It’s hard to surpass the attention NR has given to the Left’s failed scam of Chevron. The contrived charges that the oil giant polluted Ecuadorean rainforests and forced cancer upon the locals not only failed in U.S. courts, but was described by one federal judge as a criminal racketeering operation (for just a small sampling of our Chevron coverage, click here, here, here, here, here, and here). Which is why the multi-billion-dollar shakedown has been slapped with the deserved title of “Legal Fraud of the Century.”
As much as it was that, this “case” is more so a major Culture War battle. Which is why some of us are thrilled to see Chevron’s enemies being taken on (using their own words!) in a classic cultural setting, and in San Francisco of all places: On Saturday, May 19, the curtain goes up at The Phoenix Theater (414 Mason Street) for The $18-Billion Prize, a “verbatim theater production” coauthored by acclaimed playwrights Jonathan Leaf (an occasional NR contributor) and Phelim McAleer (who along with Ann McIlhenney produced Gosnell and FrackNation). From the play’s press release:
The claim: the Amazonian rain forest has been polluted by evil oil giant Chevron. But all is not what it seems. What if in this David and Goliath battle . . . David is the villain? Stories of sex-obsessed Hollywood celebrities let loose in the jungle and the private diaries of the lead attorney submitted into evidence are just some of the plot twists in this wild and crazy tale.
Broadway World has an excellent story about the play and what instigated it. And if you want an expert take on the authors’ previous works, check out Kyle Smith’s 2017 NR reviews praising McAleer’s Ferguson and Leaf’s The Fight. If you wish to see The $18-Billion Prize, it runs through Sunday, June 3 (there are just 11 performances). Get your tickets here. Heck, only if you have donated to NR’s 2018 Spring Webathon first, do consider sponsoring the play.