American Iliad

Donald Freed, a rare writer of political drama, returns to the subject of Richard Nixon, a character whose dark, twisted soul he unraveled in a previous one-man play, Secret Honor. This time around, Freed works on a larger canvas, one filled with portraits of such personages as J. Edgar Hoover, Clyde Tolson, JFK, Marilyn Monroe, Black Elk and Horatio Alger. The play takes place in Nixon's mind during the last 3 or 4 minutes of his life and is a reverie, a reflection, on America in the last century. Freed paints Nixon (Al Rossi, in a memorable performance) as a kind of Everyman, a second-rate but essentially decent human being keenly aware of his shortcomings as man and politician, who, before he dies, only wishes to discover how, where and why America went wrong.

Mixing fantasy, satire, song 'n dance and history, American Iliad journeys back and forth over the last hundred years in its desperate quest for revelation and truth. Freed spends nearly three hours on this head trip, parts of which come off as provocative and exciting, other parts of which seem repetitive and annoying (particularly when Nixon tries to play the innocent). For Nixon (read Freed), the 20th century's democratic promise and greatness was represented by the Chautauga Movement, which in the early 1900s combined summer fairs with political lectures and debates, medical lectures, poetry readings, musical concerts and civics lessons. Corny and folksy as these gatherings were, they were the highpoint of democracy, run by the people for the people, without corporate or government sponsorship, devoid of drugs, alcohol, profanity and violence. Nixon was taken to Chautauga as a small boy, and his memories of it are brought to vivid life by director Gobetti and her large, multi-talented cast (many of whom play 3-4 parts).

For me, the Nixon/Freed position is spurious. A country whose origins were rooted in slavery and genocide was a flawed democracy long before 1900. That caveat aside, I still found myself enjoying much of American Iliad, particularly the scenes between Nixon and JFK (David Clennon), who, we are asked to believe, is alive and well on his National Enquirer desert island. JFK's thirst for power, and his wealth and arrogance, make him -- and not Nixon -- the villain of the piece. There are other surprises in the disjointed, rambling but often compelling narrative: J. Edgar Hoover (Travis Michael Holder) as a fussy homebody; Black Elk (Marco Pelaez) as an eloquent spokesman for humanity. Full of surprises and quirks, Freed's latest play maintains his reputation as a theatrical provocateur of the highest order.