The Hoop Skirt Goes West, Alaska Brings Oh, Mary! to the Ahmanson
The drag star will play Mary Todd Lincoln when the national tour of Cole Escola’s comedy reaches the Ahmanson on November 10.
Mary Todd Lincoln is coming downtown in a hoop skirt. The national tour of Oh, Mary! will play the Ahmanson Theatre from November 10 to December 6, with the drag star Alaska Thunderf*ck in the title role for the Los Angeles run.
Cole Escola’s comedy reimagines Mary Todd Lincoln as a chaotic, scene-stealing antihero, and it has been one of Broadway’s most talked-about hits, Time Out reported. Tony winner Sam Pinkleton directs the tour, which launched September 19 and is playing San Diego through October 4. Entertainment Weekly called it the funniest play on Broadway.
Alaska has made no secret of how she feels about the part. “I’ve often been asked what my dream role would be. As an 8-foot-tall Drag Queen from outer space, I never really had an answer,” she said when the casting was announced. “But the point is, I never had a dream role. Until I saw Oh, Mary!” She kept going. “This is an honor. This is unbelievable.”
Alaska plays Mary through January 17, 2027, opposite J. Harrison Ghee as Mary’s Husband, with Wesley Taylor as Mary’s Teacher, Pooya Mohseni as Mary’s Chaperone and Michael Lepore as Mary’s Husband’s Assistant. Ghee takes over as Mary on January 19 in Chicago, when John-Andrew Morrison steps in as the Husband.
The engagement is part of Center Theatre Group’s 2026-27 season, which also includes the musical Boop!, Christmas Carol Goes Wrong and a Yiddish-language Fiddler on the Roof directed by Joel Grey. Tour dates and ticket links are on the show’s official site.
