Bits of Richmond and Charlottesville will help tell the story of the political icon regarded as America's first first lady, Dolley Madison.
Tomorrow at 9 p.m., PBS' "American Experience" series will debut "Dolley Madison," a biopic about the woman whom director Muffie Meyer called, "probably the most important . . . of the 19th century."
The show was filmed on location last summer in Montpelier and Hanover County, with the set previously used for HBO's "John Adams" filling in for Philadelphia. A Richmond courthouse was used for many interior shots.
Last month, Meyer previewed some clips from "Dolley Madison" at the Virginia Historical Society and said about two-thirds of it was filmed in Virginia. Letters, diaries and journals from the time were used to convey a sense of how life was during Madison's generation.
"Most people say 'hostess, cakes or ice cream' when asked of their knowledge of Dolley," Meyer said. "The challenge was to produce a 90-minute program about a nice lady who did more than serve ice cream. [The goal] was to get people to watch a film about her rather than 'American Idol' or 'Law & Order.' "
British actress Eve Best -- currently seen as Dr. O'Hara on Showtime's "Nurse Jackie" -- stars in the title role, with Jefferson Mays as her husband, James Madison, and Mark Joy playing Thomas Jefferson. Several Richmond children, some of them descendants of the Madison family, play orphans.
Among Madison's achievements shown in the film was elevating a sense of style -- a tradition upheld by modern first ladies -- transforming the Executive Mansion into, said Meyer, "a house of civility" and rescuing a portrait of George Washington before the British torched the White House during the War of 1812.
Contact Melissa Ruggieri at (804) 649-6120 or mruggieri@timesdispatch.com.
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