The Players Guild’s ‘Assassins’ aims straight, fires true Tommy Carosielli Everybody’s got the right to be happy. The pursuit of happiness is an American ideal and fundamental right applicable to every citizen whether native or foreign born, successful or downtrodden, well intended or looking to shoot the President. With dark, enigmatic music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim – including the declarative statement that opens this review and can be found in the show’s opening number – “Assassins” is a one-act play by John Weidman about the nine people who either killed or tried to kill an American President. >From the perspective of the sardonic playwright, what has been perceived as isolated acts of madness is just a creative outlet for broken people who are seeking a little happiness in their sorry lives. The musical opened as an off-Broadway production in 1990 before earning multiple Tony Awards on Broadway in 2004. It is now in production at The Players Guild Theatre in Canton, where director Jonathan Tisevich approaches this twisted but seductive story head on with comedic relief and tragic revelations. And he has found a talented, like-minded cast and crew for the storytelling. Tommy Carosielli is a senior at Cleveland State University majoring in Communication, whose review is supported by a CSU Civic Engagement grant. For more of this review, go to www.clevelandjewishnews.com/theater/.