For the first time on stage, the hidden history of the Vietnam War that destroyed more than one president is dramatized. Unlike previous works on the subject that explore the courtroom effort regarding the right to publish, J-Powers’s Pentagon Papers dramatizes the actual secret history of America’s involvement in Vietnam.
Performed by a cast of young actors, the production aims to inspire a new generation of Americans to demand honesty and transparency from leaders. “The truth will set you free,†said Daniel Ellsberg, who risked everything, including his freedom, to expose this classified information.
Mr. Ellsberg has been supportive of the project – dramatizing the Pentagon Papers and presenting them to a new audience in the 40th anniversary of Watergate – since J-Powers first 
approached him, and Santa Monica Playhouse is pleased to welcome him to the second opening night performance on Sunday, February 12 at 3:30 pm. The audience is invited to hear Mr. Ellsberg speak after the show and to join with cast and crew for an opening night reception on the Playhouse patio.
Pentagon Papers is written and directed by J-Powers and features Jeison Azali, Caroline Do, Serena Dolinsky, Mark Jacobson, Stephen Juhl, Dave Kirkpatrick, Amanda Martindale, Brian Sounalath and understudies Jeffrey Ashkin and J. R. Mangels. The production is presented in association with Vietnam Veterans of America and is supported in part by a CCI ARC Grant.
Writer-director J-Powers (a.k.a. John Powers) has adapted and directed many significant events and documents including The 9/11 Commission Report. A
mong his others are The Examination of Mrs. Anne Hutchinson at the Court at Newton, The Army-McCarthy Hearings, The Watergate Tapes, Anita Hill-Clarence Thomas Hearings, Trial of Lenny Bruce, Court-Martial of William Calley, McMartin Preschool Trial, and Trial of O.J. Simpson. He wrote and directed the series 1968 in which he dramatized four significant events from that year in the works entitled Memphis, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Mexico City. He also wrote the critics’ choice production of @Heart directed by Paul Linke.
Regular performance schedule is Sundays at 3:30, February 5 – March 25, 2012.
Tickets $19.50; $17 for students, senior and members of the military.
Seating is limited and reservations are essential. http://SantaMonicaPlayhouse.com.
