There’s something uniquely powerful about seeing Edward R. Murrow brought to life on stage, especially if George Clooney is bringing the esteemed journalist back to life.

In the theatrical production of Good Night, and Good Luck, the legendary broadcaster doesn’t just narrate history, he inhabits it, standing under harsh lights and the weight of his convictions as he confronts the rising tide of fear and demagoguery during the McCarthy era.

The immediacy of live theater strips away any sense of safe distance. You’re not watching a relic of the past. You’re feeling the heat of the studio lamps, the tension of truth hanging in the air and the moral stakes that defined a generation.

And as you sit in the audience, you can’t help but feel echoes of the present.

Today’s political landscape is again marked by division, disinformation, and public trust under strain. The specter of fear-driven politics once wielded by McCarthy has found new forms. But Good Night, and Good Luck reminds us that we’ve been here before, and, praise the Founding Fathers, we found our way out.

Murrow’s defiance, broadcast from a smoky studio in a time of national paranoia, became a turning point. He used the power of the press not to inflame, but to inform. Not to sensationalize, but to stand firm. The play captures that moment not as nostalgia, but as a rallying cry.

It’s not just about one man’s courage. It is about the capacity of a society to listen, to think critically and to reclaim its values when they’re under siege.

Yes, we survived McCarthyism. Not without pain, but with purpose. The institutions of democracy endured. Journalism found its spine. And the public, when shown the truth, responded.

That history matters, not to comfort us, but to challenge us. In today’s climate, where shouting often drowns out speaking, and loyalty is too often confused with silence, Good Night, and Good Luck is a reminder of what moral clarity looks like. And how vital it is.

Theater can do what few mediums can.

It holds a mirror up to history and to ourselves, in the same breath. This play does just that. And it leaves you with the sense that the fight for truth is never over, but it’s always worth having.

As Murrow said in words that still resonate across decades and footlights:

“We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty.”

We’ve heard those words before. We need to hear them again. And thanks to this remarkable production, we do.

I was emotionally overwhelmed by both the play and cast.

I think my visceral reaction was due to my respect for Murrow who I had researched during my time at journalism school and the impact, to quote Yogi Berra, “Deja vu all over again”

My family’s reaction was quite different.

My husband walked into Good Night, and Good Luck expecting George Clooney to deliver a breakout, tour de force moment..:something that would grab the audience by the lapels and declare, “This is Edward R. Murrow!”

But Clooney, in a move that was truer to Murrow than to theatrical convention, opted for understatement. His performance was restrained, cerebral and quietly intense, a mirror of Murrow’s actual demeanor that I remembered, rather than a dramatized projection of it.

My daughter, who’s in her 30s and didn’t grow up with the specter of McCarthyism, felt the script could have used a few more historical cues. Without lived experience or background knowledge, some of the names flew by too quickly. A bit more scaffolding would’ve helped younger audience members appreciate just how much was on the line and why Murrow’s quiet defiance mattered so deeply.

What makes the play resonate, especially now, is its quiet warning. In an era of partisan shouting matches, misinformation and algorithm-driven outrage, Good Night, and Good Luck reminds us of the power of calm, principled journalism.

Murrow didn’t fight demagoguery with noise. He dismantled it with facts, dignity and the courage to speak truth to power.

Watching it today, you realize that history doesn’t just repeat, it echoes. And if Murrow could hold the line with grace in a darker time, maybe there’s hope for us yet.

I loved every minute of Good Night and, Good Luck and I pray for the same outcome once the crazies are anesthetized.