A presidential misstep is the inciting event that sends seven women into a panic to clean up his mess. It may sound like a current event, but it’s the plot of the latest stage production by the Fredericksburg Theatre Ensemble.
“POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying To Keep Him Alive” opened last weekend and is currently showing at the Allstate Community Theater in Fredericksburg.
Since 2011, this quirky black-box-style, nonprofit troupe has been staging “the type of shows no one else is doing,” director Heather McIntosh said. “Our shows tend to be edgier and less well-known and artistically challenging.”
Written by Selina Fillinger, “POTUS” made its Broadway debut in 2022. Fillinger wrote the play during a tumultuous election year after noticing that a presidential candidate always had at least one woman standing at his side — no matter what bad behavior came to light.
“I think that inspired her to think about and investigate the different personalities of women that surround a president,” McIntosh said. “As someone who practically grew up in theater and became fascinated by politics rather late in life, I found this show an amazing gift.”
The show introduces audiences to seven women putting out fires around a fictional White House after the president makes an unfortunate comment, setting off a chain of events that could lead to a global crisis.
Meredith Schatz portrays Harriet, the president’s chief of staff, in the evening shows. Schatz said that the role is not unlike her day-to-day job as chief of staff with an education consulting business, but her boss is “much wiser than the president that is depicted in this show.”
“Essentially from the moment the show opens, I am solving problems,” she said. “It opens with a key problem that the president makes with some of his word choices and from there, it’s just kind of all downhill — it is comedic error after comedic error.”
Schatz wasn’t familiar with “POTUS,” so she watched videos of the actresses who performed in its debut: Rachel Dratch, Vanessa Williams, Lea DeLaria and Julianne Hough.
“It just seemed so smart. Which is something that I really wanted as a comedic actress,” Schatz said. “I feel like you can quickly find yourself in a little bit more slapstick comedy. And there’s definitely a place for that, but I like to balance both comedy and wit when available, and this show is the perfect show for that.”
The FTE show, rated 18+ for adult themes and language, begins with witty dialogue but eventually devolves into more physical comedy, McIntosh said.
“That’s what makes it such an interesting show and makes it delightful. It is a farce, but it doesn’t start that way. There’s lots of twists and turns,” McIntosh said. “Every character is on a journey — a humorous one — and they all grow and change.”
McIntosh was so inspired by the many talented women who auditioned for the show that she campaigned to call two different casts. One team performs Friday and Saturday evenings, while the other takes the stage for the Saturday and Sunday matinees. FTE offers a discount for those who wish to return to see the alternate cast perform.
“About 45 women auditioned,” she said. “I probably could have cast this show three or four times over. There were that many women I would have loved to have given this opportunity to. And a shout-out to my talented ‘Secret Service’ ladies that do our voiceovers, dance, and generally keep the action of the show moving forward.”
Both Schatz and McIntosh have personal experience dealing with the intense and sometimes chaotic world of politics. McIntosh works with the Pentagon and the Secretary of the Navy. Schatz’s sister is Abigail Spanberger, a current member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia’s 7th Congressional District and a Democratic candidate for governor.
“Much of what I brought to the role was, maybe when people see this show, they think to themselves, ‘Surely, this doesn’t happen in reality?’ And I feel like I have a lens of, no, actually sometimes in reality these are the things that happen,” Schatz said.
If you go:
POTUS runs Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m.; Saturday at 2 p.m.; and Sunday at 3 p.m. Tickets are $21.49.
