Paul DeBoy joined with ‘All the Way’ castmates last week to read from the landmark 1964 Civil Rights Act. The video can be viewed here. Photo by John Moore for the DCPA NewsCenter.
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MEET PAUL DEBOY
Robert McNamara/Sen. James Eastland in All the Way

At the DCPA Theatre Company: Debut. Broadway: Harry Bright in Mamma Mia! (also national touring production), Nick in Sight Unseen at Manhattan Theatre Company. Other Theatre: Eurydice at 2nd Stage; My Fair Lady at Pioneer Theatre; The 39 Steps at Repertory Theatre of St Louis; as well as Cincinnati Playhouse, Kansas City Rep, The Walnut Street Theatre, Maltz Jupiter Theatre, The Olney Theatre and Studio Arena. TV/Film: “Royal Pains,” “The Following,” “Law & Order,” “CI,” “Trial by Jury,” “A Dirty Shame,” by John Waters.

• Hometown: Baltimore
• Training: American Academy and The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
• Website: PaulDeBoy.com
• What was the role that changed your life: I’ve had a lot of roles I’ve been fond of, or that challenged me, but I’d have to say playing Harry Bright in Mamma Mia!  changed my life. I gave him four years of my life, he got me out of debt, showed me all of North America and gave me my Broadway debut.
• Why are you an actor? My two older brothers appeared on the stage at early ages. Watching them made me realize it was something I may have a passion for. Turns out I was right.
• What would you be doing for a career if you weren’t an actor? I think I’d either be a musician or an athlete. Probably musician because you could have a longer career. I love singing and playing the guitar when I’m not learning lines. 
• Ideal scene partner: I am such a huge fan of Tom Waits. I know if I ever met him I would be starstruck and tongue-tied. But to do a scene with him would put us both on just the even keel I’d need to break the ice. He’s amazing.
• Why does All the Way matter? Because it talks about an issue America has been fighting for more than 100 years. Race relations in this country has been an incredibly slow and painful process for much of middle America. This play attempts to depict just how difficult and unequal the balance of power and acceptance was in our political world, and what a struggle it was and still is to right all those wrongs.  
• What do you hope the audience gets out of it? I lived through the Kennedy and Johnson administrations – grant you, I was young, but I remember very well the events and people we are depicting here. I hope the audience will come, not expecting to be preached to, but interested to see the larger-than-life figures we remember as just simple human beings with faults, humor and warts and all, moving through this historic time in our history. It’s a fascinating play, and it has been a joy to grasp a better understanding of these events.
• Finish this sentence: “All I want is …”
  “Besides world peace, all I want is for people to just understand each other a little better. And to realize that life is a whole lot shorter than you think. Try to make the best of it.” 

All The Way: Ticket information

By Robert Schenkkan (pictured right)