‘Oh, Mary’ star Cole Escola had no idea how toxic Abe Lincoln’s marriage was — even after writing script
a hilariously scheming Mary Todd Lincoln who dreams of returning to her cabaret roots, but she’s stuck aimlessly wandering around the White House while unhappily married to Abe Lincoln.The deliciously demented mind behind this inspired lunacy is Cole Escola (who uses they/them pronouns), who wrote and stars as the titular subject opposite Broadway star Conrad Ricamora.In a recent interview, Escola, 37, told the New York Post that the genesis for “Oh, Mary!” came about over a decade ago in 2009.“I loved the idea so much that I was scared to write it,” they shared. “Because I wanted it to be as perfect as I had it in my mind.”But the COVID-19 pandemic helped the writing process along.“I had nothing going on,” Escola continued.