To commemorate this historic anniversary, the Associates commissioned ONWARD-Votes for Women, a documentary play, which incorporates the rich letters and materials from BPL’s Special Collections, among other sources. The play was made possible by the Associates' endowed Pierce Performance Series, which is dedicated to highlighting the treasures in the Library’s Special Collections. The play includes direct excerpts from manuscripts in the collections.

 

“The letters written by Lucy Stone, Francis Jackson, and William Lloyd Garrison inspired and infused the content of our documentary play, ONWARD - Votes for Women. History comes alive to our cast and production team - and we hope our audience as well - through these wonderful materials,” Lisa Rafferty, director of ONWARD, said about the importance of the Special Collections in the development of her script.

 

Connecting the twentieth-century pieces to today is a cast of local and national actors, including Joyce Kulhawik, Thomika Bridwell, and Leigh Barrett. The Library’s holdings were not only a critical influence on the script, but they also provided inspiration for the music. “Our music director and composer, Adam McDonald, used a BPL Research Library book, "Suffragist Sheet Music: an Illustrated Catalog of Published Music Associated with the Women's Rights and Suffrage Movement in America" to arrange songs from the era which add context, insights, and levity to our production,” Rafferty said of the music in the play.