SCR’s “All The Way” a masterful piece of show business mixed with politics

LBJ was a larger than life guy. Everything he did was BIG. He stood 6’3”, one inch shorter than Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln was the 16^th president and Johnson the 36^th.  Both stood for civil rights of the ‘Negro’ and both went against the grain of their political parties.

One hundred and three years separated their presidencies. One was elected during the Civil war in 1861 and was assassinated in 1865 four years and one day into his second term. Vice President Johnson became the ‘accidental’ President after President John Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, barely past his one thousand days in office.

Why is this an important comparison? For over one hundred and fifty years, The United States of America has been and still is fighting the Civil War. The Blacks in America are still being shafted and the Civil Rights Act of 1968 that was signed into law by Lyndon Baines Johnson is still being pecked at by those that ‘want their country back’, especially now after the first African-American president was elected a little less than eight years ago.

Taking a large swath of historical fact and putting pen to it was the task given to playwright Robert Schenkkan. He was commissioned by the Oregon Shakespeare Festival to write a play about Johnson. He then went on to write a two- play cycle about the 36^th president of the United States, “All The Way” (2012) that was first performed at the Angus Bowmer Theatre on July 25, 2012 and “The Great Society that was published in (2014).

Yours truly was able to catch the first in that cycle, “All The Way” in a memorable production at South Coast Repertory Theatre under the deft direction of Marc Masterson. Hugo Armstrong plays the master negotiator and arm-twisting manipulator, Lyndon Johnson. He looks like Johnson (prosthetic nose and ears) ambles like Johnson sounds like Johnson and the boots serve as another reminder. Holly Poe Durbin designed the 1963 outfits.

Armstrong shows all the insecurities, ambitions, self-serving, crude and vulgar personality traits Johnson has been noted for. His consensus building abilities and strong personality are a plus even though he made many enemies along the way. Armstrong, to his credit brings Johnson to life, warts and all in this superior production.

Armstrong’s mere presence is also larger than life and his accent, mannerisms and cold calculating thinking, bullying, cajoling and coercing brings the character into focus even more than expected. If I didn’t know any better, I would swear that LBJ was resurrected for this role. 

I was in my mid twenties when JFK was assassinated and remember it as clearly as I remember the birth of my first child. She was eight months old at the time and we were all glued to the TV. From the swearing in of Johnson on the Presidential Plane, with Jacqueline Kennedy looking on in her blood stained outfit, to Kennedy’s final resting place, we couldn’t take our eyes off the TV.

Hugo Armstrong as LBJ

Schenkkan’s play opens as soon as Johnson steps off the plane in Washington: “Reach out to the leadership as soon as we hit ground; I wanna talk to each and every one of ‘em. Today. Now. And so begins the pledge Johnson makes to the country that he will carry on the legacy of John Kennedy in getting a Civil Rights Act (of 1964) passed. To Senator Humphrey (JD Cullum looking and sounding very much like the Senator from Minnesota): “Did you tell that liberal crowd of yours I’m gonna out-Roosevelt Roosevelt and out -Lincoln Lincoln?”

Hugo Armstrong and JD Cullum

Whether a history wonk or a casual observer of historical events, you will be completely drawn into and held captive to Schenkkan’s three hour reenactment of events and the major and minor players that made this all come to fruition, intentionally or unintentionally.

With a strong and capable cast of no less than eighteen actors representing sixty historical figures including Sen. Everett Dirkson (Hal Landon, Jr. always in fine form), Walter Ruther of the UAW (Jeff Marlow), Stokely Carmichael, SNCC organizer, (Christian Henley), Roy Wilkins NAACP executive director (Gregg Daniel), Dr. Rev. Martin Luther King (Larry Bates), Sen. Robert Byrd, Dem. from West Virginia, Richard Russell of Georgia (Larry John Meyers), J. Edgar Hoover (Robert Curtis Brown consistent throughout) the production clips along in short scenarios and seldom lags. 

George Wallace (Jeff Marlow) shows up spreading his hate. The Rev. Ralph Abernathy (Rosney Mauger), Robert McNamara JFK’s Defense Secretary (Bo Foxworth) are all well represented and accounted for. In the second act Johnson would have to run against Wallace for president. Their little exchanges are interesting to watch play out.

Johnson calls on each and every one of them for their support and one way or another he is able to form a coalition between the northern liberals (Humphrey’s job with the promise of a vice presidency hanging over his head) and the Dixicrats (States Rights Democratic Party on the extreme end of the right wing. They hated blacks, Jews and Catholics and had as their members the KKK) that Johnson knew too well, (he was from Texas considered a southern state) until he needed favors from them.

As an FYI it was at this time in history that the Southern Democrats all literally turned against him and most became Republican. Since then the south has been lost to those conservative Dems. for years. The tides might be changing, but don’t hold your hopes too high too soon.    

Hal Landon Jr, Larry John Meyers, Bo Foxworth, Greg Daniel and William Francis McGuire

The women, while I often felt were mere window dressing included Lady Bird Johnson (Nike Doukas. She also played other women), Tracey A. Leigh was Coretta King, Lauren Wallace, Muriel Humphrey and various secretaries are all played by Lynn Gallagher. From my observation, everyone that needed to be there was. Another observation; Johnson treated Lady Bird like doo doo.     

Ralph Funicello, marking his 30^th season with SCR, used to be the go to guy in San Diego at The Old Globe. His set designs are by far some of the best and ‘All The Way’ set is no exception.

Ten or twelve pillars surround the semi circular platform with the Presidential Seal on the floor, a huge desk and chair and the all-important (green?) telephone that Johnson used as often as we would text. Each of the officials summoned was identified by projections to help us know who was who in the long list of those Johnson had to deal with and that was the entire congress and the Black coalition.

 His habit of hanging the phone up before a conversation actually ended was a trademark of Johnsons. On top is a semi circular balcony that spotlights (Jami Lee Smith) all the players as the president call on them. It is most effective. Most of the action takes place here in the Oval Office.   

Hugo Armstrong, Darin Singleton, Larry Bates, Matthew Arkin

In some of the most insightful scenes Johnson has to deal with Dr. King, Ralph Abernathy, Roy Wilkins, Stokley Carmichael and the activists from SNCC. Compromise was always on the table but when voting rights were eliminated from the bill all hell broke lose. King went on a speaking tour and Hoover taped all of King’s telephone messages trying to defame the preacher by calling him a communist and womanizer.

Each and every of those men give convincing performances true to their name. Even “Freedom Summer” in which the college aged kids, anxious to desegregate the south, in particular Michael Schwerner, Andrew Goodman and James Chaney who were shot to death in Mississippi by state officials. Black lives mattered even then.

Johnson brought Hoover into the plan to find out, pronto, what happened in Mississippi and make it right. Robert Curtis Brown is excellent in his portrayal of Hoover. He was just as dislikeable in the play as he was in real life. I could go on but suffice it to say, I was blown away by the totality and the magnitude of this show. I can’t remember sitting through a three -hour production and barely blinking for fear of missing something.

Take my word for it it’s a master piece of theatre, but head up there anyway to see for yourself.

See you at the theatre.

Dates: Through Oct. 2^nd 

Organization: South Coast Repertory Theatre

Phone: 714-708-5555

Production Type: Historical Drama

Where: 655 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa, CA

Ticket Prices: Start at $22.00

Web: scr.org

Venue: Segerstrom Stage

Photo Deborah Robinson