Chilling Out Theatre

On November 20th 2023 Beatles biographer Ray Connolly tweeted:

“Looking forward to seeing May Pang's version of John Lennon's Lost Weekend. Nice lady. She once showed me a bedroom in Peter Lawford's former home where she and John were living, and where Bobby Kennedy & Marilyn Monroe had once enjoyed each other”.

This got me thinking. I’d always like writing plays that use only one set. And a small cast. And famous people.

How about a five hander, with RFK and MM in the first act? Then, ten or more years later, it’s Lennon and Pang with Peter Lawford popping in and out. Maybe have the ghosts of the first two dropping in too, and maybe a fantasy scene where Lennon and MM not only survive but have an affair. Maybe end in 1985, with Lennon wondering whether to accept an invite to reform the Beatles and play Live Aid.

That sort of thing.

I even wrote a few lines. I researched RFK and the others, watched the May Pang documentary. The last person I looked at was Lawford, about whom I knew nothing. Quite honestly, I’m not sure I actually knew who he even was. So I ordered a second hand copy of his only biography, and waited for it to arrive.

Once I read it, I knew. This was the guy. What a story! And how come only one biography? Marilyn must have had dozens. Same with Lennon. And RFK. But Lawford? Married the President’s sister, last man to speak to Marilyn before she died. Multimarried. Alcoholic, survivor of child sexual abuse. And, in my opinion, a brilliant actor, who seldom got the roles he deserved. The more I researched him, the more I wanted to do a one person show.

I even knew the actor I wanted.