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An original, one-woman show about Abigail Adams.
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| REMEMBER THE LADIES is about Abigail Adams, wife of America's second President and mother of the sixth U.S. President. But she was much more than a simple wife and mother. A true partner to her husband, John Adams, Abigail was deeply involved in the politics of her time --and extremely outspoken about her opinions. While John represented Massachusetts and the country, Abigail manned the homefront, taking care of the farm and raising and educating their children. And yet the relationship between her and John was surprisingly romantic. The theme of the play is straightforward: it is a call to responsibility and duty. Abigail arrives, reading the preamble to the U.S. Constitution. She has returned, she informs the audience, to remind and to chide us to be steadfast in preserving our hard-won liberties and freedom. She recounts her rich and varied life -- including the episode of admonishing John to "remember the Ladies" while drafting the country's new laws and threatening to foment a rebellion if the women are neglected. Yet she continually focuses on how circumstances asked her to meet challenges and the lessons she has to share with us today. I was inspired to write Remember the Ladies after reading Cokie Roberts' Founding Mothers. Although many of the Revolutionary era women had fascinating stories, Abigail stood out from the rest by virtue of her feistiness and resolve. That book led me to Phyllis Lee Levin's Abigail Adams: A Biography and to The Letters of John and Abigail Adams. While continuing my research on the Internet, I found the Liberty Bell Museum, where I was able to obtain antiqued copies of the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution and Thomas Paine's Common Sense. The research allowed me to discover a woman who was strong, capable, funny and fascinating. Fully costumed, Remember the Ladies is a lesson in history and the importance of valuing the liberties and freedoms we have been granted through the brave efforts of those who founded this country. The program runs about one hour and requires little space, allowing its performance nearly anywhere. Only a small table and chair are needed; all other props are supplied. Post-performance question/answer sessions can also be arranged. |
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| Back to One-Woman Shows | |||||||||||||||||
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