Top of the Georgetown Staircase
Detailed Involvements
Events with rich location context
The top of the Georgetown staircase serves as an intimate preparation space where Bartlet and his aide finalize tone and lines; it is both backstage and a threshold, allowing a last private exchange before public exposure.
Tense and quiet with low-key banter; undercut by the formality heard below.
Staging area for last-minute rehearsal and emotional preparation before the procession.
A literal and metaphorical threshold between Bartlet's private fatherhood and his public presidency.
Limited to the President, his aides, and the Chancellor in this moment.
The top of the Georgetown staircase serves as the private staging area where Bartlet and his adviser make last-minute rhetorical choices; it is the intimate threshold between private counsel and public performance.
Tense but controlled: quiet, focused, with undercurrent of paternal worry.
Staging area/entrance point where last edits are made before public appearance.
Represents the liminal space between intimate truth and public persona.
Generally limited to authorized staff, officials, and family members; not open to the general public.
The top of the Georgetown staircase is the staging area where last-minute edits and private exchanges occur; it functions as a liminal space between the private White House-style counsel and the formal public ceremony below.
Tense-within-calm: quiet, focused, slightly intimate with an undercurrent of paternal anxiety.
Staging area and private prep zone for the President's final speech adjustments.
Represents the threshold between personal worry and public performance.
Restricted to senior staff and invited personnel during preparations; not open to the general public.
Events at This Location
Everything that happens here
At the top of Georgetown's staircase Bartlet and Will make last-minute edits to the commencement address, briefly sparring over whether to lead with Eudora Welty or Gandhi. Will praises the …
Bartlet and Will make last-minute choices about a commencement quotation while Will quietly names the speech a "home run" yet admits it won't keep Zoey from leaving — exposing the …
On the staircase outside Georgetown's hall, President Bartlet and Will trade last-minute tonal choices for a commencement speech while Bartlet's light humor masks a deeper paternal anxiety. Will notes the …