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SEA BATTLES AS THEATRE
It was a smashing success. Over 2000 people saw John Paul Jones live onstage
at the Portsmouth Music Hall in a dramatic recreation of his famous battle scenes
about the RANGER and the BONHOMME RICHARD. For posterity, we have archived the
photos by Rakph Morang, on stage and behind the scenes.
Original Play by Jim Kelly at Portsmouth Music Hall
Archived Summer 2002
SEE: Female JPJ in Comic Operetta from 1890s
 The hour-long John Paul Jones drama, written by James Patrick Kelly, fleshes out the often told, but rarely
understood connection between Scotsman Jones and his adopted town of Portsmouth,
New Hampshires. Performed largely before NH school children, the theatrical retelling
was the latest living history performance by the city’s NH Theater Project .
Veteran photographer and student of maritime history Ralph Morang went behind
the scenes to document the making of "I Have Not Yet Begun to Fight" for this
SeacoastNH.com archive. The following pictures give just a taste of the independent
project. It’s haunting to think that the real Jones walked this very lawn at the
Purcell House (now known at the John Paul Jones House Museum) in 1777 and again
in 1782. Here Capt. JPJ (Jim Burkholder) strikes a pose with French ambassadors
John Adams (Mike Walsh) and Ben Franklin (Joe Domingguez) during a publicity shot
as Jones French mistress (Lyndsay Becker) looks on. This version of the Jones
story is narrated by folksinger Jeff Warner who played the Captain's arch rival
-- John Langdon, NH politician, whose mansion is still open to the public just
down the street in Portsmouth. -- JDR
John Paul Jones Onstage!
Portsmouth, NH 2002
Photos by Ralph Morang
"It’s for you, Captain!" Actor Burkholder, alias JPJ, takes a cell phone call
at the Paul Jones Museum while actor Walsh, author James Patrick Kelly and Garet Warner a documentary cameraman look on.
Dress rehearsal in the green room of the hisotrical Music Hall of portsmouth
where vaudeville performers once prepared for shows.
Director Blair Hundermark checks details at dress rehearsal. All four showings
of "I have Not Yet Begun to Fight" were filled to near capacity.
Poor John Langdon (played by Jeff Warner at right) gets no respect. It was Langdon
who built the ship RANGER and selected Jones for Captain when his own man was
unacceptable to Congress. Here Langdon instructs his cousin Lieut. Simpson (Mike
Walsh), who sailed with Jones and the crew made up mostly of Piscataqua men who
went into "harm's way" in the Revolution.
The riflemen of the Ranger try out the new stage design as Captain Jones comes
on deck inthe background.
Theresa and an aged Ben Franklin play a game of chess while waiting for Jones
at the court of Louis XVI in France.
What's This? A Singing Paul Jones?
Click the photo for much more on a recent Scottish musical production of the
life of Jones. The production was staged with full cast and 16-piece orchestra
in Edinburgh. A compact-disk of the musical by Julian Wagstaff is available from
the web site which has a large detailed photo gallery of the performance. See
Scottish versions of Ben Franklin, Jones French lover, the sailors of the New
Hampshire ship Ranger, and Jones mother and sister who also appear as characters.
Click below for the Freedom Company web site..
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