Review: EDINBURGH 2024: A LETTER TO LYNDON B JOHNSON OR GOD: WHOEVER READS THIS FIRST, TheSpace @Niddry St

“We’re gonna do this forever, right?”

A Letter to Lyndon B Johnson or God: Whoever Reads This First, created and performed by Xhloe Rice and Natasha Roland, tells the story of two young Boy Scouts, nicknamed Ace and Grasshopper, who are living in the 1960s. Through physical and verbal storytelling, we are thrown into a world of rope swings and playing pranks on camp counsellors, a world where two young boys can pray to then-President Lyndon B Johnson. However, it soon becomes clear that everything is not as it seems.

Every boy eventually grows up to be a man, and Ace and Grasshopper are no exception to this rule. Soon, the campgrounds transform into the battlefield as they are thrust into the Vietnam War, fighting for their lives with their platoon in the jungle. Rice and Roland jump between the two time periods with ease, slipping so seamlessly from boyhood to adulthood that it sometimes takes a few moments to realise exactly where we are.

Each of the different “stories” is portrayed in a different colour light, with one example being a fable of a boy wanting to become a man being illuminated in red to differentiate it from the other stories. Phrases are repeated throughout the stories, tying them together through the two main characters. There are also moments of pause throughout the show, portrayed with blue light, in which the two characters seem to forget where they are, telling one another to “Stay with me” before remembering where they are and jumping into the next part of the story. 

All of the physical storytelling in the show is truly incredible. Rice and Roland move as though they have been moving together their whole lives, using all of the stage as their playground as they play Beatles songs on their harmonicas and roll around a giant tire. There is a recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance with hand symbols that become twisted as the show goes on, the two boys beginning to mix it with the Lord’s prayer and praise for Johnson. But, along with all the movement, some of the most powerful moments of the show are in its quieter pits. I particularly loved a scene in which Ace is waiting for Johnson’s train to pass in the middle of the night and has a moment with a buck in the woods. 

Even with all of the horror and grief that comes with war, there are sweet and funny moments throughout. I particularly loved the running joke that, when talking about Johnson, one would refer to the middle initial of his name, “B,” and the other would immediately jump, shouting, “Where?” There are also just general clowning scenes of silliness that fit right into the atmosphere of a Boy Scout camp in 1960s America. 

Ultimately, A Letter to Lyndon B Johnson or God: Whoever Reads This First is a storytelling masterpiece that blurs the lines between stories and depicts a heartbreaking tale of boyhood and loss. Rice and Roland have created yet another work that will live on in the hearts and minds of those who are lucky enough to witness it.

A Letter to Lyndon B Johnson or God: Whoever Reads This First ran until 24 August at theSpace @ Niddry St - Upper Theatre (Round).