In addition to writing mystery and suspense novels, I've written and performed a one-man play based on the life of Ben Franklin. I'm gearing up to do performances of the play this summer (right around the 4th of July).
While I've done the play before, I've been in the process of brushing up on the lines and I find new bits of wisdom in Franklin's words from 250 years ago. (He was born in 1706 and died in 1790.) We just passed his 310th birthday.
He was quite a character in every sense of the word. I can't think of anyone in history who achieved success in so many different fields as Franklin. I've been reflecting on the process I went through in selecting the material to show the arc of Franklin's life and to give the audience that sense of his accomplishments.
The truth is that one cannot possibly sum up a man's life in an hour and a half. I can only give audiences a glimpse. I can also hope that their exposure to the play will make them curious to learn more about the man who many consider the "Grandfather" of our country.
I always try to incorporate time for a "talk back" following performances, since it gives audiences an opportunity to ask questions. It also give me a chance to mention several of his accomplishments that I did not have time to include in the play.
Doing these one-man play performances is something that I could not have imagined myself doing for most of my life. But, as I like to say, "Life's a Mystery."
What fun! I wish I could see the program. There's so much about Franklin that's apocryphal, kind of like all those Mark Twain quotes he neither wrote nor uttered. How do you decide what's for real and what's legend? Or do you just go with it?
ReplyDeleteAnne, Thanks for your comment. The play was researched and uses material directly written by Franklin (for example, from his autobiography and from letters, writings, and historical record). I found in Internet research a few quotes attributed to Franklin, but which he never made. While they might have sounded good - or given the audience a laugh - I didn't use them. Thanks again for reading the blog and your thoughtful question.
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