Why Now? Recreating Historical Stories with Current Relevance

1865. To celebrate the end of Civil War, a victorious Abraham Lincoln goes to the theatre. Not long into the show a man walks in and shoots him. Who was he? Why did he do it? And why does it matter now?
Dudley Hinton of Simple8 looks at the parallels in the current American Political system and that of 200 years ago, have things really changed?

Dudley is an independent theatre and events producer and a writer. He produces under his own name, is co-founder of Simple8 Theatre Company, and is Producer of the Garden Museum Literary Festival. He was formerly Creative Producer at Curve and Festival Manager at the London International Mime Festival.
Dudley has co-written five plays, all with Sebastian Armesto.

First, a confession. I’ve always loved America. When I was growing up in the 80’s the USA was a place that seemed to do everything quicker, bigger and better than us. Films were released there earlier, they sold the latest walkmans before we did and they had sports which I couldn’t understand, but really wanted to play. And since becoming an adult, and living in America for a short while, I’ve come to love its contradictions, its optimism and how Americans genuinely believe in the dream their country is founded on – even if they interpret that dream in different ways.

On 13 July 2024 Thomas Matthew Crooks, a disaffected young man, tried to shoot and kill Donald Trump during a campaign rally. Two months later Ryan Wesley Routh tried the same thing on a golf course. Both fortunately failed.

In 1865, three days after the end of the Civil War, John Wilkes Booth walked into a Washington theatre during a performance of Our American Cousin and shot President Abraham Lincoln, killing him, starting a chain of assassinations and assassination attempts on American Presidents – seven in total, taking in Roosevelt, JFK and Reagan.

Seb (who co-wrote the play) and I were immediately taken by the story of Booth and Lincoln and asked ourselves two questions: why should we examine this on stage? And why now - can some strand of the story be examined in an interesting and relevant way? With the first question, the dramatic possibilities seemed clear; with a story set in the world of theatre, and the assassination taking place during a live performance.

With the second, as recent events have played themselves out – populism, the rise and fall (and potential re-rise) of Trump, the storming of the Capitol, culture wars, the ever increasing polarisation of politics, the recent assassination attempts – the answer has become increasingly clear. The more we read about Booth and Lincoln, the more it became evident that the issues that were fought over during the Civil War are the same issues being fought over today; America First, federal vs local government, racial justice, immigration, freedom. And today, just as in 1865, it’s not only a fight about a difference of opinion. Leading up to the November 2024 election, there’s a sense from both sides that if the other side were to win, the country and their way of life would be under threat. That was very much the case at the start of the Civil War.

John Wilkes Booth himself is hard to pin down, with historical interpretations varying wildly on his character and motivations. What is definitely known is he was famous actor, extremely good looking, and a white supremacist with a theatrical sense of his own importance. And just like other assassins (or would-be assassins) of US Presidents, including Thomas Matthew Crooks, he was a young disaffected male who through blind luck managed to change the course of history.

We’re not historians and a long way from experts, but we hope the play poses interesting questions rather than offers answers: why is violence a prevalent and ongoing feature of American political life? How can the ideals America is founded on – life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness – still be interpreted not only in different but completely incompatible ways? Are John Wilkes Booth and Abraham Lincoln both inevitable outcomes of a country founded on freedom and equality where anyone can be President, just as Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are?

We also hope the play is fun, fast and illuminating. We’ve tried to marry the way we approach theatre – rooted in ‘poor’ theatre with a company of actors creating much out nothing – with the world of the play, and also with America itself which is very much a communal endeavour. In our play an ensemble of seven will create the playhouses, parlours, swamps, taverns and battlefields of nineteenth Century America, complete with music played live on stage and a host of truly extraordinary characters.

We hope those who see it enjoy it – and enjoy discovering the world of Civil War America as much as we have. And perhaps like me, grow to love the bewildering country that is the USA.

Land of the Free comes to Southwark Playhouse 9 Oct - 9 Nov

If you'd like to keep up to date with all our blog posts, important and interesting stories in the worlds of theatre, arts and media, plus job ads and opportunities from our industry friends, sign up to our daily media briefing at this link.