The Four Women Featured in Janina Birtolo’s Plays
Imagine Catherine the Great giving a Ted Talk in person. Or Marjory Stoneman Douglas. Or Abigail Adams.
Janina Birtolo has written a dozen beautifully-crafted portrayals of historical female figures that changed the world, for better or for worse. These intimate performances are portrayed by professional actresses who study the character with the playwright. The performers have knowledge beyond the script so they are prepared for audience engagement.
Each play lasts an hour and is told in the first person. Actresses portray the roles in costume with props that they provide.
For the performances at the Norris Center in Naples, Florida, tea will be served before and after each matinee performance. After the show, enjoy a talkback with the actress and a casual meet and greet.
Abigail Adams:
Remember the Ladies
A call to responsibility and duty. In it, Abigail Adams recounts admonishing John to “remember the Ladies” while drafting the country’s new laws and threatening to foment a rebellion if the women are neglected. A feisty, resourceful and determined woman, Abigail cared for the family’s children, farm and finances while John was pre-occupied with the forming and survival of the new United States. Separated for nearly a decade, they maintain a steadfast and romantic relationships defining an era.
Marjory Stoneman Douglas:
A Voice for the Everglades
Author of the pivotal book, The Everglades: River of Grass, and an environmentalist who continues to inspire. Douglas helped spread the message of the Everglades uniqueness and vitality to life in South Florida. Twenty years after the establishment of Everglades National Park, she was asked to help defeat plans to build a jetport in the fragile area. Douglas responded by starting the Friends of the Everglades and becoming an environmental activist – at the age of 80! In 1993, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Blessed with a wry humor, a sharp wit and an enlightened perspective, she packed a lot of living into her 108 years of life — and made a tangible difference.
Galileo: Most Affectionate Daughter
Suor Maria Celeste
Virginia is the elder, illegitimate daughter of the famed 17th century scientist Galileo. The play draws on surviving letters from Maria Celeste to her father to make the case that religion and science aren’t such strange bedfellows after all. At 13, she and her sister were placed in a convent by Galileo, to keep them safe. Two years later, Virginia took the vows of St. Clare and became Suor Maria Celeste. Highly accomplished and esteemed in her own right, she offers her perspective on Galileo’s struggle to remain Catholic while stretching the frontiers of science. A blend of fact, fiction and even quantum physics, all in a historical context.
Ida Tarbell, Muckraker:
The Mind Must Be Convinced
The work of this investigative journalist helped break up the Standard Oil Company monopoly. Labeled as one of the “muckraking” journalists of the early 20th century, Ida Tarbell resented the title and preferred to view herself as an historian. She believed that “the mind must be convinced” by facts, rather than emotion or sensationalism, if positive and permanent change was to come. Her reporting served as the basis for the subsequent anti-trust legislation. Like her fellow muckrakers, she believed the illegalities and injustices of her day needed to be revealed. Yet, for all the power she wielded with words, she remained content in the background – taking notes.
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