back on 1980s music, dance, and peculiar story telling. Not that I am complaining.

The stage at Drury Lane is relatively small and curiosity piqued my interest in seeing how this particular production would pan out. The first thing I noticed was that the cast was comprised of only ten persons… which seemed rather small to me. At least until I noticed that the original cast was comprised of, at least the original intent was to have most of the cast playing multiple roles… and honestly that is fine by me.
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Review: Village Theatre Guild’s A Little Night Music

Show: A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC
Music and Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim
Book: Hugh Wheeler 		Location: Village Theatre Guild
Director: Craig Gustafson
Music Director: Douglas Orlyk

I am not going to lie, this was one production that I was looking forward to all year. Take that a step further… I was even more excited when the cast list first came out… to the point that I was jumping up and down in excitement and glee because it included several heavy hitters in the theatre community (Steve Schroeder, Pam Turlow, Susan O’Byrne, Randall Knott), relative novices (Teresa Reinalda), favorites (Heather Miller, Patty Yuen, Justin Triezenberg) and everyone else in between.

This blend of talents made for a very beautiful, well-crafted production of A Little Night Music that should be lasting longer than the original one month run.

First let us start with the director: Craig Gustafson. He has been known throughout the community to helm some very strong productions over the years… most recently Assassins at the Geneva Underground Playhouse and the Broadway Ballot at Wheaton Drama. This production of A Little Night Music is not just the exception to the rule… but the standard (for black box theatre productions).

With a strong production team that includes Douglas Orlyk as Musical Director and RJ Ogren as Set Designer… Craig masterfully directs this timeless production from the large stage into a small black box theatre with sitting only available for just short of sixty people per show. At first glance, one could only wonder at how a stage production such as A Little Night Music could fit into such a small venue… however it only takes about five minutes into the production to marvel at how effortlessly the cast and production team were able to put such a production up in an very efficient and effective manner.

A feat of engineering as I would call it… unlike myself I do not believe any one of them are engineers! How could I not be impressed? 😉

The set (as conceived by RJ Ogren) was gorgeous as we have come to almost expect out of him, but not just that it was also very functional. At the far ends of either side are platforms for various scenes that do not require much movement or interaction and the center stage area is set aside for the majority of the larger scenes. One platform however is designated for the various bedroom scenes one finds in A Little Night Music (take that as you will) while the other blends from moments of Madam Armfeldt with her granddaughter Fredricka to moments that members of the quintet have to themselves between scene changes.

Anyway… enough about the production team… what about the cast? Before I start talking about the cast… let’s find out who they are:

CHARACTER ACTOR
Desiree Armfeldt Pam Turlow
Fredrik Egerman Mark Mavetz
Anne Egerman Teresa J Arnold
Henrik Egerman Justin Triezenberg
Petra Heather Miller
Count Carl-Magnus Malcolm Randall W Knott
Charlotte Malcolm Karen Bronson
Fredrika Armfeldt Brynn Frantz
Madame Armfeldt Teresa Reinalda
Frid Peter Lemongelli
Mrs Anderssen Patty Yuen
Mr Erlanson Stan Austin
Mr Lindquist Steve Schroeder
Mrs Nordstrom Becky Messerschmidt
Mrs Segstrom Susan O’Byrne

But where do I begin with the cast?
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Review: Phantom of the Opera – 25th Anniversary Stage Recording

After watching Love Never Dies with a friend of mine months ago… I realized that I never got around to watching the 25th Anniversary Concert / Production of Phantom of the Opera. So I borrowed her DVD completely forgetting two things:
1: her version was a non-U.S. DVD region
2: I already purchased my own DVD in the U.S. region

So since I had already watched Love Never Dies with the Australian cast… I had a bad habit of comparing the Australian cast to their Phantom of the Opera 25th Anniversary counterpart roles. Interesting thing to note is that three of the roles in the 25th Anniversary Production of Phantom of the Opera were portrayed by the same actors that were in the original West End production of Love Never Dies when it opened:

CHARACTER ACTOR / ACTRESS
The Phantom Ramin Karimloo
Christine Daaé Sierra Boggess
Madame Giry Liz Robertson

There is no denying it, Ramin and Sierra are absolutely amazing vocally and character-wise in their respective roles. Sierra’s voice is absolutely exquisite as Christine, she gives that innocent iridescence to the role and provides the growth necessary as she makes a choice between the two men that she had come to realized that she has loved in her young life.

Here is Sierra as Christine as she slowly acclimates herself as the lead soprano in the aria “Think of Me”

And again when she runs to her father’s family tomb to “Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again”

Ramin is strong and powerful and is able to give that sense of vulnerability when the one thing he has ever wanted he realizes that he would never have and let’s Christine go in the end. There is something about Ramin that is just absolutely mesmerizing and there is no denying it.
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Reflection: Zenobia the Original Musical Production Coming 2013

This was released for public viewing not that long ago:

According to YouTube:

A promotional video for the original musical, “Zenobia,” being premiered in Bolingbrook, IL in 2013 by Theatre-on-the-Hill, a not-for-profit community theatre. Book and lyrics by Lorrisa Julianus, music by Angela Salvaggione. Comments have been deactivated to discourage abuse, but if you are interested in participating in any capacity or attending, please contact us at www.tothbolingbrook.com.

Overview: Zenobia – who was sold into slavery upon birth – is a slave in the household of Danathus, King of Palmyra. While there she falls in love with the young prince: Alexander, who chooses the rebellion against the Roman oppressors which pushes her into the arms of his uncle, Danathus. Together, Danathus and Zenobia expand the empire until his untimely death where she continues the expansion at the chagrin of the Roman Emperor: Aurelian.

How to describe this musical? Epic… that is the best way to describe it.
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Review: Profiles Theatre’s Sweet and Sad (Understudy Performance)

Earlier this month (Monday, October 1) I went to the soon to be closed production of Sweet and Sad at the Profiles Theatre in Chicago. With this particular production there was a performance on a Monday Night where all the roles were played by the understudies as opposed to the original cast members.

First the cast (original and understudy):

CHARACTER ORIGINAL CAST UNDERSTUDY CAST
Richard Apple Darrell W. Cox Jeff Gamlin
Uncle Benjamin Apple Robert Breuler Scott Stockwell
Marian Apple Kristin Ford Jaimelyn Gray
Barbara Apple Kate Harris Michelle McKenzie-Voigt
Jane Apple Harmony France Angela DeMarco
Tim Andrews Eric Burgher Anthony Venturini

Typically when you have an understudy in the role you can kind of tell where they can improve their performance, particularly when they are with the original cast members and sometimes with other understudies… however with this particular understudy performance, in general, the understudy cast knocked it out of the ballpark.

So why see the understudy performance? Simple… my friends and I came to support a friend of mine for a professional gig that meant a lot to him and his wife. How could you not want to support a friend that spent his lifetime to this point trying to balance building his own theatre company as well as trying to pursue his own professional acting career?

But before I go more into the performances let’s talk about the show itself. First the synopsis from the Profiles Theatre Website:

Profiles Theatre’s Midwest premiere of Sweet and Sad by Richard Nelson opens the company’s 2012-2013 season. Sweet and Sad, directed by Joe Jahraus and featuring Co-Artistic Director Darrell W. Cox, is now playing through October 7, 2012. Performances are held at Profiles newest venue, The Main Stage, 4139 N. Broadway.

With Sweet and Sad, Tony Award-winning playwright Richard Nelson continues his series of plays exploring the immediate present as well as the ever-changing state of the nation. Over Sunday brunch on the tenth anniversary of 9/11, the members of the Apple Family finds themselves talking about loss, remembrance and the family struggle to maintain its moral equilibrium in a world that no longer reflects its values.

Wait? “Series of Plays”? Indeed… it would appear that Sweet and Sad is the second of a series of plays by playwright: Richard Nelson (the first being That Hopey Changey Thing). This series of plays surrounds the Apple Family as they get together first for Election Night in the first play and in the current play the anniversary of 9/11.
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Review: Prufrock Productions’ Equus

Show: EQUUS
Written by: Peter Shaffer 		Location: Vero Voce
Director: Bill Barry Jr

Anyone that lives in the western suburbs of Chicago would know that Saint Charles is a hell of a hike for those of us that prefer to live closer to I-294 or I-355… so when a friend asked if I would be willing to accompany him to see a friend of his in this particular production I had to take a moment to think about it.

Why? Because the drive, naturally. I had no qualms about the show, casts, or production itself… but the drive was definitely a negative. Upon arrival however, my friend and I were looking forward to viewing such an intense show that really very few community groups would even consider as part of their repertoire.

From those that had the pleasure to see the show far earlier than I had, had nothing but praise for the production, so naturally I had high hopes… needless to say the cast and the production team did not disappoint. Prufrock Productions created a relatively new theatre group: Industrial Strength Theatre. From their online blog:

Finally, the bored [board] created industrial strength theatre, a not for profit, non-Equity, professional theatre group in DuPage County, whose main purpose is promoting education and exposure to the theatre arts by performing in the suburbs what is commonly called “Chicago storefront theatre”, producing the edgier works that are rarely given voice in those communities. The founding members are Bill Barry Jr (artistic director), Dennis Brown, Lisa Savegnago and Jennifer Skidgel.

Equus is more recently known as the production that had a little known movie star (Daniel Radcliffe) in the lead as the young 17-year old stable boy whose love for horses eventually led him to blind six horses in a fit of violent passion. From the original press release in regards to the production:

Dr. Martin Dysart, a child psychiatrist, is confronted with Alan Strang, a boy who has blinded six horses in a violent fit of passion. This very passion is as foreign to Dysart as the act itself. To the boy’s parents it is a hideous mystery; Alan has always adored horses. To Dysart, it is a psychological puzzle that leads both doctor and patient to a complex and disturbingly dramatic confrontation. This international success reached new acclaim in London and on Broadway when revived in 2008. Director Bill Barry Jr and members of industrial strength theatre lead the audience on this journey into the mind of a young man, whose passion and worship makes the examiner question his own life’s meaning.

The stellar casts include:

CHARACTER ACTOR
Dr. Martin Dysart Dennis Brown
Alan Strang David Rodriguez
Hesther Salomon Susan O’Byrne
Dora Strang Dawn Harkins
Frank Strang Ken Schaefer
Jill Mason Jennifer Torchia
Harry Dalton Steve Blount
Nugget/Horseman Michael Hab
Nurse Carly Vadnais

Needless to say, I was impressed with this production of Equus…
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Endeavors: “A Piece of My Heart” by Shirley Lauro

Recently I was asked to participate in a production of “A Piece of My Heart”. I had other plans and ideas, other productions I wanted to audition for: but once I knew more of the story and the characters I realized that this was one of those stage productions that I would ultimately regret turning down.

From Shirley’s webpage about this stage play:

The true stories of six courageous women sent to Vietnam and their struggle to make sense of a war that irrevocably changed them and a nation that shunned them. A work with the music and soul of a tumultuous era in our history.

Also from the Samuel French website:

This is a powerful, true drama of six women who went to Vietnam: five nurses and a country western singer booked by an unscrupulous agent to entertain the troops. The play portrays each young woman before, during, and after her tour in the war-torn nation and ends as each leaves a personal token at the memorial wall in Washington.

Before I go on… typically I would not talk about any productions that I have been a part of because by that time I would have a very biased view of the production that I would be able to give a reasonable objective view. However, after the first read through and the first rehearsal I felt that it is necessary to write my thoughts and feelings down about this production else it might overwhelm me… it is that deep and thought provoking… right up my alley.

So for the sake of keeping this as objective as possible I will not mention the remainder of the cast, production team or where this production is going to take place… if you are interested in knowing more about this production you could message me directly from my personal Facebook Page or send me a tweet and I will provide the information. But for the purposes of this blog post I just won’t place any bias on this script and story.

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Review: Wheaton Drama’s Broadway Ballot (Act Two only!)

Show: BROADWAY BALLOT Location: Wheaton Drama
Director: Craig Gustafson

After my whirlwind weekend getaway up north in Minocqua, Wisconsin… I drove straight south back home and realized that if I pushed it, I would make it to see a few of my theatre friends at their Broadway Ballot. Granted I ended up missing the first Act (which had a few shows that I really wanted to see) but seeing the second act provided songs from shows that I am not typically a fan of, but now I would be kind of curious to see.

Below are all the songs that were featured in the second act of the Broadway Ballot at Wheaton Drama. What Wheaton Drama did was put on a kind of revue of a vast variety of Broadway songs from a variety of musicals and asked the audience to decide which shows they would love to see or not care to see at all. Then these ballots are tabulated and presented to the Wheaton Drama monthly meeting and from there they may use the data to decide what musicals to present for future seasons.

Regardless if the data would be used or not, in the end it was a fun revue / production and it helped bring in donations and dollars to the theatre group for their future productions. So all in all a win-win situation for an outsider looking in (aka myself).

From what I understand from those that were part of the production there were twenty-two performers who were singing twenty-six songs and they only had eleven rehearsals to do it. Now coming from someone that has been thrown into the thick of things a week before Opening weekends (including Shakespeare)… I can honestly say that I was expecting nothing less than fun, laughter, and entertainment and this group definitely delivered.

Taking a look at the official Ballot the revue is comprised of songs taken from a vast variety of shows: traditional and non-traditional, well and lesser known. A nice mixed bag with something for everyone to enjoy.
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Review: Il Divo & Orchestra In Concert World Tour – Chicago Stop

On a whim I decided to purchase a ticket to see Il Divo & Orchestra in Concert World Tour for the first of their two night stay in Chicago. Personally I have been a fan of Il Divo since their self-titled first album back in 2004, like most other women that fell in love with the group over the years the one song that caught my attention back then was the Spanish cover of Unbreak My Heart as sung by Toni Braxton: Regresa a Mi.

Still so good and dare I say it probably even better live. The staging for their current world tour is very similar to their DVD concert Live in London.

For that particular number the men dressed down a wee bit from their normal full Armani suits and serenaded the crowd… but one of the songs that they opened with was their rendition of Come What May from Moulin Rouge.

Their music repetoire to me appears to stretch across a vast variety of styles and songs, going from balladic pop (like Unbreak My Heart and Unchained Melody) to musical theatre (Impossible Dream, Somewhere), Latin / dance (La Vida Sin Amor) to other popera songs (Time to Say Goodbye). Their latest album and tour set list also largely reflects their expanding repetoire though if I were honest I would have liked to have heard more songs / music in the vein of the Latin / dance song: La Vida Sin Amor. However, this quartet isn’t known for their Latin roots, but rather for their romantic classical sound so I can’t complain too much since that is the sound that drew me to them in the first place. What was another major draw for me? The fact that not all of their songs was in English, in fact the majority of their covers are done in other languages be it Italian, Spanish, or French (as some of the primaries) which is a reflection of the international feel of this group (David is from the United States; Carlos is from Espana; Sebastian is known as the Frenchman in the group while Urs is Swiss).

Taking a look at the released set list for the current World Tour:

ACT ONE ACT TWO
Come What May
Dove L’Amore
Adagio
Nella fantasia
Medley (La Vida Sin Amor / Ti Amero / Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman / Angelina)
Don’t Cry For Me Argentina
Everytime I Look At You
Passera
Unchained Melody
My Way 		Senza Parole
Melanconia
Si Tu Mi Amas
Mama
Hallelujah
Crying
Ven A Mi
Regressa Mi
Por Que Tu Me Amas
Somewhere

There have been a few changes and adaptations from this original set list but the majority of the songs are correct. Il Divo balanced some of the songs from their newest album with plenty of old favorites from their previous four albums. They went through the entirety of the spectrum of music while staying true to themselves as artists and performers. They are entertainers in the same vein as the boy bands or pop princesses from the turn of the century but they entertain in their own way that just brings the audience and fans back for more.
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Comparison: Theatre-on-the-Hill’s Back to the 80s (Adjusted Song List)

Earlier in the summer, Theatre-on-the-Hill put on a production of Back to the 80s. In every production that I have seen thus far there has been some adjustments and changes between the original song list and the final song list that was listed in the program. Below is a table of all the songs that were in the original production versus what was listed in the program.

If there are no changes to the song then there will be no notes 😉

Song Title Original Artist Notes
ACT ONE
Wake Me Up Before You Go Go Wham!
Kids In America Kim Wilde
Girls Just Want To Have Fun Cyndi Lauper
Footloose Kenny Loggins
Mickey Toni Basil
Video Killed the Radio Star The Buggles
Believe It or Not Peter Cetera Song not included in final song list in program.
Let’s Hear It For The Boy Deniece Williams
I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) The Proclaimers
You Give Love A Bad Name Bon Jovi Song not included in final song list in program, however was a part of the production.
Man In The Mirror Michael Jackson
ACT TWO
Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now Starship
Love Shack The B-52s
Total Eclipse of the Heart Bonnie Tyler
Walking On Sunshine Katrina and the Waves
Get Outta My Dreams
(Get Into My Car) 		Billy Ocean Song not included in final song list in program. Only the intro of the song was used.
Centerfold J. Geils Band
Lost in Your Eyes Debbie Gibson Song not included in final song list in program.
Never Gonna Give You Up Rick Astley
Material Girl Madonna
Don’t Worry, Be Happy Bobby McFerrin
Come on Eileen Dexy’s Midnight Runners Song not included in final song list in program.
(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life Bill Medley /
Jennifer Warnes

Review: Geneva Underground Playhouse’s Assassins

Show: ASSASSINS
Music and Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim
Book: John Weidman 		Location: Geneva Underground Playhouse
Director: Craig Gustafson
Music Director: Kathleen Dooley

Not long ago I went with a friend to see Geneva Underground Playhouse’s latest foray into musical theatre: Stephan Sondheim’s Assassins.

Set up as a revue-style show placed in a carnival style game of “Shoot a President”, this musical goes through the motivations of a fraction of the men and women how have either successfully or attempted to assassinate a President of the United States.

The musical being written in the 1980s/1990s, the most recent of the assassination attempts in the musical would be that of Gerald Ford, while the first would be that of Abraham Lincoln. Below is a list of the assassins whose motivations are explored in the show:
Successful Assassins
– John Wilkes Booth: assassin of President Abraham Lincoln
– Charles Guiteau: assassin of President James Garfield
– Leon Czolgosz: assassin of President William McKinley
– Lee Harvey Oswald: assassin of President John F. Kennedy
Failed Assassination Attempts
– Giuseppe Zangara: attempted assassin of President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt
– Samuel Byck: attempted assassin of President Richard Nixon
– John Hinckley: attempted assassin of President Ronald Reagan
– Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme: attempted assassin of President Gerald Ford
– Sara Jane Moore: attempted assassin of President Gerald Ford

Anyway… enough of the history-ish lesson. Let’s get to the show…
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