What do you get when you take the United State’s seventh president, Andrew Jackson, put him in black eyeliner and give him a mob of fishnet-clad citizens? You get “Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson,” a rock musical the University of Alabama Department of Theatre and Dance will perform this week in the Allen Bales Theatre.
“Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson” premiered off-Broadway in 2010. Music and lyrics are by Michael Friedman and the book is by Alex Timbers. This wild west musical looks at history with comedic irreverence. In it, Jackson is a modern day rock star. The gaggle of early 19th century Washington, D.C., politicians he deals with are a group of squabbling attention seekers.
“Andrew Jackson’s somewhat factual history that’s found in the show is just a platform that we use to parallel what’s happening in our political agenda today,” said Gia Asperas, who plays Jackson’s wife. “If we’re not careful, history will certainly repeat itself. Sometimes, we need that shock value to take us back down to the base level of the actual crisis before us. Be prepared to leave the theatre with a sensory overload.”
The hour-and-a-half-long show explores some of Jackson’s controversial legacy through populism, the Indian Removal Act and his own personal relationships. Through the commotion, it resonates with modern audiences because of its commentary on the current political landscape.
John Nara, an M.F.A. directing student, and the director of “Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson,” chose this musical with that social commentary in mind.
“I think it has timeliness with regard to what it has to say about popular politicians. There are numerous links and similarities to Jackson’s rise to fame and the careers of Clinton, Bush and Obama,” Nara said.
In addition to its subject matter, “Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson” allowed the cast to explore a musical theatre genre that has been growing and gaining popularity in recent years. Shows such as “Rent,” “Spring Awakening” and “Next to Normal” have thrown rock musicals into mainstream theatre repertoire.
“I also was looking for something new when it came to the music,” Nara said. “Broadway isn’t what it used to be, and I wanted to expose the acting students to a nontraditional score to work with.”
“My favorite thing about [Rachel Jackson] is how she goes into whatever she’s doing with such heart and passion,” Asperas said. “She’s feisty and courageous, but isn’t afraid to make mistakes. She’s got such an interesting arc, and I love how her relationship with Andrew is so unrepentant.”
Unrepentant is a word that sums up Andrew Jackson for the majority of the show until the final scene in which he receives an honorary doctorate from Harvard. He thinks about his questionable decisions as he looks back on his life.
In Jackson’s final song, Second Nature’ he sings, “The grass grows, we take it. We want it. It’s second nature to us.”
It leaves audiences with a fascinating look at a well-known figure that history hasn’t seemed to be able to make a final decision about. Was Jackson the people’s president or a cruel leader?
“This musical is going to ask you to consider what ‘by any means necessary’ truly means,” Nara said. “Was Jackson alone guilty of genocide? Or were the people who supported him just as guilty? How culpable are we, the populace, in the policies our government institutes?”
Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson will be performed in the Allen Bales Theatre in Rowand-Johnson Hall Monday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at ua.tix.com.
