The American Five

September 19, 2025 — October 12, 2025

Approximately two and a quarter hours, including a 15-minute intermission

Recommended for ages 12 and older

Accessible

Audio-Described Performances : October 2, 2025 at 7 p.m. and October 11, 2025 at 2 p.m.

ASL-Interpreted Performance : October 9, 2025 at 7 p.m.

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Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his inner circle imagined a pluralistic society in which equality and justice is guaranteed for all. In the face of surveillance, intimidation, arrests and life threats, five giants form a powerful coalition to advance civil rights and shape a defining moment in American history. Together, Dr. King, Coretta Scott King, Bayard Rustin, Stanley Levison and Clarence B. Jones plan the March on Washington and craft the speech that would galvanize the nation and inspire generations to advance America’s efforts to turn a dream into reality.

Artistic Team

Written By Chess Jakobs

Directed By Aaron Posner

Scenic Designer Andrew R. Cohen

Costume Designer Cody Von Ruden

Lighting Designer Max Doolittle

Sound Designer Kathy Ruvuna

Projection Designer Mona Kasra

Hair and Make-Up Designer Danna Rosedahl

Dialects and Voice Director Rachel Hirshorn-Johnston

NY Casting Stephanie Klapper Casting

Production Stage Manager Brandon Prendergast

Assistant Stage Manager Julia Singer

Cast

Aaron Bliden

Stanley

Ro Boddie

Martin

Renea S. Brown

Coretta

Yao Dogbe

Clarence

Stephen Conrad Moore

Bayard

Digital Program

Learn more about The American Five. Read the program before you see the performance.

Read Program

Blue and white image of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. waving in front of a crowd at the National Mall.

Watch the Trailer

Pre-Show Description

Ford’s Theatre offers audio-described performances for all of our mainstage productions. Audio-described performances for The American Five are Thursday, October 2, 2025 at 7 p.m. and October 11, 2025 at 2 p.m. This Pre-Show Description video includes information about the set and costumes.

Photo Gallery

A Black man, dressed in a checkered jacket, white shirt and bow tie, and a Black woman, wearing glasses, pearl earrings and a light blue coat, smile at each other while dancing.

Renea S. Brown as Coretta and Ro Boddie as Martin in the 2025 Ford’s Theatre production of The American Five, directed by Aaron Posner. Photo by Scott Suchman.

A Black man, dressed in a gray overcoat and tie, sits on a bench with a suitcase at his feet, looking toward another Black man in a dark suit and overcoat who gestures while holding a coffee cup. A newspaper headline about the Montgomery bus boycott is projected in the background.

Ro Boddie as Martin and Stephen Conrad Moore as Bayard in the 2025 Ford’s Theatre production of The American Five, directed by Aaron Posner. Photo by Scott Suchman.

A Black man in a dark gray suit with a white shirt and a brown tie stands with his mouth open, speaking passionately. He clenches his right hand into a fist, raising it slightly.

Ro Boddie as Martin in the 2025 Ford’s Theatre production of The American Five, directed by Aaron Posner. Photo by Scott Suchman.

A Black man, wearing a white button-up shirt and dark gray pants, holds a telephone receiver to his ear and holds a slip of paper in his other hand, and is speaking into the mouthpiece.

Ro Boddie as Martin in the 2025 Ford’s Theatre production of The American Five, directed by Aaron Posner. Photo by Scott Suchman.

A white man in a white shirt and tan pants stands at the head of the table, leaning forward and speaking with an open mouth. Two Black men are seated to his right, and a Black man and a Black woman are seated to his left. The man closest to the camera on the right is pointing at a piece of paper on the table.

Renea S. Brown as Coretta, Stephen Conrad Moore as Bayard, Aaron Bliden as Stanley, Yao Dogbe as Clarence and Ro Boddie as Martin in the 2025 Ford’s Theatre production of The American Five, directed by Aaron Posner. Photo by Scott Suchman.

A Black man in a green short-sleeved shirt and gray pants stands on the left, looking toward the group at the table with his hands on his hips. At a table with a white and yellow tablecloth, are four people: a Black woman in a yellow blouse and black skirt, a white man in a white short-sleeved shirt, a Black man in a white short-sleeved shirt and dark pants who is standing and holding a glass, and a Black man in a dark blue polo shirt and gray pants who is leaning back in his chair.

Stephen Conrad Moore as Bayard, Renea S. Brown as Coretta, Aaron Bliden as Stanley, Ro Boddie as Martin and Yao Dogbe as Clarence in the 2025 Ford’s Theatre production of The American Five, directed by Aaron Posner. Photo by Scott Suchman.

A Black woman stands on the left, wearing a light-colored tweed dress, behind a microphone stand, holding a book and smiling. A Black man stands on the right, wearing a dark suit with a white shirt and a dark tie, holding a sheet of paper. Large screens above them display the words "Spelman College | Howard University."

Renea S. Brown as Coretta and Stephen Conrad Moore as Bayard in the 2025 Ford’s Theatre production of The American Five, directed by Aaron Posner. Photo by Scott Suchman.

A Black woman wearing a patterned dress stands on the far left next to a silver serving cart with drinks. Two men, a Black man and a white man, both in white shirts and dark pants, sit facing each other on a bench at the foot of a bed. A third man, also a Black man in a white shirt and dark pants, sits on the bed between them.

Renea S. Brown as Coretta, Stephen Conrad Moore as Bayard, Ro Boddie as Martin, Yao Dogbe as Clarence and Aaron Bliden as Stanley in the 2025 Ford’s Theatre production of The American Five, directed by Aaron Posner. Photo by Scott Suchman.

A Black man in a white shirt and dark pants stands on the left, holding a piece of paper. Next to him, a Black man in a white shirt and dark pants holds his head. A Black man in a white shirt and light gray pants stands with a Black woman in a patterned dress beside a bed in the center. At the far right, a white man in a white shirt and dark pants, who is looking at the others.

Stephen Conrad Moore as Bayard, Ro Boddie as Martin, Yao Dogbe as Clarence, Renea S. Brown as Coretta and Aaron Bliden as Stanley in the 2025 Ford’s Theatre production of The American Five, directed by Aaron Posner. Photo by Scott Suchman.

Five people—three Black men, one Black woman and a white man—stand in a straight line with their backs to the audience. The woman, wearing a patterned dress, and one of the men, wearing gray pants and a white button-down shirt, are holding hands. They are looking at images from the March on Washington.

Yao Dogbe as Clarence, Stephen Conrad Moore as Bayard, Renea S. Brown as Coretta, Ro Boddie as Martin and Aaron Bliden as Stanley in the 2025 Ford’s Theatre production of The American Five, directed by Aaron Posner. Photo by Scott Suchman.