What's It Like to Play George Washington?

Actor Gregory Jones shares his thoughts about playing a historical character...

"I'm playing George Washington in Yorktown. A few thoughts occur to me about playing the most famous American...

My first thought was, Fantastic! What a great challenge to bring a legend like that to life. I've had recent experience doing that, with football coach Paul "Bear" Bryant in a world premiere bio-play at Alabama Shakespeare Festival, and with Senator Henry Cabot Lodge in a play about Theodore Roosevelt's invasion of the Philippines at NYC's Metropolitan Playhouse.

My second thought was, I'm doomed! How can I possibly satisfy the audience's outsized expectations of George Washington? Indeed, in the script the other characters describe him with such hyperbole, I wonder how anyone could possibly live up to that Mount Rushmore figure.

My third, and current, thought is, reverse the process. Stop thinking about how I can be like him, and start thinking about how George Washington is like me. When have I inspired people? When have I had to lead? What is it like to carry a huge burden on my shoulders? ...and many other actor-centric questions. When I think about it that way, it's no different than playing one of the great Shakespeare roles. I can never BECOME Henry V, but I can unearth the deep truths in myself that Henry may have felt, the universal truths that an audience can relate to."

--Gregory Jones