A name, but not a face, that most are familiar with took center stage in Mark Twain Live! at the National Theatre for one weekend only. This one-man show created by Hal Holbrook shines a spotlight on a personality synonymous with wit and provocation — a thinker best known for his work as writer, essayist, and humorist of and for the American experience. Calling into sharper focus the peculiarities and contradictions of American politics, society, and human nature, this one-act play has a flair for taking the expected and turning it on its head.
On stage and touring the country for over six decades, Mark Twain Tonight! is a collection of materials curated from Twain’s prolific writings. Adapting and updating to match the times throughout its original run as well as now, Mark Twain Tonight! uses wisdom, wit, and humor that give a clear view not only of Twain but of ourselves.
Taking on the mantle of the performance of Twain and the legacy of Holbrook, Emmy Award winner and Tony nominee Richard Thomas reverently embodied the role. The steady cadence of Thomas’ delivery captured mannerisms that seem only natural for the aging Twain. From his subtle finger flexes to his forward-leaning, backward-bowing strides across the stage, it would be easy to forget that you’re watching a performance at all and instead believe you’ve been transported back in time to a lecture on one of Twain’s countless speaking tours around the country. Here in the historic National Theatre — which opened in the same year Twain was born, 1835 — it felt like the same surroundings, seemed like the same gestures, and looked like the same curving shoulders and absent-mindedly tousled hair, framing sharp and steely eyes that flashed with ferocious intelligence.
Using a gentle pattern, Twain’s soliloquies were laced with a series of characters to better illustrate the morals being explored: A grandpa blessed with a memory so strong that it distracts from the ending of every story, carrying us further from the original tale with every aside. An enactment from Huckleberry Finn and a frightened navigation of family struggle, the evils of slavery, and the realization that sometimes the right and wrong choice leave you feeling the same way, even though the outcomes are different. A haunting ghost story that warns of the cost of cruelty and greed, even from beyond the grave.
As pointed out by Twain “himself,” in 2026, he would be 191 years old, yet many of his humorous musings and cautionary commentary still ring true as though they were added especially for this revival run. From the threat of “the monarchy of the rich and powerful sitting on the throne of the country” where people care more of money than of virtue, to the insidious lie of silence when confronted with matters of moral conscience, there were more than a few moments when you could have heard a pin drop as the audience stilled to take in the eerie accuracy today of words over a century old.
Like the actor and creator core to this play, the creative team of the production approached their responsibilities with intentionality and focus. Subtle direction by creative consultant Michael Wilson built an intentional ramble of movement and pause that wove seamlessly with Brian Prather’s simple scenic design, where not even a match was misplaced or unused. Lighting design by Anthony Pearson and sound design by Shannon Slaton surged and dimmed to match the patter of the performance. Costume design by Sam Fleming and especially wig design by Luc Verschueren completed our time machine to the early 1900s.
Back on the touring circuit for the first time since Hal Holbrook’s passing, Mark Twain Live! at the National Theatre once again shows its enduring relevance to the experience and the challenges of America through the voice of one of our most beloved writers. Whether you’ve known of this play for 60 years or 6 minutes, it’s an experience that slows down time long enough for us to think about our own legacy and the legacy of those we keep alive.
Run Time: 90 minutes, no intermission.
Mark Twain Tonight! played September 20 and 21, 2025, at The National Theatre, 1321 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC.
Richard Thomas in
Mark Twain Tonight!
By Hal Holbrook
SEE ALSO:
Richard Thomas on his return to DC in ‘Mark Twain Tonight!’ (interview by Nicole Hertvik, September 15, 2025)
Richard Thomas to star in ‘Mark Twain Tonight!’ at National Theatre (news story, August 13, 2025)
Broadway at the National announces 2025/26 season (news story, May 8, 2025)
