Looking Over the President’s Shoulder
April 21st – 25th at the Center for the Arts at Kayenta
Center for the Arts at Kayenta presents SimonFest Theater Co. production of Looking Over the President’s Shoulder, April 21-25th, 2022. Written by Playwright James Still, this one-man play is based on the real-life experiences, private papers, diaries and historical interviews of Alonzo Fields, Chief Butler in the White House for over twenty-one years.
Fields is played by actor Clarence Gilyard, an American university professor, actor, and author who has been featured in movies, television programs and regional theatre since 1980. Gilyard is best known for his roles in Die Hard, Top Gun, Texas Ranger, and Matlock.
Audiences for Looking Over the President’s Shoulder will be treated to Field’s unique insider’s perspective of serving four U.S. presidents and their families. These presidents included Herbert Hoover, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, and Dwight D. Eisenhower.
When Fields accepted a job as a butler at the White House in 1931, his plan was to work there for the winter. That winter job lasted 21 years. Based on his real-life story of the grandson of a freed slave who grew up in an all-black town in southern Indiana, Fields is forced by the Depression to give up his dreams of becoming an opera singer and accept the job at the White House where he quickly was appointed Chief Butler.
Sprinkled throughout the play are reminiscences of Field’s life, his family history, and his own personal dream and philosophies. This insightful perspective of Fields role as a presidential butler speaks to how the changes during his years in service (1931-1953) affected him on a personal level. What fears did World War II and the dawn of the nuclear age unleash in him? Servants may learn to keep their opinions to themselves, but we see a man who has walked through the gate on Pennsylvania Avenue for the last time and can finally speak his mind to us. This humorous and poignant theatrical experience will both entertain and educate audiences of ages.
Tickets are $35 for adults, $10 for students and children and can be purchased online at www.KayentaArts.com or by calling 435-674-2787.
If you are looking for the best entertainment in southern Utah, look no further than the Center for the Arts at Kayenta! Come, be a “Part of the Art” at Kayenta.
