The legendary one-man show Mark Twain Tonight! is returning to Binghamton, now starring Emmy-winning actor Richard Thomas. The production, created and shaped over nearly 60 years by the late Hal Holbrook, comes to the Forum Theatre for two performances this weekend.
Thomas says the invitation to take on the role came directly from Holbrook’s estate. “We got a call saying Hal had told them, ‘Revive it if it feels like the right time, as long as you choose someone I’d approve of,’” Thomas explains. “They said they knew Hal would’ve been very happy to have me do it. And fool that I am, I jumped at the chance—then immediately thought, ‘What have you done?’ This was the man’s life’s work. But Mark Twain deserves to be out there, and Hal’s remarkable dramaturgy deserves to go forward too.”
Although Holbrook famously reinvented the show throughout his long career, Thomas says the material remains flexible. “What you inherit is a wonderful deck of cards you can shuffle any way you want,” he says. He began by learning the text from Holbrook’s 1967 PBS broadcast—“the one I saw when I was sixteen,” he recalls—then added, removed, and rearranged pieces depending on what feels most relevant today. “It’s a very liberating feeling for the actor. You have some editorial agency yourself, which is really exciting.”
One of the most striking challenges is finding Twain’s voice. Although no recordings exist, actor William Gillette—Twain’s friend—once recorded an imitation. “It’s fabulous,” Thomas says, “but if I did that drawl for ninety minutes, people would run out of the theater.” Instead, he blends Twain’s vernacular roots with his cosmopolitan sophistication. “He wasn’t a hayseed—he was one of the most traveled artists of his time. So it’s a mix of Hannibal, Missouri, and the man who lived nine years in Europe.”
Thomas says audiences today still connect deeply with Twain’s satire. “His comments on politics, religion, war—they’re still remarkably salient,” he notes. “Twain is an equal-opportunity offender. He goes after everybody, including himself.” And the darker side of Twain’s later writings also resonates. “For a man who was always going after organized religion, he never stopped wrestling with God,” Thomas says. “The tragedies in his life deepened that darkness, and it remains disturbing.”
Asked what motivated him to take on a grueling tour schedule after To Kill a Mockingbird, Ozark, and Our Town, Thomas laughs. “I’m a road actor—I love the road,” he says. “This tour feels ancient, like the old way of plying the trade. Sometimes I’m in three cities in a week. Fortunately, my wife is with me the whole time, so we get to do it together.”
And yes—John-Boy is still with him. “Every day, all day,” Thomas says warmly. “I always hear a couple of ‘Good night, John-Boys’ from the audience. He’s not going anywhere, and that’s great. I carry him proudly.”
Mark Twain Tonight! starring Richard Thomas will be performed Friday, December 12 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, December 13 at 2:00 p.m. at the Forum Theatre on Washington Street in downtown Binghamton. More information is available at broomearenaforum.com.