ABOUT THE PLAY

KING OF THE MOUNTAINS

BY BEN CLAWSON

For three days in May of 1903, President Teddy Roosevelt and the
naturalist John Muir camped alone together in the Yosemite. One
expected to be paid homage, revered for his accomplishments, and praised for his wilderness prowess. The other desired to have his voice heard, his philosophy followed, and his wisdom sought. The problem was, both men wanted to do all the talking.

A complex look at the ongoing battle over what do do with our public lands told through the unique wit and whimsy of Luna favorite Ben Clawson (Tilt the Unlit Candle, Dangers of Electric Lighting, and The High Water Mark).

(pictured left: Rik Walter as John Muir and Ian Gould as Theodore Roosevelt; photo by Christopher Drukker)

INTERVIEWS & ARTICLES OF INTEREST

An Interview with Playwright Ben Clawson

What was your starting point for writing this play, and how has the play changed in development?

I've long had an interest in both these figures, and when I learned about this camping trip while watching the Ken Burn's National Parks documentary, it seemed like a fascinating seed for a script. I like theater at its simplest, and thought these two talking around the fire could be that idea distilled. Beyond that, the idea has grown and changed immensely through research, the initial writing process, and development as we've worked to discover what the story hiding within that simple seed of the idea was.

KING OF THE MOUNTAINS is a commission from Luna Stage with funds from The Dramatists Guild. What did that mean for you in the process of writing this play?

It's an opportunity Luna has given me several times before, and I think one of the best ones a playwright can get, which is to sit down to write your script knowing its destination will soon be the stage. Plays are meant to be performed, not just read, but often when a script is started (or finished) there's no clear route to the moment that actors (and a production team) will breathe some life into it. There's nothing better than leaping into a project and knowing it already has a date with an audience.

Why do you think it's important to tell this story now?

So the whole history of mankind has been that of the slow destruction of the natural world. Only very recently was there any attempt to temper this instinct, and make some effort to restrain ourselves. As we continue to invent new, better ways to screw things up even more efficiently, this topic will only grow more relevant.

What most surprised you in writing this play, either in your research or in your process?

Whew. What seemed like it would be a simple tale became quite complex, quite quickly. It was a great challenge to find this little story of one campout hiding in the two massive biographies of these two men who had a lot in common, but were very, very different at the same time.

This play is based around an historical event and two very real men who were icons of history. How did you approach the relationship between history and dramatic storytelling in writing this play?

So, everything that happens in this play is true. And, also, nothing that happens in this play is true. Hold both of those ideas in your head at the same time, and that's the reality of this story. That being said, while of course all these characters say and do is complete invention, that invention is all based on details from this camping trip and from the lives of these two guys. When it comes to the writers involved with this play, I'm a distant third. Both John and Teddy left me a great pile of words to start things off with.

You have a deep personal connection to nature in how you grew up and how you choose to live now. Can you tell us a little about it?

Yeah, so I grew up living in a couple different National Parks, and I kind of took life out there for granted . I loved playing in the woods, exploring and inventing ways to keep myself entertained, but I also couldn't wait to move to civilization. Y'know, where all the people lived. So I did. And I liked it, I liked civilization. But that didn't last too long. And now I'm back living in one of New Jersey's lovely State Forests. Which is great. And I'm quite at home there. But I still visit civilization. From time to time.

You have a distinctive comic style that threads through your plays. What are some of your comic influences?

Uh. When I saw my first episode of Seinfeld in the 5th grade it changed the way my brain worked. I like the plays of Mamet and Martin McDonagh, I like fast talking Aaron Sorkin and the book Catch 22 and Calvin and Hobbes and the Coen Brothers and Jon Stewart and a thousand other things. But my friends are funnier than all that stuff combined. My dog makes me laugh.

PHOTOS

a map of Yosemite national park

photos of the physical Context Room