Show: The Rivalry
October 20 @ 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm
St. Agnes Catholic Church presents
The Rivalry
A Play by Norman Corwin
In 1858, two extraordinary men shared a podium in seven Congressional districts in Illinois. Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas, the nation’s most charismatic orators, debated for 36 hours with an energy that hypnotized the nation. The debates were conducted in a fever of partisanship as the press vilified or glorified the opponents, depending on which side they took. As the nation listened, Douglas, cocky and brisk, fought for the rights of the separate states to make their own choice on the question of slavery. Abraham Lincoln, an unknown small town lawyer, fought for equality of human beings and the conviction that the nation could not endure half slave, half free. Mrs. Douglas, who accompanied her husband on the tour, serves as both performer and narrator of the play. It is she who puts the whole in perspective. As she begins to lose her distrust for her husband’s opponent, she sees in him the greatness that our nation so desperately needed.
St. Agnes church in Shepherdstown will present “the Rivalry” by Norman Corwin, on October 11, 12 and 13, and 18, 19 and 20. Friday and Saturday shows are at 8:00 pm, Sunday shows are at 3:00 pm. The play will be presented at the Historic Chapel, 204 South Church Street, in Shepherdstown. Tickets are $15 and reservations can be made online or by calling 304-876-6436.
The play is directed by Joe Yates, who plays Stephen Douglas, and who recently directed “The Anvil – the trial of John Brown, at the Charles Town Court House, with Joe playing the role of John Brown. Also in the cast are Homer Speaker, who plays Abraham Lincoln, Emily Wanger as Adele Douglas, and Matthew Ryan as a Republican Committeeman.