BARRY STEVENS TO PORTRAY BEN FRANKLIN FOR HISTORY COMES ALIVE SERIES
- Apr 29
- 3 min read
Friday, May 1 at 7:30 p.m., the Deane Center’s History Comes Alive series will feature Barry Stevens of Arlington, Virginia portraying Benjamin Franklin at the Coolidge Theatre at 104 Main Street in Wellsboro. Franklin was a leading author, printer, publisher, political theorist, politician, freemason, scientist, prolific inventor, civic activist, statesman, diplomat and this country's first postmaster general.
He is America’s only Founding Father who signed all four key documents establishing the United States: the Declaration of Independence in 1776, the Treaty of Alliance with France in 1778, the Treaty of Paris establishing peace with Great Britain in 1783 and the U.S. Constitution in 1787. In Wellsboro, Stevens will talk in the first person as Benjamin Franklin. “People know about him but most don’t understand how he was able to accomplish everything he did.”
According to those who have seen his show, Stevens gives a “delightful,” “spellbinding,” “entertaining” “educational” performance and afterwards engages the audience in a “fun,” “lively” question and answer session. As a reenactor, Stevens first portrayed a regular American Revolutionary War soldier. He became Benjamin Franklin by happenstance. In 1999, my son was studying history in college and asked me to look into a local group doing colonial reenactments. “After a year, I was one of them. I was very active in the First Virginia Regiment and went to reenactment events dressed as a soldier, marched, shot and had a great time.”
Several years later, back problems precluded Stevens from being as active so he began participating at the campfires. “Even though I was dressed as a nondescript soldier, one by one, with no hesitation, people would come up to me at the campfires and say, ‘Hi Ben. How are things in Philadelphia?’ “I didn’t think I looked like Franklin but after this continued experience I decided to give being Ben a try. I asked my son about Franklin’s life. Until then, I had never portrayed any specific historical figure.” Stevens began learning more about Franklin, had an 18th century gentleman’s suit made like "Ben would have worn" and let his hair grow.
That was in 2005, 21 years ago this July. “If other people had not seen how much I looked like Ben, I would never have done this. Now, being Ben is very much a part of my life. I love it. I’m reading and learning more about him all the time. I retired from the U.S. Department of the Treasury fifteen years ago. Being Ben has been a magnificent addition to my retirement years.” As Franklin, Stevens has traveled the world. No matter where he has performed - at Le Procope, a 300-year-old restaurant in Paris, France that Franklin frequented, on a TV show “Mysteries at the Museum" or at an elementary school - everyone knows he is Benjamin Franklin. The other shows in the series are at 7:30 p.m. in the Coolidge Theatre on the following dates: Tuesday, June 23, Bob Gleason as Charles Willson Peale; Friday, July 10; Tom Pitz as Thomas Jefferson; and Tuesday, Oct. 13, Neill Hartley as Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Admission is free for youth under 21 years of age. Tickets for adults 21 and older are $15 for each show. To reserve a seat or for tickets or more information, visit deanecenter.com or call 570-724-6220.
All History Comes Alive performances are made possible by grants received from PA250 & the Charles Knox and Margaret Etner Foundation.
