Palo Alto Players Presents ALL THE WAY

History and politics take center stage as Palo Alto Players continues its 2018-19 season with the Bay Area premiere of the Tony Award-winning play ALL THE WAY. Written by Pulitzer-Prize winning playwright Robert Schenkkan (The Kentucky Cycle), the riveting historical drama depicts "accidental president" Lyndon B. Johnson's intense first year in office as he struggles to pass the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964. ALL THE WAY is directed by Peter Allas, associate artistic director of The Beverly Hills Playhouse Acting School, and features a cast of 19 local Bay Area actors, bringing to life more than 60 historical figures including Martin Luther King, Jr., J. Edgar Hoover, and Lady Bird Johnson. ALL THE WAY runs November 2 - 18 at the Lucie Stern Theater, 1305 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto. For information or tickets, visit paplayers.org or call 650.329.0891.

It's 1963. An assassin's bullet catapults Lyndon Baines Johnson into the presidency. A Shakespearean figure of towering ambition and appetite, the charismatic, conflicted Texan hurls himself into Civil Rights legislation, throwing the country into turmoil. Alternately bullying and beguiling, he enacts major social programs, faces down opponents, and wins the 1964 election in a landslide. In Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Robert Schenkkan's vivid dramatization of LBJ's first year in office, means versus ends plays out on a broad stage canvas as politicians and civil rights leaders plot strategy and wage war. As we enter our own midterm elections and explore the political battles waged before us, ALL THE WAY reflects the power of one person and one vote to transform our country.

"I fell in love with this script when I had a chance to read it shortly after it won the Tony in 2014," says Artistic Director Patrick Klein. "It's fast-moving and incredibly layered, and tells the true story of a tough-talking commander-in-chief who muscled through legislation, against long odds, that actually did make America great. It's an interesting and all too relevant story in today's political climate."

Peter Allas makes his directorial debut at Palo Alto Players with ALL THE WAY. Allas brings over 30 years of experience directing and acting Off-Broadway, in National Tours, and regional houses including Seattle Repertory Theatre, Mason Street Theatre (SF), Zephyr Theatre and Mark Taper Forum (LA), Studio Theatre (D.C.), and Maltz Jupiter Theatre (FL). His credits also include 75 TV guest appearances (Seinfeld's calzone man, The Soprano's Salvatore da Napoli) and over 30 feature films (S.W.A.T. , Spiderman 2, My Brother Jack, and Iron Maze). His recent directorial credits include productions of Lakeboat and Reasons To Be Pretty (Firescape Theater) and Danny and The Deep Blue Sea at the Davenport Theater (NYC Off-Broadway). Allas is the associate artistic director of The Beverly Hills Playhouse Acting School.

Bay Area Equity actor Michael Monagle portrays LBJ. At Palo Alto Players, he has appeared as Billy Flynn in CHICAGO and King Arthur in Monty Python's SPAMALOT. Monagle has performed throughout the Bay Area with Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Marin Shakespeare Company, New Conservatory Theatre Center, and 42nd Street Moon, to name a few, while also appearing in commercials ("Meet Bob") and TV spots ("I Almost Got Away With It").

Monagle joins 18 actors portraying more than 60 historical figures, including Martin Luther King, Jr., FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, Senator Richard Russell, and Lady Bird Johnson. The ALL THE WAY cast features:

Gwendolyne Wagner, Kevin Copps, Adrien Gamache, Michelle Mosley, Tom Gough, Frank Gallo, Andrew Harris, Vic Prosak, Josie Burgin Lawson, Fred Pitts, Jay Delo, Stephen L. Wilson, William Bryant Jr., Dermot Durnin, Shannon Turner, Kyle Smith, and Gaddy Foster.

The creative team includes scenic design by Randy Wong-Westbrooke, lighting design by Rick Amerson, costume design by R. Dutch Fritz, properties design by Margaret Deng, sound design by James Goode, and stage management by Jeff Grafton.

Tickets for ALL THE WAY can be purchased online at paplayers.org, by phone at 650.329.0891, or by visiting the Box Office (Tuesday through Friday, 11am - 4pm) at the Lucie Stern Theater, located at 1305 Middlefield Road in Palo Alto. Performances at the Lucie Stern Theater begin on November 3 and continue through November 18, with a paid preview performance on November 2. Performance times are Thursdays at 7:30pm, Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm, and Sundays at 2pm. Ticket prices range from $25 to $52. Discounts for seniors, educators, patrons under 30 (including children/students), and military are available for all performances except preview night. Special discounts for groups of 10 or more are also available.

Events taking place during the run of ALL THE WAY include:

Opening Night AfterGlow Party

Saturday, November 3

Enjoy a post-show champagne reception with drinks and appetizers while meeting the cast, FREE with the purchase of a ticket for that evening's performance.

Post-Show Talkback

Thursday, November 8

Enjoy our Talkback series with Director Peter Allas and members of the cast following the performance, FREE with the purchase of a ticket for any performance during the run.

Founded in 1931, Palo Alto Players is the San Francisco Peninsula's first theatre company. Based at the Lucie Stern Theater, built explicitly for Palo Alto Players in 1933, Palo Alto Players produces a season of comedies, dramas, classics, and musicals from September to June. Audiences and participants come from all over the Bay Area to be a part of Palo Alto Players' productions. Palo Alto Players is committed to providing a meaningful theatre experience for both audience and production participants. Intrinsic in this is the belief that theatre benefits the community-at-large and enhances the quality of life of those who are touched by it through education, enlightenment, and enrichment. Palo Alto Players is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established for public benefit.

For more information about Palo Alto Players and upcoming shows, please visit www.paplayers.org or call the Box Office at 650.329.0891.

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