Broadway's most talked-about comedy right now isn't your typical historical drama. According to Rolling Stone, Cole Escola's Oh, Mary! has turned the relatively unknown story of Mary Todd Lincoln—Abraham Lincoln's wife—into an 80-minute comedy that leaves audiences laughing.
Escola doesn't constrain herself with historical fact. The comedian, known from Search Party and Difficult People, essentially plays Mad Libs with American history, filling in blanks about the former First Lady with comedic chaos. "It's not like she's some diva who we hear all these stories about," Escola told Rolling Stone. "So it's funny to me to be like, 'Oh, what if she was an idiot?'"
That approach resonates. The show opened at the Lyceum Theatre in July 2024 after an Off-Broadway run that was extended twice. By 2025, it had won two Tony Awards.
The show is nearly impossible to get into. But according to Rolling Stone, resale platforms like StubHub, Vivid Seats, SeatGeek, and TodayTix have tickets available. The publication tested StubHub and confirmed it works—no surprises at the box office.
Rotating casting keeps the buzz going. Since Escola's original run, the role has cycled through Maya Rudolph, Tituss Burgess, and Jinkx Monsoon. Comedian Meg Stalter is headlining through September 12, bringing fresh audiences to the show.
Why does a comedy about a historical figure few care about suddenly matter? Oh, Mary! taps into something larger: the power of comedians to reimagine worn narratives and make audiences laugh at what they thought they knew. Escola's approach feels subversive next to prestige TV biopics and solemn period dramas. The show proves that Broadway audiences want comedy that doesn't apologize for being silly—and they'll pay resale prices to see it.
Runs through January 3, 2027. Good luck finding seats.
