CEDAR CITY — Mister Lincoln directed by Richard Bugg was performed at the Heritage Center Theater. Written by Herbert Mitgang, Mister Lincoln is a fifty-minute monologue performed by one actor who plays the titular Mister Lincoln. Throughout the monologue you get a deeper look at who President Lincoln was before he became president and the major life milestones that happened along his journey there. This is portrayed through words, stories and reflections so that the audience can come to know the very real human behind the legend of President Lincoln. This performance was very much in line with the 250th anniversary of the United States of America.
Tyson Chanticleer played the legendary Abraham Lincoln. Chanticleer carried the whole play because it relied entirely on his singular performance. He did a phenomenal job remembering all fifty minutes of his dialogue without missing a noticeable step. Not only did he remember the correct lines to recite, but he also performed them with great emotion and feeling when a particular story or reflection called for it. The most memorable scene for me was when he recounted his experience of witnessing a slave auction in Lincoln’s youth. It was for the sale of a young slave girl named Eliza who was publicly assaulted to prove she was good stock to buy. That story made my stomach sickly clench, and it provided the steppingstone of showing how Lincoln grew to oppose slavery, eventually leading him to be a politician who adamantly opposed the expansion of slavery into territories. This, in turn carried into his presidency role during the Civil War.
Tyson Chanticleer did a breathtaking job showing not only Lincoln’s journey into his presidency but also sharing a personal look into his private life along the way. Chanticleer’s performance telling the story of how Lincoln courted, broke up with, reconnected with, and then married Mary Todd was equally humorous and at times made you want to shake your head in disbelief at how awkwardly silly one of America’s legendary presidents was when it came to dating.
The less breathtaking element had nothing to do with Chanticleer’s performance, but with the stage he was set to perform on. The large Heritage Center Theater as a venue drowned the singular actor performance of Mister Lincoln with its size. Some of the impact of the piece, as well as its intimacy, was lost because it was not performed in a smaller or more studio-like theater. This would allow the audience to more clearly see and feel the minute expressions of the actor during the performance. This was further solidified in my mind when a fellow audience member sitting in front of me commented before the performance started that the stage seemed way too big for this type of play.
The light design by Dylan Frank was very helpful in highlighting Chanticleer’s movements and helped convey the emotion Lincoln felt at that time through different lighting colors. The emotional interpretation was further enhanced by the artful sound design, also by Dylan Frank whose choice of accompanying music during certain segments enhanced what was going on in the play.
The set itself was well done. The set design and construction was done by Tyson Chanticleer, Trent Dahlin, Dylan Frank, Alek Jordan, Bryn Kint Jordan, Randy Seely and JT Street. The stage was broken up into three different set pieces for Chanticleer to freely move along as he performed different stories and reflections. One set piece was Lincoln’s study, another was Lincoln’s living room, and the final set piece was Lincoln’s political pulpit. Chanticleer moved through all three sets at pretty much the same frequency so all three were relevant to the performance. However, with the stage being so big and the audience seating so far away from the set pieces, everything felt a bit too spread out, making it more difficult for the audience to intimately connect with the singular actor. Overall, Tyson Chanticleer did a masterful performance of Mister Lincoln, making it a short, but memorable play to see.
MORE INFO: Mister Lincoln is currently playing at the Heritage Center Theater, 105 N. 100 E. Cedar City, Utah 84720. Performances were held July 3, 4, 17, 23 and 30 with one more future matinee performance at 2:00 pm on August 6, 2026. Tickets can be purchased online at app.arts-people.com
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