"Sally & Tom" at Marin Theatre

Marin Theatre presents the West Coast Premiere of Sally & Tom. Pulitzer Prize winner Suzan-Lori Parks, known for her acclaimed works about American history Topdog/Underdog and Father Comes Home From the Wars, sets the stage with the metatheatrical story of a fictional up-and-coming theatre company rehearsing a play about Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson. As opening night approaches, playwright Luce is struggling with rewrites and pressure from a producer about how to frame the relationship between the third president and the woman he enslaved. Luce also stars as Sally, while Tom is played by Mike, her romantic partner and the production’s director. The past and present collide in this electrifying exploration of artistic authenticity, history, power, and truth. Sally & Tom made its World Premiere at The Guthrie Theatre before performing Off-Broadway at The Public Theater. The New York Times gave it a Critic’s Pick, calling it “hilarious and harrowing. The subtlety, cleverness and humanity with which Sally & Tom approaches the story of Hemings and Jefferson, dazzlingly doubled in the story of the troupe putting it on, come as no surprise at all.” The New York Sun said Sally & Tom “paints, in clear and concise strokes, an unfinished struggle for a more perfect union.” Executive Artistic Director Lance Gardner makes his Marin Theatre directorial debut with this work.