This week, Stage of Life Theatre Company continues its run of the 1990 dramatic-comedy “Assassins,” and it very well may be one of the best shows I have ever had the pleasure of viewing. It is witty, irreverent and hauntingly relevant, especially in our modern political climate.
The musical follows a cast of (you guessed it) historical assassins who all share one common goal: to kill the president. The play centers upon the framing device of a peculiar, nameless, aged man who posits that those who are ignored by, wronged by or just plain upset with America should do that one simple thing: kill the president. One-by-one, our assassins take their guns, and their seats, in a mythical place between time and space.
Throughout the remaining runtime, the assassins bare their hearts (and arms) as they sing about how moral or necessary or justified their murder of the commander of chief must be. These characters range from John Wilkes Boothe — an eloquent lost-causer with a penchant for self-grandization who is so caught up within his own ideological fanaticism that he has constructed a reality where he is a hero — to Charles Guiteau, a Joker-esque madman that comes off more like a one-victim serial killer than an assassin, to Squeaky Fromme — a member of the Manson family who hopes her presidential murder will give “Charlie” (as she calls him) a platform to spread his ideas while acting as her witness.
These oddball characters, alongside many more bona fide or would-be presidential assassins, manage to tell a deeply engaging story about the nature of the American experience. It’s a story of anger, depression, hate and nihilism which all wraps into a deeply satisfying and modern sentiment that, of course, all leads back to that one nation-shaking event: killing the president.
The show is beautifully produced, with a dialed-in and highly skilled lighting team, alongside equally impressive costuming and sound. The lighting cues hit, elevating otherwise less hard-hitting scenes to a Broadway-level impact. The costuming allows each character to feel firmly within their time period, while further informing us about their overall “deal” with as little as a glance. The sound is clear, crisp and punctual, giving the show’s many gunshots their “oomf” and musical numbers a real major-league feel.
Furthermore, the actors themselves imbue the script with the deep humanity that a story like this needs, somehow turning these larger-than-life figures into someone you can maybe not agree with, but viscerally understand. Everything, from their physical actions to their intonations to their minute facial expressions, shows a deep and rich character, even if they’re not delivering much more than exposition. This shines especially within our titular assassins, but the nameless figure as well as the incredible ensemble also make acting choices that feel real, personal and more impactful than they have any right to be.
In conclusion, “Assassins” delivers a biting critique on what it means to be an American, while also having enough wit, charm and professionalism to make that pill a bit easier to swallow. So, this reporter would highly recommend you catch the closing weekend of “Assassins” and walk away with a few more laughs, a few more ideas, and maybe, just maybe, a newfound goal. I’m kidding, of course. Political violence is in no way endorsed by this newspaper.
More information about “Assassins,” including showing times and ticket availability can be found at www.soltheatrecompany.org