Americans are a passionate people, particularly when it comes to politics. You think things are divided now? Look at this quote from an 1800 editorial in The Connecticut Courant:

[If the other side wins], murder, robbery, rape, adultery, and incest will be openly taught and practiced, the air will be rent with the cries of the distressed, the soil will be soaked with blood, and the nation black with crimes.

And who was heading up this “other side”? Founding Father and author of the Declaration of Independence Thomas Jefferson.

A Presidential Warning

While this type of division has always been part of our nation, our greatest leaders have continually warned us against it. At his Farewell Address in 1796, George Washington said:

The spirit of party… serves always to distract the public councils and enfeeble the public administration. It agitates the community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms, kindles the animosity of one part against another, foments occasionally riot and insurrection.

And just over 100 years later, Theodore Roosevelt provided similar words:

If as a nation we are split into warring camps, if we teach our citizens not to look upon one another as brothers but as enemies divided, surely we shall fail and our great democratic experiment on this continent will go down in crushing overthrow.

To counter that division we often look to the great unifying symbols of our nation. The Flag. The Statue of Liberty. Our National Anthem.

And a House. A White House.

A White House

With one of the most famous street addresses in the world, the White House has served as the residence of every U.S. President since John Adams in 1800. Built using light-gray sandstone, the building was first whitewashed in 1798 to weatherproof the stone. And while the moniker “White House” had been used by the public for decades, it was Teddy Roosevelt who first dropped “Executive Mansion” in 1901 in favor of this more common name.

Over time, the building has changed considerably, having been burned, rebuilt, gutted, retrofitted, expanded, renovated, and redesigned. But through all of this, it has remained a symbol of the Presidency, of our democracy, and our nation.

The Hope of Us All

In 1976 – as part of the celebrations for the United States Bicentennial – the White House was chosen as the setting for the musical 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. It arrived on Broadway with an impressive pedigree: Book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Leonard Bernstein (his last original score for Broadway). It left, however, after only seven performances, and is now considered one of Broadway’s most legendary flops.

The show went through tumultuous out-of-town tryouts, with the original director, choreographer, and set and costume designer leaving the production during this period. And because of the critical and public response to the work – and upset that much of his music had been condensed and edited without his approval during the tryouts – Bernstein refused to allow a cast recording to be produced at all.

Given these challenges, it’s not surprising that the work is little known today. Despite this, however, the song Take Care of This House – an allegory about the responsibility we all have for our nation – continues to endure. I first sang this piece in a musical review at the Lancaster Opera House in the 1980’s. It was a pleasure revisiting it again and developing this new orchestral arrangement for AMERICA: 250 Years Young, as the song’s message of hope remains just as timely today. It is a musical reminder that our democracy is a house we must all protect, maintain, and care for – together.