The Barn Theatre will close its season with an original play by Brendan Ragotzy called "Our American Assassin," running Sep 2-7. The historical drama focuses on one of America's most pivotal moments - the assassination of President Lincoln on Good Friday, 1865. Brendan and actor Luke Ragotzy, who plays assassin John Wilkes Booth, join Cara Lieurance for a conversation about the new work.
"It really focuses on that night. And then the 12-day manhunt after the fact," explains Brendan Ragotzy. The play also explores the broader conspiracy, including the resolution with other conspirators involved in the plot.
"Dad actually gave me a really great analogy for prepping for this role — it's essentially like if Tom Cruise had bumped off a president. That's the level of stardom that this actor had at the time," Luke Ragotzy says of Booth's celebrity status. "John Wilkes Booth was from a very, very prevalent acting family," says Brendan Ragotzy. Booth's father, Junius Brutus Booth, "was considered to be the finest Shakespearean actor of his time," and John Wilkes himself was earning "$20 grand a year" during the Civil War - making him extraordinarily wealthy for the time.
Tickets for the limited run of "Our American Assassin" are available at the Barn Theatre website.
This interview was summarized by Claude AI and edited by the author
