Post-WWII Play 'Born Yesterday' Feels Relevant Today

Garson Kanin’s Born Yesterday is a post-World War II play about the risks of big money corruption in Washington DC. But it’s also a story about a millionaire junkyard dealer trying to bully his way to influence and power, at it feels just as relevant in 2018 as it did in 1946. The San Francisco Playhouse production, expertly directed by company co-founder Susi Damilano, is funny and chilling in the way the show’s junk dealer, not a fan of democracy, resembles President Trump. But the show has added resonance for the way the junk dealer’s mistress, Billie Dawn, gets woke, and how she decides to resist. Not everything works in this show, but there’s a great performance at its center by actress Millie Brooks as Billie, in a role that made actress Judy Holliday famous. Details for the show’s run Jan. 23-March 10 at San Francisco Playhouse are here.