From oswald to hinkley

Stephen Sondheim brings his sparkling talent to bear on the most grisly of subjects in Assassins. First performed in 1990, this Tony winning musical explores the lives of the men and women who attempted (sometimes successfully) to assassinate the President of the United States. The show takes the form of a musical revue, with Sondheim's score reflecting the different eras of each of the characters, from John Wilkes Booth to John Hinkley.

Seattle's 5th Avenue present a brand new staging of this dark and provocative work, which is one of the least performed in Sondheim's repertoire. It's a co-production with Seattle's ACT Theatre, and will be overseen by the company's incoming Artistic Director John Langs.

What is Assassins About?

Murderers, essentially, and those who would be murderers. Are they disaffected wackos, or do we have more in common with those lone rangers than we first thought. From Lincoln to Nixon, Ford to JFK, these symbols of power had had more than a fair few enemies. But this is the story of the smoking gun, the actions and thoughts that led to pulling the trigger, set to a recognisably Sondheim score...