Summary

Act One: Scene Two takes place at the Republican Convention in Miami in 1968. Andy Warhol being shot, the assassination of Martin Luther King, and the assassination of the Democratic nominee for president Bobby Kennedy, are depicted on stage.

The scene switches to a hotel room where Vidal is staying with Matt, a young man he met at the New Year’s Eve party in Scene One. Matt and Vidal discuss Vidal’s close ties with the Kennedy family and his conflicted feelings towards Bobby Kennedy in the wake of his assassination. Vidal asks Matt to be his assistant, helping him prepare for the debates by researching statements Buckley has made in the past in his magazine. Vidal suspects Buckley will not do much preparation.

The scene continues with Buckley, Patricia, and Buckley’s publisher Frank Meyer in a different hotel suite...