Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater in Washington D.C. Courtesy photo.

Politicians have debated it, social media has memed it, and the Washington Post even published it in book form. Now, the Mueller Report is headed for the stage.

In an 11-hour production (yes, 11 hours), Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater, based in Washington, D.C., will present a reading of the report on the Investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 Election at noon on July 11. The theater expects to use more than 300 volunteers, each speaking for about three minutes, to read through the second volume of the report.

The event is in association with actress and activist Jjana Valentiner, and it is meant to be a public, nonpartisan presentation so the general public can read and hear the Mueller Report without commentary and can make up its own mind about the report's findings.

Especially as politicians kick off their campaigns for the 2020 presidential election, the theater's artistic director, Molly Smith, said the event will be an important resource to inform the general public.

Molly Smith.

“Washington, D.C. has the smartest theater audience in the world,” she said. “In the run up to the election and debates there will be a lot of conversations about the Mueller Report. Let's educate ourselves.”

That will be accomplished, in part, by the handful of attorneys who have already volunteered to read the special counsel's report at the event, which will be live-streamed. Smith declined to identify who has signed up.

Josh Galper, a co-founder of Washington-based Davis, Goldberg & Galper, said a straight reading of the report without additional commentary is an important way for the public to develop their own opinions about the report's findings. Galper, who is friends with a member of the organization's board, will be out of town during the event, but he said it was a great opportunity for Washington-based attorneys to volunteer.

“So many people, in reading the report and commenting on it all over the media, have said that the report speaks for itself, and that the work of the report speaks for itself,” he said. “This is a moment to let the report literally speak for himself. That way, you're not distracted by points of view that may have agenda behind them. You're able to just hear the words and make a true decision for yourself.”

The Mueller report was released in March 2019 and documents the findings of special counsel Robert Muller's 22-month investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Volume II specifically addresses potential obstruction of justice by President Trump and his administration.

The redacted report, which was made available to the public in April, is 448 pages long. Smith said the document's length and density has made it less accessible to the average reader.

“We want a simple, clean reading of it,” Smith said. ”If there are any people who would be able to read this clearly, it will probably be lawyers.”

Galper said, via email, that the Washington legal community might be the best place to crowd-source volunteer readers for the event.

“So many D.C. lawyers are actors at heart,” he said, adding, “This is the drama of our time.”