BREAKING THE FOURTH WALL
INTO THE WHITE HOUSE

This play-within-a-play probes power,
mythology, and who gets to tell the story

Making its West Coast premiere at Marin Theatre Company is Sally & Tom — a return to material the same company explored in 2017 with the earlier, more controversial Thomas & Sally by Thomas Bradshaw. Thomas Jefferson remains one of America’s most complicated founding fathers: his face is carved into Mt. Rushmore, yet his long relationship with his enslaved woman Sally Hemmings, who bore several of his children, continues to shadow his legacy.

In Suzan-Lori Parks’s version, the story becomes a play-within-a-play, framed by a contemporary theater troupe wrestling with how to tell it. Under the assured direction of Lance Gardner, the structure remains clear even as timelines blur. The fictional Black playwright Luce (Emily Newsome), under pressure to offer a balanced, modern-day portrait, also plays Sally Hemmings. Coincidentally, she is sleeping with her co-star and director Mike (Adam KuveNiemann) — who is white and playing Thomas Jefferson — blurring the line between her offstage life and the drama she is trying to shape. Luce’s struggle is not just artistic but personal: race, power dynamics, and what today’s audiences will find palatable all collide, creating comic and moral dilemmas. Meanwhile, other company members pursue their own dalliances and keep secrets of their own.

This tension between truth and art runs through the entire production. In works about real people — whether plays, movies, or series like Netflix’s The Crown — creators often take dramatic license, inventing conversations or situations to connect events (do we really know how the Royal Family reacts to things in the privacy of Buckingham Palace?). But is authenticity sacrificed for commercial storytelling? Can it be done in a way that’s acceptable or politically correct? Sally & Tom centers precisely on Luce’s fear of misrepresenting history, and on the parallel she sees in her relationship with Mike.

The actors give it their all and periodically break the fourth wall as the story moves between centuries. Luce carries the emotional weight of trying to make sense of the play itself. She raises the central questions: Is Sally merely a victim of her circumstances? Can she make the audience understand the limited choices available to her?

As Tom and Mike, Adam KuveNiemann exudes the privilege and arrogance we associate with Jefferson. The supporting players handle their dual roles with flair: Rosie Hallett and Nicole Apostol Bruno (as Patsy and Polly Jefferson) pout and complain like entitled princesses; Bay Area comedic actor Michael Phillis is delightful as the prissy Cooper, whose flirtation with Kenneth Ray’s Nathan brings welcome levity. Titus VanHook’s James Hemmings, Sally’s brother, serves as one of the play’s voices of reason, always watching out for her.

Sally & Tom blends humor, pain, and emotional intensity as it jumps between the 18th century and the present. Contradictions remain unresolved — a reminder that hard truths rarely end neatly. Yet portraying the struggle, whether onstage or in life, can offer hope through perseverance in storytelling.

The big open Monticello set, flanked by modern dressing rooms, is designed by Kate Noll, continually reinforcing the meta-structure with action happening on all sides. Period costumes — complete with big hoop skirts — come courtesy of Pamela Rodriguez-Montero, while Jessica Carter’s elaborate wigs add authenticity to the 18th-century world. Lisa Townsend’s choreographed dance sequences are delightful and impeccably executed.

While Pulitzer Prize winner Suzan-Lori Parks’ play may not be as controversial as its predecessor, it remains undeniably thought-provoking. In a political climate where unpleasant history is increasingly threatened with erasure, Sally & Tom argues against whitewashing the past. Storytelling, it suggests, is one of our most powerful tools — not to dictate how audiences should feel, but to give them the space to interpret the results for themselves.

photos by David Allen

Sally & Tom
Marin Theatre Company, 397 Miller Avenue in Mill Valley
Wed-Sat at 7:30; Sat & Sun at 2
ends on November 23, 2025
for tickets ($47-$85), call 415.388.5208 or visit Marin Theatre