RFK: A Portrait of Robert F. Kennedy

At Main Street Theater we are currently running 2 plays that have, sadly, turned out to be incredibly timely with all that seems to be falling apart in our world:

RFK: A Portrait of Robert Kennedy and Red Hot Patriot: The Kick-A** Wit of Molly Ivins.  (The shows run in repertory, alternating days) through August 14.

“When we decided to mount these two shows about important individuals in American political life, we didn’t know just how timely and timeless their stories would be,” says Main Street Theater Founder and Artistic Director Rebecca Greene Udden.  “Of course, anyone who follows Texas Politics knows that nothing has changed since Molly Ivins covered it with such wit and insight during her time with the Texas Observer, and her commentary is just as sharp and entertaining as ever.  We chose to pair Molly’s story with Bobby Kennedy’s thinking that it would resonate with the current Presidential Election, little knowing that recent national events would put his thoughts about civil rights into such clear and powerful perspective.  Both these plays – and the individuals who inspired them – are great reminders of the impact of civic passion combined with eloquence and intelligence.”

About RFK: A Portrait of Robert F. Kennedy

By late summer, 1964, Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy was a deeply wounded man.  Still in shock and consumed with grief and guilt over the assassination of his older brother, he was at a critical juncture in his life.  The 1964 presidential election was approaching, and President Johnson, who had been dangling the possibility of the vice-presidency to RFK, finally called Kennedy over to the White House to inform him of his decision.  The result of that meeting and the subsequent direction for the next, and last, four years of his life are the focus of RFK: A Portrait of Robert Kennedy.   “Robert F Kennedy has always been a political hero of mine,” says actor Joel Sandel who plays the role.  “However, it wasn’t until I started digging into his personal history, in preparation for this play, that I was struck by what a profoundly good man he was.  His very personal rhetoric spoke to the average citizen in a way that touched the very soul of the nation.  He was also one of the rare political figures who had the ability to experience genuine ‘heart changes’ in the way he saw the world and viewed his responsibility as a citizen of the U.S. and of the world.”