When Emmy Award-winning actress Holland Taylor steps onto the stage of the Eisenhower Theater at the Kennedy Center to perform “Ann,” her one-woman show about former Texas Gov. Ann Richards, it feels as though time has collapsed and the world is transported back to an era when Richards was still alive, giving a speech to graduating seniors at a college in Texas. For this detailed tribute to Richards, Taylor did considerable research about Richards’ personal and public background. The result is a funny, moving, informative remembrance in which Taylor lays bare the essential Richards, a strong, resourceful woman who never shrank from admitting her vulnerabilities.

The commencement speech is cleverly designed to allow Richards to talk about the importance of hard work and determination. She recalls her hard-as-nails mother, who convinced Ann that “life was difficult.” Richards tells stories about her father, whom she adored, a man who taught her how to have fun. This background provides a clear sense of what shaped Richards, preparing her for the trials and tribulations of political life.