Intiman's Abe Lincoln as a Rough Draft

As someone who's read more books on Abraham Lincoln than I have books of the Bible, let me say how much I'm rooting for Intiman's production of Abe Lincoln in Illinois.

Lincoln's rise from dirt-poor child to itinerant handyman to U.S. President, with stops in-between as a suicidal griever, duelist, and amateur poet, is more than a political triumph--it's a human one. Any attempt to spread Lincoln's story gets a push from me.

Last night Town Hall hosted a dramatic reading of the Lincoln/Douglas debates, with the leads from Intiman's upcoming production playing the respective oratorical contestants.

As Stephen Douglas, longtime Seattle actor R. Hamilton Wright brilliantly captured "The Little Giant's" power and pomposity.

As Abraham Lincoln, New York actor Erik Lochtefeld has a little farther to go, but the play doesn't open until October 2. The setting was a lecture hall, not a stage. And I'm a huge Lincoln snob.

That said: If I'm directing, I'd like to see Lochtefeld capture Lincoln's down-to-earthyness a little better. The script even references it; Douglas's "debate" speech in the play notes the contrast between Douglas' more traditional fiery oratory, and Lincoln's more natural speaking style; he used anecdotes and jokes to put his (often illiterate) audience at ease. Lochtefeld came across as professorial, not the right tone when playing a character who had less than a year of formal schooling. 

I'm sure makeup, costume and another week of rehearsal will iron out the kinks. It's a fine line Lochtefeld has to toe--get too homespun and you sound like a Mark Twain impersonator, not enough and suddenly your doing John Edwards. I wish him luck, and look forward to seeing the finished product.

ADDENDUM FOR NO REASON--LINCOLN AS ANTI-DOMESTIC-ABUSE VIGILANTE:

From Michael Burlingame's recent (and excellent) two-volume Lincoln biography, a story of how Lincoln dealt with a notorious Springfield domestic abuser. After the man ignored Lincoln's warning to stop hitting his wife, this happened, a Lincoln friend remembered:

"It was late at night and we dragged the wretch to an open space back of a store building, stripped him of his shirt and tied him to a post. Then we sent for his wife, and arming her with a good stout switch bade her to 'light in.' ... When the culprit had been sufficiently punished, Lincoln game the signal 'Enough,' and he was released; we helped him on with his shirt and he shambled ruefully toward his home. For his sake we tried to keep all knowledge of the affair from the public; but the lesson had its effect, for if he ever again molested his wife we never found it out."