Beth Webster, Playwright

For twenty-five years, I have been writing stories that fascinate me, but nothing came close to the intrigue surrounding the French Legation, Alphonse and Sam Houston. The King of Texas started life as a screenplay that my agent quickly nixed, saying, “Nobody wants to see a historical movie. Can’t sell it.” Who am I to argue? So it sat on a shelf, slowly dying, for fifteen years. Ken Webster (no relation, we just share a love of theater) read it and suggested I turn it into a two-man play. With his amazing eye for detail, it was transformed into a character-driven comedy. The best part is that this story - the Pig Wars, the Franco-Texian pact - is all true, based on the letters written by the principal characters. It belongs to Austin. It is, I’m sure, one of the reasons this town is weird - it was born weird. Under Ken’s direction, and with two of the best actors I have ever seen, Alphonse and Sam will live on.