Play opens door to White House history

Did you know that President Herbert Hoover was extremely formal and hardly ever spoke?

That Franklin Delano Roosevelt was gregarious and debated policy with his adult children? That Harry Truman was friendly with all his servants? That Dwight D. Eisenhower was initially against integrating the military?

These are some of the tidbits you pick up in RiffRaff Productions' fascinating one-man show "Looking Over the President's Shoulder," now running at Townsend Opera Players' Little Opera Hall in downtown Modesto.

This is anything but a dry lecture on American history. Dwight Dean Mahabir, who plays Alonzo Fields, a real-life butler for the four presidents, is an engaging storyteller who makes history come to life.

Based on Fields' memoir, "My 21 Years in the White House," James Still's play offers a look at the country's presidents from the point of view of their staff.

It opens on Fields' last day of work as he is waiting for a bus to leave Pennsylvania Avenue. He recalls his early life growing up in a small town in Indiana, his time studying opera at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston and finally his entry into working as a butler for a rich family who hosted the Hoovers.

He was invited to work in the White House by Mrs. Hoover after his previous employer suddenly died.

It must be extremely difficult to remember more than two hours worth of lines and perform a show by yourself, but Mahabir makes it look easy. If he was struggling with the material, it didn't show at Saturday night's performance.

Although the monologues can be dense at times and hard to follow, Mahabir keeps things interesting by varying the tone throughout. Sometimes he's serious, sometimes funny, sometimes angry. Through it all, he maintains an admirable dignity and strong sense of self.

As a bonus, we also get to hear his gorgeous singing (Mahabir is best known as a musical theater performer in this area).

Director Richard Mann gives Mahabir strong support with a production that includes a slide show of key historical moments and musical clips that set the era. Mann also designed the fine set, which features an elegant formal dining room.

It's too bad the show is at TOP's cramped Little Opera Hall, which has uncomfortable, hard seats. The small company really had no other option, as it doesn't have much money or a venue of its own. But this compelling show really deserves to be in the Gallo Center for the Arts' Foster Theater.

Mahabir is a top-notch artist with big-city talent, and any audience he'll lose because of the poor venue is a shame.

'Looking Over the President's Shoulder'

RATING: ***½

WHERE: Townsend Opera Players' Little Opera Hall, 611 H St., Modesto

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays through May 3

RUNNING TIME: 2 hours and 15 minutes, including an intermission

TICKETS: $15

INFORMATION: 756-1758

Bee arts writer Lisa Millegan can be reached at 578-2313 or lmillegan@modbee.com.