THE WAR BETWEEN ABRAHAM
AND MARY IS ANYTHING BUT CIVIL

Cole Escola’s gleefully unhinged historical
farce gives Alaska Thunderfuck ample opportunity
to make a spectacular fool of the First Lady

Alaska Thunderfuck in the Oh, Mary! First National Tour

Historians tend to agree that Abraham Lincoln did care deeply for his wife, Mary Todd, and was emotionally attached to her, though their complex 23-year marriage involved deep struggles, high-stress politics, and profound personal tragedies. The bottom line: Mary was not easy to live with.

Somehow, these facts struck playwright Cole Escola with an idea along the lines of, “Let’s turn this woman into such a nightmare that, for Lincoln, the Civil War becomes the easier problem!” Escola also makes the most of speculation that Lincoln was attracted to men by making that a strong aspect of Lincoln’s motives in the plot of Oh, Mary!, now on a National Tour.

John-Andrew Morrison and Alaska Thunderfuck

The tremendously goofy play begins with Abraham (John-Andrew Morrison) explaining to his servant Simon (Michael Lepore), while tearing the Oval Office apart looking for his wife’s hidden alcohol, that it must be found to keep it from her—as awful as she generally can be, she’s worse if she drinks. Mary (Alaska Thunderfuck) comes into the empty room shortly thereafter and, like a bloodhound, literally sniffs out the hidden bottle, with some ludicrous mishaps as she struggles to open the locked drawer. The lack of realism and broad physicality of the performances make it clear, very quickly, that we’re in for a very silly 80 minutes together. And once you get that, it’s pretty delightful.

Michael Lepore, Alaska Thunderfuck, Pooya Mohseni, and John-Andrew Morrison

Mary is crude, rude, self-centered, and wants nothing more than to be a cabaret star, which Abraham is not about to allow. Hard as she pushes, and as much as he’d like almost anything to shut her up, he cannot have the First Lady doing cabaret. He cannot even admit how much he secretly loves cabaret because the concept seems too gay. As a way to try to appease Mary, though, he sets her up with an acting tutor (Wesley Taylor), and therein much of the fun begins.

Pooya Mohseni and Alaska Thunderfuck

Thunderfuck, probably best known as the winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 2, is relentless in how far she will push herself for a sight gag—reminiscent of some of Lucille Ball’s best moments on I Love Lucy. For all the great laugh lines, a highlight of the show is a moment when Mary has gotten herself onto a desk and realizes she doesn’t know how to get off without hurting herself. It’s literally several minutes of nothing more than Mary just trying to get down to the floor, and it’s a joy to watch. I never got to see Escola play the title role on Broadway, but it’s hard to imagine anyone squeezing more out of poor Mary than Thunderfuck achieves up there. She takes Mary to a level of crazy that few performers would dare attempt, but it suits Escola’s script perfectly.

Michael Lepore and John-Andrew Morrison

The intense campiness that permeates the production is marvelously good fun, even if the laughter ranges from some fabulously clever moments to lines whose chuckles seem to come purely from shock value. Between f-bombs, abundant sexual content, and more, this show is not for the uptight crowd, but they probably would have figured that out upon hearing that the star is named Alaska Thunderfuck.

Alaska Thunderfuck and Wesley Taylor

In some ways, it feels like this show would be better in a smaller, more intimate house. Unlike The Phantom of the Opera, which cries out for a large venue, one can see why Oh, Mary! was such a hit Off-Broadway, where the smaller space likely increased the energy and laughter through that proximity. Likewise, as broad as Thunderfuck certainly is, there were times I would have loved to see her expressions much closer.

Alaska Thunderfuck

Scenic design by dots is more than adequate, but also quite simple, as it’s all the script requires. By contrast, big applause goes to Holly Pierson’s outlandish costume design and Leah J. Loukas‘s wig design, especially for Mary herself and her frenemy Louise (Pooya Mohseni).

While the play is on the short side at 80 minutes, it feels just right; Escola wisely plans the pacing so no part feels too long, and it ends on a high note without ever overstaying its welcome.

Alaska Thunderfuck and John-Andrew Morrison

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photos by Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade

Oh, Mary!
National Tour
reviewed at San Diego Civic Theatre, 1100 Third Ave. through October 4, 2026
80 minutes, no intermission
for tickets, call 619.564.3000 or visit Broadway San Diego

tour continues; for dates and cities, visit Oh, Mary!

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