In what producers are calling a “provocative and zeitgeisty” new musical, The Ghost of John McCain, with a book by Scott Elmegreen and score by Drew Fornarola, will get an invitation-only industry reading in New York this week.
Producers Quixote Productions and Max Fose announced the reading today in a press release that describes the musical as “a unique psychological exploration of power, rivalry, and the human condition.” Oh, and it features a character called “Donald Trump’s brain.”
Directed by Marya Mazor and featuring Take Me Out Broadway actor Ken Marks as the late Senator from Arizona, the reading, set for Thursday, also includes Hudson Loverro as Donald Trump, Major Attaway as Donald Trump’s brain and Others, Ann Harada as Karen and Others, Andrew Polk as Lindsey Grahan and Others, and Angie Schworer as Hillary Clinton and Others.
The official synopsis: “In Ghost of John McCain, the late Vietnam War hero-turned-senator awakens, horrified to find himself back in captivity, in the afterlife, inside the mind of Donald Trump. As a prisoner of Trump’s war to win the approval of an establishment that Trump both reveres and scorns, McCain must fight for his freedom by engaging in a high-stakes debate over life, legacy, and American values. As McCain navigates the surreal landscape within Trump’s consciousness, a ‘Greek Chorus’ of iconic public figures, including Hillary Clinton, Roy Cohn, Eva Peron, Teddy Roosevelt, Robert Jordan, and Lindsey Graham, rebel against the President’s relentless demands for affirmation.”
Elmegreen and Fornarola are best known for their well-reviewed Off Broadway 2016 comedy-drama Straight about a bisexual romantic triangle.
