The power of plays

While some of our community members stood on the steps of the Wyoming Capitol last Friday, others stood on the stage of the Broadway Theater, but both groups shared a message about the importance of workers and their need to be protected.

This week, three different plays are being performed in our community, and while they all have very different stories, they all have very timely messages.

I feel especially connected to the three plays this weekend. One of them, I'm performing in. One of them is one of my top favorite musicals. And one of them I'd only heard of until I got to watch an early performance of it this week and it stopped me in my tracks.

Reflecting on all three of these powerful shows, I am continually amazed at how relevant they are. Even while they tell mythical and historical stories, they are all full of universal truths and they hit on topics that we are still discussing and battles we are still fighting.

I feel privileged to have two small roles in "Radium Girls," put on by the Actors' Mission. The play focuses on workers who weren't protected by their company, and their fight for justice. I was a little overwhelmed by the irony when I realized our opening night was the same day as the Wyoming Workers Rally in Cheyenne, which had the express purpose of standing up for workers and calling for their safety and justice. It was also on the same day that many Americans called for an economic blackout to send a message to corporations. The battles that the radium girls fought 100 years ago paved the way for us now, but in many ways are still being fought.

When it comes to "Hadestown" put on by Green River High School, I have to admit that I burst into tears as soon as I heard the opening music when I visited rehearsal. This musical has had a very special place in my heart for the past six years and holds a lot of personal significance to me. But I was immediately struck by how its messages and themes are also connected to recent events and causes. For one thing, there's a group of characters specifically called "the workers" in the story. These workers also aren't protected. While they have given up their very lives for security, they have also lost their identities and their free will. They learn to "keep their heads low" and not push back against the systems oppressing them.

This theme was echoed once again in Western Wyoming Community College's production of "Cabaret." All I really knew of this musical was its nightclub setting and what many would be considered to be risqué content. This pushed me outside my comfort zone at first, until I was thrown completely out of my comfort zone the first time a swastika appeared on stage. The silence among the small crowd on Tuesday night was deafening as the story continued to unfold, sharply contrasting colorful absurdities with the stark realities of Nazi Germany.

In the midst of this powerful story, the question of pushing back against systems of oppression -- or choosing not to -- was continually presented. Again, I thought of the workers in Hadestown who keep their heads low. Again, I thought of the radium girls who refused to be silenced.

Whether it's protecting workers, protecting the marginalized and victimized, or protecting our neighbors, we have to be willing to fight.

In "Hadestown," after Orpheus has faced setbacks, he asks, "Is this how the world is? To be beaten and betrayed And then be told that nothing changes."

He thinks no one hears, but Hermes tells us that walls have ears, "and the workers heard him."

The workers finally begin to raise their heads and to ask questions.

"What's the purpose of a man? Just to turn his eyes away? Just to throw up both his hands?"

Orpheus speaks to them, asking who gets to say what the truth is anyway, while the ones who lie swear to their truthfulness and the ones who cheat say that everything is fair.

"I believe our answer matters more than anything they say," Orpheus sings. "I believe if there is still a will then there is still a way... I believe in us together More than anyone alone. I believe that with each other, we are stronger than we know. I believe we're stronger than they know. I believe that we are many. I believe that they are few, And it isn't for the few To tell the many what is true."

As the local community theater of Sweetwater County stands together this weekend to share three powerful stories, I hope the community takes the time to hear these stories, reflect on their messages, and find ways that we can all raise our heads, raise our voices, and stand together.