So Your Brother Thinks He’s Abe Lincoln… How Lincolnesque!

We all that one “crazy” relative, but imagine if your brother believed he was the reincarnation of President Abraham Lincoln.

That’s the basic premise of the comedy-drama Lincolonesque now playing at Theatre on the Run in suburban Arlington, Virginia.  And it’s definitely worth seeing.

The play tells the story of Leo (Michael Innocenti), a political speech writer who’s working for the reelection of the dullest Congressman on Capitol Hill.  Facing an uphill battle for reelection, Leo turns to his one time brilliant older brother who set the political world on fire, but eventually cracked under the pressure and escaped into his own world of psychiatric madness believing he is the reincarnation of President Abraham Lincoln. 

Reduced from being the inside the Beltway whiz-kid to a humble psych ward outpatient and night time janitor, Francis (played by Peter Finnegan), believably drifts in and out of his Lincolnesque role to a point where the audience can’t determine if he’s truly delusional or just just faking it and putting everyone on.

His brother needs ideas for a speech that will revitalize the campaign and taps the talents Francis still possesses, only now in the form of President Lincoln. He reworks some of the his brother’s words (actually Abe’s speeches) to reinvent the congressman and pull him form  the position of underdog. 

Facing an uphill battle with a ballsy new female campaign manager (Susan Marie Rhea), how doubting every word he writes, Leo must keep his brother from being returned to the hospital, help win the congressman’s election and try to keep his own sanity at the same time.

Some of the dialog is both very politically relevant and very humorous.  And the ending has a great twist.  So catch Lincolnesque before it closes.

Lincolnesque
Theatre on the Run
3700 South Four Mile Run Drive
Arlington, Virginia  22206
703-228-1850

Dates & Times – Thursday–Sunday, through June 28, 2009

Tickets - $25.00, Seniors and students – $20.00 and are available online.

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Pentagon City – Blue and Yellow lines, then a 3-mile cab ride.

Parking – Limited free parking in the lot behind the theater and free street parking is available.

Images – personal collection  ©2009, Jon Rochetti 

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