A few weeks ago at Ford’s Theatre we saw Shenandoah, starring Scott Bakula as the patriarch of a Virginia family reluctantly drawn into the Civil War. I thought it was well done and entertaining, and Scott Bakula was perfect in the role. It even had me swelling with pride, momentarily, for my adopted state of Vuh-gin-ya (which of course I had to pronounce with a Southern accent for days after, mimicking the characters in the show). I hadn’t known anything about Shenandoah (or the movie it’s based on) going in, so the book and score were new to me; my only quibble is with the plot: a couple of points in the second act seemed a bit forced or uneven. Still, it’s an engaging show–and eerily reflective of America’s contemporary wartime situation, as it probably was when it originally appeared on Broadway in 1975–and what better place to have it than Ford’s Theatre? The set is dominated by a huge picture frame with the inscription “The Nation Mourns,” and you can’t help but look up to the right and see the box where President Abraham Lincoln was shot on this day in 1865, as if it were an extension of the set.
Scott Bakula appears in the lead role through Apr. 30; Brian Sutherland then takes over through the end of the run, May 21.
» Previously: Last year we went to Ford’s Theatre to see the excellent Deaf West Theatre production of Big River. Both Shenandoah and Big River were directed and choreographed by Jeff Calhoun.