‘Oh, Mary!’ Is a Perfectly Fun Night at the Theater

And, starting in June, it’ll be a fun night out on Broadway!

Sometimes, a theatrical production about history educates us, showing us aspects about a popular figure or event we may not have known about before. Cole Escola’s “Oh, Mary!” surely shows us some aspects of Mary Todd Lincoln we haven’t seen before; however, that’s likely because they’re completely hilarious, whimsical, and a little ways away from the truth.

In this version, Mary Todd Lincoln is a dramatic, unstable menace who has dreams of being a cabaret star — not likely a description you’ll find in a textbook.

While the show’s marketing describes “Oh, Mary,” as a dark comedy that examines Mary Todd Lincoln’s life “through the lens of an idiot,” the production is closer to a work of genius. In all of its silliness, it’s clear that Escola, the show’s writer and star, has plotted a well-thought-out, whirl-wind journey that subverts everything we thought we knew about the Lincolns — but also theater etiquette and humor.

From the moment she runs on stage in a giant black gown (by Holly Pierson) and ridiculous wig (by Leah J. Loukas), Mary Todd Lincoln is a sly troublemaker that turns the idea of what a “lady” should be on its head. Her husband (Conrad Ricamora), as he’s referred to in the program, keeps telling her he’s trying to win a war against the South, to which Mary consistently replies, “of WHAT?” — and gets a laugh every. single. time. In Escola’s fantasy, this historic couple is dysfunctional, to put it mildly. Abraham Lincoln is absolutely fed up with Mary, who refuses to sober up and not ruin everyone else’s lives. She’s distracting him from his other dreams, not only winning the war but lusting after his assistant (Tony Macht — yes, in this version, Abe is very much gay). 

From the signs in the front of the theater, we can sense what’s going to happen — we’re warned of smoke, haze, and ONE SINGLE GUNSHOT! Yet the beginning of the show drops us right in the middle of an argument between Abe and Mary, no theater-going in sight. While this means the first few scenes are a little harder for us to grasp onto, we’re quickly made comfortable by endless jokes and hijinks that Mary throws our way. One moment, she’s drinking paint thinner, throwing up, then drinking that throw up. The next, she’s expressing zero remorse for throwing her chaperone, Louise (Bianca Leigh), down the stairs. 

The front of the Lucille Lortel Theatre.

Even if the chaos is just building up these characters, rather than seeming to advance any sort of plot, it’s funny and entertaining enough that we don’t ask for much more. It helps that the show keeps its pacing too, both in script and production. The jokes are so unexpected and quick that if you’re not careful, you’ll laugh too hard at one and miss the set up for another. Each scene is punctuated with dramatically fast lights up.

Eventually, a motivator comes in: Mary needs something to distract her, and Abe has decided that he’ll get her an acting teacher. Mary’s teacher (James Scully) sets in motion a new side of Mary, one with more sympathetic emotions than before. Mary is quite horrible at acting, which Escola plays deliciously, construing Shakespearean lines in the most unconventional, twisted ways. When Mary finally gets an audition, there’s an in-front-of-the curtain scene specifically shows of Escola’s range: we get to see Mary, the part she’s trying to audition for, and a glint of nervousness, a shyness that we see less of in other scenes.

After Mary’s audition, we finally learn that Mary and Abe are going to Ford’s Theatre. Even the show’s climactic part — yes, the historic element we all know — is unexpected, a spoiler I won’t reveal because it’s too ridiculous and shocking of a moment not to see it yourself. 

That’s not where the play ends, either. Mary (and really, Escola) finally gets to have her cabaret moment — returning to her roots — decked out and accompanied by Abe’s assistant. It’s a dazzling few minutes, a perfect cherry on top to the madcap sundae

One of many captioned photos of Escola’s performance history in the lobby display, which reads, “I can’t lie, this was not a good experience for me. Some of the most disrespectful audiences I’ve ever performed for. I’ll probably never do another show at a Children’s Hospital.”

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Thanks for reading! “Oh, Mary!” is off-Broadway at Lucille Lortel Theatre in the West Village through May 12th, with very limited availability. However, the show just announced a strictly limited Broadway run (12 weeks), which starts June 26th! 

• How I found out about it: This is another one where I felt like my whole timeline was immediately talking about it, specifically on Twitter. 

• Why I went: Honestly, it seemed like a really funny, fun time! I’ve seen only a bit of Cole Escola’s work, but the reviews and popularity was enough to make me want to go. It’s an 80-minute play that’s supposed to be hilarious, which isn’t a hard sell.

• How I got tickets: Ushering! In January, I saw that the show had already started to sell out and tickets were getting expensive. I did some Googling and found that the Lucille Lortel Theatre had an usher program and signed up. When the show got another extension, I got an email with slots to usher. 

If you have any interest, RUN to get tickets — this one is selling out quickly. For Broadway, you can get tickets online, do in-person rush, or enter the online TodayTix digital lottery.