★★★★ Polly Findlay’s timely production draws parallels with right wing politics in today’s America 🖋️ FionaLondonarts
John Wilkes Booth , the actor and assassin of Abraham Lincoln, weaves through the piece with evangelical charisma. Sondheim and book writer John Weidman naughtily suggest that perhaps Booth killed Lincoln to cheer himself up after a slew of bad reviews.
John Hinckley Jr , Ronald Reagan’s would-be killer, is decisively portrayed as a lonely incel obsessed by Jodie Foster. He serenades his idol in the faux-naif “Unworthy of Your Love” and his low-key drippiness is in marked contrast to the pitch-black comedy antics of Charles Manson acolyte Lynette ‘Squeaky’ Fromme and Sara Jane Moore – two more triple-namers, I note – who had Gerald Ford in their not-very-accurate sights.
At the evening’s end, Booth talks to that other infamous three-named killer Lee Harvey Oswald and explains what he sees as the difference between murder – a “tawdry little crime” – and the noble act of assassination. A giant projected roulette wheel adorned with images of various presidents intermittently fills those giant screens. When the wheel stops spinning it signals that the Commander-in-Chief is in great peril, although some episodes are easier to follow than others. I must confess that there were moments when I was unsure of who the character speaking might be and some lengthy speeches provide further challenges.
For Sondheim lovers, this show will be a prize addition to the trophy cabinet. For general fans of musical theatre, do go – but go prepared.
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