Tired of put-downs, Tennessee town corrects the record with play about the Scopes trial it hosted

DAYTON, Tenn. (AP) — A small town in eastern Tennessee courted national publicity and attention a century ago when local leaders planned a test trial over the teaching of evolution in public schools. What they got from the eight-day Scopes trial was more than they bargained for.

The trial of the century — and the first to be broadcast over the radio — inspired articles, books, plays and movies, including the popular “Inherit the Wind.”

It also characterized Dayton as an uneducated town of strident Christian fundamentalists, a narrative locals have spent decades trying to rewrite.

For over 30 years, people in Rhea County have put on a play every July using the trial transcript, aiming to correct the record.

In their own words, the actors and director of “Destiny in Dayton” explain the complexities of the town captured by history.

Dan Buck was a theater professor at a nearby private university when he got an email seeking a director for the play about the Scopes trial. Buck knew about the trial, but didn't know Dayton had its own play.

“The legacy of little towns telling their own story through theater is rich history, right?” Buck said, noting the tradition was playfully lampooned in the mockumentary, “Waiting for Guffman.”

Locals have put on the play to counter the stereotypes and creative liberties from “Inherit the Wind,” as well as columnist H.L. Mencken's harsh critique of residents at the time.

“I quickly learned that the people of the town here are not real fond of the play or the movie,” Buck said. “They call it the ‘Scottish play,’ which is a reference to Macbeth, the thing you’re not supposed to say: the cursed play.”

In truth, the story of the trial was more complicated and nuanced than most people think.

John T. Scopes, the local teacher, was a willing participant in testing the anti-evolution law, and prosecutor William Jennings Bryan didn't die after the trial because he was defeated by defense attorney Clarence Darrow's arguments.

In directing the play on the trial's 100th anniversary, Buck says he is working toward the same mission Dayton leaders had a century ago.

“I am building up the buzz about this town, getting people here to get them excited, putting Dayton on the map,” Buck said. “Maybe we are trying to use this story and this trial to get a little attention to this specific place.”

Jacob Smith, 23, didn't realize his connection to the most famous trial until he started studying history. His great-great-great-grandmother's brother was Walter White, the county superintendent of schools and one of the key figures who brought the trial to Dayton.

Smith plays Dudley Field Malone, a defense attorney for Scopes who gave speeches as equally impassioned and memorable during the trial as Bryan and Darrow. One of Smith's favorite lines to deliver is a reference to the so-called battle between the two sides in court.

“He basically says, ‘There is never a duel with the truth,’” Smith said. “He said, ‘It always wins. It is no coward. It does not need the law, the forces of government, or,' and he pauses, ‘Mr. Bryan.’”

Smith is currently the county archivist, and he delights in seeing people visit Dayton’s original courthouse with its squeaky and shiny wood floors, tall windows and impressive stairs that lead up to the wide courtroom on the second floor.

“You can hold the handrails going up to that circuit courtroom, just like those lawyers would have done and all those spectators would have done back in 1925,” Smith said.

Larry Jones has acted in community and local theater since childhood, so he thought he knew the story of the Scopes trial after performing in a production of “Inherit the Wind.”

He later realized the famous play was taking creative liberties to make the trial a metaphor for something else captivating the nation's attention at the time: McCarthyism.

Jones plays the role of Bryan, a famous Christian orator and populist politician whose speeches earned him the nickname of “the Great Commoner.” He says the hardest part was not learning the lengthy speeches Bryan gives during the trial, but rather the sparring he must do when Darrow unexpectedly puts Bryan on the stand to defend the literal truth of the Bible.

“I’m just having to respond spontaneously, and it feels spontaneous every time,” Jones said. “So part of my mind is going, ‘Oh my gosh, is that the right cue? Am I going to say the right thing?’”

Jones said audiences still connect to the retelling of the trial a century later because these are issues they continue to deal with.

“People are still arguing the same case,” Jones said. “What is the role of the federal government or the state government in public school systems? What should be allowed? What shouldn’t be allowed? What can parents exert influence over for their children’s sake? Whether it’s evolution or whether it’s literature or any of the political issues that are abundant today, it still is the same argument.”

The outcome of the trial was no great surprise. The jury found Scopes guilty after a few minutes of deliberation. The defense attorneys' goal all along, however, was to take the legal argument to a higher court.

Today, Dayton embraces its place in history with the annual celebration of the trial. Businesses advertise and promote the “Monkey trial.” And locals have adopted the phrase: “Dayton has evolved.”

“We’re dusting off a very old story, but it’s very new,” said Buck. “It’s very, very right now.”

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

Director Dan Buck poses for a portrait before a rehersal of "Destiny in Dayton", July 8, 2025, in Dayton, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Jacob Smith, who plays the role of Dudley Field Malone in the play "Destiny in Dayton" poses for a portrait, July 8, 2025, in Dayton, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

The Rhea County courthouse where the "Scopes monkey trial" was held in 1925 is seen, July 8, 2025, in Dayton, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Anthony Smith who plays the roles of Walter White and Sue Hicks in the play "Destiny in Dayton" sits with a typewriter during a rehearsal, July 8, 2025, in Dayton, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

A Bible is placed on the set during a rehearsal for the play "Destiny in Dayton", July 8, 2025, in Dayton, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Larry Jones, who portrays William Jennings Bryan, in white suit, rehearses with other actors in the play "Destiny in Dayton", July 8, 2025, in Dayton, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

FILE - Judge John T. Raulston of Winchester, Tenn., holds the decision in the Tennessee vs. John Scopes case at the Rhea County Courthouse in Dayton, Tenn., on July 17, 1925. (AP Photo/File)

Larry Jones, who portrays William Jennings Bryan, left, rehearses with other actors in the play "Destiny in Dayton", July 8, 2025, in Dayton, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Stan Lane, portraying Judge John T. Raulston in the play "Destiny in Dayton" acts during a rehearsal, July 8, 2025, in Dayton, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Saudi Arabia bombed Yemen's port city of Mukalla on Tuesday after a weapons shipment from the United Arab Emirates arrived for separatist forces in the war-torn country, and warned that it viewed Emirati actions as “extremely dangerous.”

The bombing followed tensions over the advance of Emirates-backed separatist forces known as the Southern Transitional Council. The council and its allies issued a statement supporting the UAE's presence, even as others allied with Saudi Arabia demanded that Emirati forces withdraw from Yemen in 24 hours' time.

The UAE called for “restraint and wisdom” and disputed Riyadh’s allegations. But shortly after that, it said it would withdraw its remaining troops in Yemen. It remained unclear whether the separatists it backs will give up the territory they recently took.

The confrontation threatened to open a new front in Yemen's decade-long war, with forces allied against the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels possibly turning their sights on each other in the Arab world's poorest nation.

It also further strained ties between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, neighbors on the Arabian Peninsula that increasingly have competed over economic issues and regional politics, particularly in the Red Sea area. Tuesday’s airstrikes and ultimatum appeared to be their most serious confrontation in decades.

“I expect a calibrated escalation from both sides. The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council is likely to respond by consolidating control,” said Mohammed al-Basha, a Yemen expert and founder of the Basha Report, a risk advisory firm.

“At the same time, the flow of weapons from the UAE to the STC is set to be curtailed following the port attack, particularly as Saudi Arabia controls the airspace.”

A military statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency announced the strikes on Mukalla, which it said came after ships arrived there from Fujairah in the UAE.

“The ships’ crew had disabled tracking devices aboard the vessels, and unloaded a large amount of weapons and combat vehicles in support of the Southern Transitional Council’s forces,” the statement said.

“Considering that the aforementioned weapons constitute an imminent threat, and an escalation that threatens peace and stability, the Coalition Air Force has conducted this morning a limited airstrike that targeted weapons and military vehicles offloaded from the two vessels in Mukalla,” it added.

It wasn't clear if there were any casualties.

The Emirati Foreign Ministry hours later denied it shipped weapons but acknowledged it sent the vehicles “for use by the UAE forces operating in Yemen.” It also claimed Saudi Arabia knew about the shipment ahead of time.

The ministry called for “the highest levels of coordination, restraint and wisdom, taking into account the existing security challenges and threats.”

The Emirati Defense Ministry later said it would withdraw its remaining troops from Yemen over “recent developments and their potential repercussions on the safety and effectiveness of counter-terrorism operations.” It gave no timeline for the withdrawal. The UAE broadly withdrew its forces from Yemen years earlier.

Yemen’s anti-Houthi forces not aligned with the separatists declared a state of emergency Tuesday and ended their cooperation with the UAE. They issued a 72-hour ban on border crossings in territory they hold, as well as entries to airports and seaports, except those allowed by Saudi Arabia. It remained unclear whether that coalition, governed under the umbrella of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council, would remain intact.

The Southern Transitional Council’s AIC satellite news channel aired footage of the strike's aftermath but avoided showing damage to the armored vehicles.

“This unjustified escalation against ports and civilian infrastructure will only strengthen popular demands for decisive action and the declaration of a South Arabian state,” the channel said.

The attack likely targeted a ship identified as the Greenland, a vessel flagged out of St. Kitts. Tracking data analyzed by the AP showed the vessel had been in Fujairah on Dec. 22 and arrived in Mukalla on Sunday. The second vessel could not be immediately identified.

Jens Laerke, a spokesperson for the U.N. humanitarian office, urged combatants to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure, like the port, saying any disruption to its operations “risks affecting the already dire humanitarian situation and humanitarian supply chains.”

Mukalla is in Yemen's Hadramout governorate, which the council seized in recent days. The port city is some 480 kilometers (300 miles) northeast of Aden, which has been the seat of power for anti-Houthi forces after the rebels seized the capital, Sanaa, in 2014.

Yemen, on the southern edge of the Arabian Peninsula off East Africa, borders the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The war there has killed more than 150,000 people, including fighters and civilians, and created one of the world's worst humanitarian disasters.

The Houthis, meanwhile, have launched attacks on hundreds of ships in the Red Sea corridor over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip, disrupting regional shipping. The U.S., which earlier praised Saudi-Emirati efforts to end the crisis over the separatists, has launched airstrikes against the rebels under both Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump.

Tuesday's strike in Mukalla comes after Saudi Arabia targeted the council in airstrikes Friday that analysts described as a warning for the separatists to halt their advance and leave the governorates of Hadramout and Mahra.

The council had pushed out forces there affiliated with the Saudi-backed National Shield Forces, another group in the anti-Houthi coalition.

Those aligned with the council have increasingly flown the flag of South Yemen, which was a separate country from 1967-1990. Demonstrators have been rallying to support political forces calling for South Yemen to secede again.

A statement Tuesday from Saudi Arabia's Foreign Ministry directly linked the council's advance to the Emiratis for the first time.

“The kingdom notes that the steps taken by the sisterly United Arab Emirates are extremely dangerous,” it said.

Allies of the council later issued a statement in which they showed no sign of backing down.

Associated Press writer Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report.

This frame grab from video broadcast by Saudi state television on Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025, shows what the kingdom describes as a shipment of weapons and armored vehicles coming from the United Arab Emirates, at Mukalla, Yemen. (Saudi state television via AP)