Both ACT ONE and ALL THE WAY fall short of some of our recent Best Play winners, but I agree ACT ONE deserves it this year. Both shows felt bloated, but ACT ONE felt bloated with theatricality and emotional resonances, and ALL THE WAY felt bloated with anecdotes, famous quips and historicity rather than analysis. ALL THE WAY told me nothing about what it was like to be any of those men (MLK aside, the only character I felt was three-dimensional in the writing.) ACT ONE was a richer emotional experience, and more entertaining overall, though not great literature. ALL THE WAY was academic (and not in a good way, ie Stoppard) and wooden. A chore to stick with, since it was like a High School textbook instead of a compelling drama.
Words don't deserve that kind of malarkey. They're innocent, neutral, precise, standing for this, describing that, meaning the other, so if you look after them you can build bridges across incomprehension and chaos. But when they get their corners knocked off, they're no good anymore…I don't think writers are sacred, but words are. They deserve respect. If you get the right ones in the right order, you can nudge the world a little.