Kornbluth lights up the stage
as Ben Franklin

By Rita Charleston
For the Times

The Philadelphia Theatre Co. will present Ben Franklin: Unplugged, written and performed by West Coast monologue artist Josh Kornbluth as part of PTC’s 30th-anniversary season, and the show also is a great way to celebrate Franklin’s 300th birthday.
Kornbluth’s creation, written in collaboration with director David Dower, will be presented Jan. 10-21 on the theatrical company’s stage at 1714 Delancey St. It takes Kornbluth on a wild journey to uncover the mystery of the relationship between Franklin and his son, William.
Based on actual historical findings, with plenty of laughs along the way, Kornbluth’s quest to learn about the "real" Ben Franklin not only solves the mystery of Franklin and his son, but also offers Kornbluth poignant closure and reconciliation with his own father.
Kornbluth said he was drawn to Franklin’s story partly because he noticed that he looked like big Ben. An even bigger motivation, perhaps, was that Kornbluth’s relationship with his own eccentric father — a member of the Communist Party — mirrored the sharp divisions and disappointments that Franklin had for his son, who was on the opposing side of the American Revolution.
Born in New York City 46 years ago, Kornbluth, who now lives in California, said he never thought about a career as a performer until, while working on a newspaper, he joined co-workers in a skit during a going-away party for one of his editors.
"I had never acted before, but just doing that little skit, which I really enjoyed, planted the seed in me," Kornbluth said. "Next thing I knew I was anxious to perform, although I started late in life. I was thirty."
Since then, Kornbluth has amassed an enviable list of credentials. For example, his off-Broadway debut of the autobiographical Red Diaper Baby was nominated for a Drama Desk Award in the Solo Performance category. It also was selected for inclusion in Best American Plays of 1992. A feature-film version of Haiku Tunnel, an earlier monologue, was released nationally by Sony Pictures Classics.
Kornbluth has written other one-man shows and was looking around for something else he could create when he was shaving one day, looked in the mirror, and realized how much he resembled Ben Franklin.
"That’s literally what got me going on this piece, which had its original debut back in 1998," he said. "The piece is sort of autobiographical in nature and always about the same thing: father/son relationships."
During his long months of research, Kornbluth said, he discovered many things about Franklin that surprised and amazed him.
"You know, lots of times we look for the personal revelations about people — their foibles and how some of these great men and women in history ended up just being human like the rest of us," Kornbluth said. "But what interested me and surprised me most about Franklin was when you really get to where his passion is, where the heart of what his life was about, it’s not the details about his personal life but the passion in his public life.
"Franklin created many public versions of himself and he dedicated his life almost completely, it seems to me, to the public good. He did so much for people, and the list of what he created just goes on and on and on."
So will Kornbluth’s play, he hopes. The author is thrilled that the play will debut in Philadelphia.
"And that’s just the way it should be," he said. "I’ve never done a run of anything in Philadelphia, and to do the Franklin piece here, especially with his three-hundredth birthday coming, is fitting and proper. In a city where so many Ben Franklins are present, I only hope the audience enjoys seeing my production as much as I enjoyed putting it together." ••

Things you need to know . . .

Ben Franklin: Unplugged will be presented Jan. 10-21 by the Philadelphia Theatre Co., 1714 Delancey St.
The performance schedule is Tuesday, Jan. 10, through Saturday, Jan. 14, at 7:30 p.m.; Sunday, Jan. 15, at 3 p.m.; Tuesday and Wednesday, Jan. 17-18, at 1 and 7:30 p.m. each day; Thursday and Friday, Jan. 19-20, at 7:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Jan. 21, at 2 and 7:30 p.m.
Tickets for performances on Sunday and Tuesday through Thursday are $35 for orchestra seating, $30 for the mezzanine. Tickets for Friday and Saturday are $40 orchestra, $35 mezzanine.
For more information, call the box office at 215-985-0420.