In August 1963, a powerful Washington, D.C. think tank invited President John F. Kennedy to a top-secret town hall meeting. Their stated purpose was to ascertain how much candor Americans could accept from their President, speaking off the record about the true state of the nation's affairs. It did not take President Kennedy, who was accompanied by Attorney General Robert Kennedy, long to realize that the moderators of this event, a conservative pundit, saddled at the last minute alongside a liberal firebrand who just finished law school, had brought two large political axes that they intended to grind upon his presidency. On this long, hot summer night, JFK, with less than three months to live, is forced to defend and justify his presidential decisions and actions, while also being hounded about his private life and personal morality. No reporters, no recordings, and no holds barred.
On November 22, 2013, National Pastime Theater in Chicago presented the world premiere of Alan Marshall's THE INTERVIEW: JFK, a play exploring the life and presidency of John F. Kennedy. President Kennedy's untimely death prevented him from writing a memoir. THE INTERVIEW offers JFK a fictional forum to speak with candor. Marshall will restage THE INTERVIEW: JFK in 2019, along with Marilyn and Jack, a poignant drama, set in the afterlife, exploring the enigmatic relationship between John F. Kennedy and Marilyn Monroe. These represent the first two installments in Marshall's JFK Trilogy of stageplays which will be completed in 2020 with The Shadow of Death.
