Commissioned by the Associates of the Boston Public Library, the world premiere of ONWARD – Votes for Women is a documentary play created by Lisa Rafferty, with music arranged and composed by Adam McDonald. 

The second event in the prestigious Pierce Performance Series, ONWARD celebrates the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment.  The production offers the voices and perspectives of the extraordinary women who fought for 70 years for equality. Over thirty historical characters from the movement, along with women leaders from our time,  will be portrayed by a cast of ten for one performance  on Thursday, March 19 at 6:30 pm at Boston Public Library’s Rabb Hall.  

The cast will play multiple roles throughout the 70-minute performance, including Susan B. Anthony,  Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Sojourner Truth, Lucy Stone, Alice Paul, Mary Church Terrell, Shirley Chisholm, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Gloria Steinem.  The script is created verbatim from documents from the Special Collection, and other speeches, letters, articles and interviews from a variety of sources.  Suffrage music and songs will be interspersed throughout the production, along with an original composition.

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 CAST

PRODUCTION TEAM

Director: Lisa Rafferty

Scenic Elements, Props, and Stage Manager: Meri Madden

Costume Design:  Zoe Sundra

Lighting Design: Emmett Buhmann

Assistant Director and Assistant Stage Manager: Alysssa Germaine

Production Associate: Michael Eckenreiter

Production Assistant: Kiersten Samalis

Research and Digital Display:  Jody McDonough

Graphics: Sarah Smith Design

MUSICIANS

Conductor and Keyboard: Adam R. McDonald

Piccolo, Flute and Alto Flute: Elena Rubin

Oboe and English Horn: Mary O’ Keefe

Bb Clarinet and Bass Clarinet: Thomas Acey

Cello: Jonah Ellsworth

Percussion: Zachary Hardy

Adam R. McDonald

Visit the Pierce Performance Series page for more information,

through the Associates of the Boston Public Library.