To Thee We Sing
I stumbled upon this play during my first year teaching a Theatre Appreciation style class in 2013 at the University of Southern Mississippi. It struck me odd that a musical had won a Pulitzer Prize, not a Tony or any other theatre award. In making the award, the Pulitzer Prize Committee said: "The award seems unusual, but the play is unusual. Not only is it coherent and well-knit enough to be considered a play, aside from the music, but it is a biting satire on American politics and the public attitude toward them." How relevant this 1930's satire felt amidst the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) rollout, a government shutdown (October 2013), the NSA Snowden Scandal, and the Gun Control Debate post-Sandy Hook. On the heels of the contentious 2016 presidential election, I thought, 'This would be the perfect year to do this play.' Then again, in 2020, how could I have been so blind? This is the perfect year to do this play. But still, the circumstances and timing didn't permit me to produce the play. And here we are now, in 2024, right on the eve of an election. The public attitude towards government has never been more apathetic, cynical, or blindly loyal. The need to highlight the flaws, corruption, and absurdity of our politicians has never been more needed. God's timing in everything. We can use sharp, cutting humor to criticize both the American political system and the way the public perceives it. The "P.P. Committee" continues, "Musicals are always popular, and by injecting genuine satire and point into them, a large public is reached. The spirit and style of the play are topical and popular, but of course the work is all the more spontaneous for that, and has a freshness and vitality which are both unusual and admirable. The play is genuine, and it is felt the prize could not serve a better purpose than to recognize such work." #topical #popular #spontaneous #fresh #vital #unusual #admirable #genuine
Bringing a satire to life is challenging, because if we do our job right, everybody either loves it or everybody hates it. My goal was to stay apolitical, and let the 'bite' of the satire go where it needed to go. I was afraid if we set it in contemporary times, our political entrenchments would prevent the flow of the point. Staying set in the 30s, gives us just enough detachment to let us laugh and think to ourselves, 'how ridiculous and yet how relevant the behaviors of these farcical politicians!' When FULTON says: "Yes! That's what we need—an issue. Something that everybody is interested in, and that doesn't matter... Something the party can stand on." How relevant this seems! Politicians conjure issues that don't matter one whit, standing on sand, just to get everybody interested in the things that keep them in power. The comedy serves as an escape, allowing us to laugh at the wackiness of our politicians and those who choose to follow them. However, just behind the pratfalls and parody, you will find a sharp critique waiting for you. Laughter is the best medicine. And in this case a spoon full of sugar helps the pointed satirical medicine go down. I hope this show brings you to tears. Just know that when the satire subsides, your belly hurts, and your eyes are watering, this comedy has done its job.
So, Drew? What are we supposed to do? Where should we put our focus? Should we not love our country? Is it lost? Of WHOM, or WHO, should we sing? "My country 'tis of thee… of thee I sing." This country is made up of all of us. Behind our fake/romanticized notions of democracy and the ideals of our country, the performative nature of political campaigns… are real people. Real people who love real things. People take advantage of this part of our nature. Distracting us from the real Truth. Getting us swept up on issues that don't matter. The Truth is simple. We must love. Love must sweep this country. We must love God. We must love others. When we put love as our priority and all of the challenges that go with it, we can find our way back to singing: My country, 'tis of thee… Let's put love in the White House.
