Andrew Adelsberger as Garfield assassin Charles Guiteau and Katie McManus as Ford shooter SaraJane Moore (Photo by Lock &Company)
As we find ourselves in another deadly cycle of American rage, leave it to Stephen Sondheim to resonate with the era—in song. NextStop’s production of Assassins finds new echoes for this tumultuous period.
First produced Off-Broadway in 1990, the controversial Tony-award winning musical, with music and lyrics by Sondheim and a book by John Weldman, revolves around a violent carnival game led by a barker who invites participants to solve their problems by killing a president. This sets up a singing rogue’s gallery of infamous murderers and would-be killers, and in at least one example, “The Ballad of Booth,” a single assassin practically demands an entire musical for himself.
“Every now and then, the country goes a little wrong,” croons a twangy Balladeer, here to sell the story of John Wilkes Booth as a mere blip in the triumphant history of America. But Lincoln’s killer protests, “I have given my life for one act, you understand? Do not let history rob me of its meaning.” He stirringly sings of defiantly slaying a tyrant but contradicts his professed nobility with a vile, racist rant.
Assassins isn’t a show for those who like their history packaged neatly with a bow. It may not romanticize the stories of its criminals, but it doesn’t dismiss them or minimize their frustrations. This is complicated stuff, and NextStop offers embellishments that make its production uniquely effective.
For one, they’ve cast the dynamic Mackenzie Newbury as the sinister carnival Proprietor (a role traditionally played by a man), and she brings sizzle and an undercurrent of sex and temptation to the role. In a nice touch, popcorn and cotton candy is passed out to the audience as they approach the carnival-inspired set. Gunshots, an unsettling constant, are produced through various contrasting sound effects, some loud and jarring and others a mere click, keeping the audience on edge. Finally, this production showcases the rich vocals of Andrew Adelsberger as Guiteau (President Garfield’s killer), the impeccable comic timing of Katie McManus as Sara Jane Moore (who shot at President Ford), and Bobby Libby as an eerie, smug Booth.
A fascinating but flawed musical, Assassins inevitably drags despite its short run time. Reagan’s attempted assassin Samuel Byck is given not one but two rambling monologues into his tape recorder, which falter despite Alex Zavistovich’s easy, working-class performance. And while the ballad “Unworthy of Your Love,” sung by Manson follower and Ford shooter Squeaky Fromme, may be a hilarious concept, Jaclyn Young needs more vocal power to sell it.
For better or worse, the different productions of Assassins that I’ve seen over the years are each timely in their own way. In the era of Trump, even a throwaway line about the NFL cuts deeper and lands strangely.Time and again, the play drives home the naive danger of the American dream. The deadly cycle of hope, entitlement, disillusionment, and rage plays out just as it does on the nightly news—but hummable.
Assassins runs through Nov. 19 at NextStop in Herndon. Tickets ($25-60) are available online.
