Mattie hawkinson biography of george washington
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Displaying items by tag: Mattie Hawkinson
In the current political climate, where the political left and right are more divided than ever in their world view, Northlight Theatre’s The City of Conversation provides a glimpse at an elite class of Washington, DC, power players and how they charted the course of this country from behind the scenes for many decades.
The play, which opens Northlight’s 42nd season, centers on the relationships of a liberal socialite and her powerful but understated influence. The show’s title is a nod to British author Henry James’ famous view of Washington, DC, and the impact of its parlor games, and women in particular, on politics.
Written by Anthony Giardina and directed by Marti Lyons, The City of Conversation takes place in an exclusive Georgetown enclave and spans more than 30 years (from President Carter to the inauguration of President Obama) of socialite Hester Ferris’ (played by Lia D. Mortensen) political maneuverings over cocktails and posh dinners.
The play kicks off in 1979 during the twilight, and what Hester calls the malaise, of Carter’s term. She is hosting a very important party for her longtime, married partner Senator Chandler Harris (played by Tim Decker). Through the power of gentle persuasion, filtered through a catered m
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Walnut Street Theatre.
Scrutiny Is Fine, Not Vilification
Over 40 years, I’ve enjoyed countless laudatory pieces in American Theatre on the work of artists and theatres across the globe. I even wrote a couple of them. So I was astonished to see a real live hit piece about the Walnut Street Theatre (“Is It Finally Time for Change at Walnut Street Theatre?”), where I served as associate director under Bernard Havard many years ago.
Now, to be clear, I believe that those of us who’ve run theatres deserve (and receive) scrutiny and criticism from all comers. We all have our flaws. But I also believe the sordid insinuations and condescension grounding this article depict a culture entirely unrecognizable to thousands and thousands of artists, craftspeople, technicians, and administrators who’ve been employed by Bernard over the years. As I was reading, I fully expected to discover that he’d been accused of biting the heads off chickens.
Using both a lack of basic due diligence and a cherry-picking of facts and viewpoints, the writer mixes truth, hearsay, and grudges to conjure his desired despot. As just one example, he disparages Bernard for being paid handsomely in 2018-19. Forty years of leadership aside, a few simple Google searches reveal that the Walnut boas
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