MTM Celebrates Amazing Women in "Beyond the Ingenue: Trailblazers"
Ruth Bader Ginsburg: Attorney, women's rights advocate, gender equality warrior, second woman to serve on U.S Supreme Court. Song by Jennifer Hedstrom. Played by Ann Imig.
Long before COVID upended all our lives, I was very excited about 2020: It is the 100th anniversary of the passage of 19th Amendment, granting (white) American women the right to vote. This was supposed to be a year-long celebration of women’s suffrage, and the amazing accomplishments of the “fairer sex” over the past century. But as we all know, a myriad of current crises have overshadowed the historical breakthroughs that illustrate how far women have come.
Which is just one more reason I’m looking forward to Music Theater of Madison’s second installment of their revue, Beyond the Ingenue, celebrating complex female characters who, dramatically speaking, want a lot more than just “getting the guy.” But rather than culling songs from existing musicals, this year’s version highlights the lives and struggles of real women, both historical and contemporary, through newly commissioned work.
MTM Executive Director Meghan Randolph elaborated on why she chose to foster the creation of new, biographical pieces about women trailblazers this time around: “While everybody likes a good love story, womxn have so much to say and so many stories to tell. Musical theater can absolutely do more to support that. We were delighted to use local artists to illustrate the stories of real womxn who each deserve an entire musical of their own!”
All of the songs are original and written by Wisconsin-based composers, Randolph explained during a recent interview. “Local performers ages 14-62 worked in close partnership with area composers to select the person they wanted to portray and bring to her life in a song. And frankly,” she confessed, “I am pretty blown away by what they came up with.”
Princess Ka'iluani of Hawai'i: Last heir to the throne of the Hawaiian kingdom who fought fiercely against its overthrow. Song by Kailea Saplan and Meghan Rose. Played by Kailea Saplan.
Some stories are familiar, recounting the struggles and triumphs of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, First Lady Michelle Obama, climate activist Greta Thunberg, and actor/producer Viola Davis. Some are obscure, such as suffragette and nursing advocate Lavinia Dock, trans activist and Senator-elect Sarah McBride, and Princess Ka'iulani of Hawaii, the last monarch who fought against her kingdom’s colonization.
Sarah McBride: Trans rights activist and author, Democratic Delaware State Senator-elect. Song by Catherine Capellaro and Andrew Rohn. Played by Siobhan Jackson.
To complete the performance, there are informational videos between each song to provide context. “A couple of songs have a bit of narration within them but it's mostly sung. Most songs are a specific moment in the person's life, but a few are sung more retrospectively,” Randolph added.
In 2018, Beyond the Ingenue performers traveled to nine outreach locations and enjoyed two sold-out performances at the Brink Lounge. This year, MTM obviously can't host live audiences, so the company is filming the evening and making it available digitally. The finished product can be streamed through the MTM website on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays in November and December. The suggested ticket price is $10 per viewer, but it’s accessible on a pay-what-you-can basis.
While live theater has a host of logistics to reckon with, recorded performances in the era of COVID present a whole new raft of challenges, according to Randolph. “We recorded at Cafe Coda, with N95 masks and face shields on, an air purifier running, and only one singer in the building at a time,” she explained. “We also insisted on negative COVID tests for all involved, then sanitized like crazy. We were able to stand about 15 or 20 feet away while each singer performed. It was exhausting, but hearing people sing live again was special and moving.”
MTM’s goals with the production are many, but fundmentally Randolph is determined to show that women have many stories to tell and that as performers, they should not be restricted to “types” based solely on looks, race, and identity. “I also wanted to show the inspiring work of Wisconsin composers, give them a fun and challenging opportunity to work with a singer and write specifically for them, and share that work with audiences. Since we’re always looking for what's next, this seemed like a perfect opportunity. I would gladly watch a full musical about any of these womxn, by any of these gifted composers.”