Radium Girls Provides Glimpse of History still Relevant Today

November 26, 2021

Academics

GNS

“Most importantly everyone has poured their heart and soul into this play which is magical.” says Calla Roberts ’22, who is playing Grace Fryer, the main character of GNS’ fall play Radium Girls. Rightly so since rehearsals have been intense and in this week alone, the cast and crew have had four rehearsals consecutively before Wednesday opening night.

On opening night, both cast and crew members hid all signs of nervousness and stage fright with their remarkable performance, exuding only positive energy. With their emotional and breathtaking characterization, they transported the audience back to the 1920s when girls working with the “miracle substance,” radium, became mysteriously sicker and sicker.

Radium Girls is based on a true story, making it all the more impactful and all the more immersive. “For those who love history, it is also a true story and many of the characters you see in the play were real people.” says Calla.

When asked what drew the actors to Radium Girls, there were many different responses.

Julia Roethel ’24, who plays Irene Rudolph, says that “I really love acting, but the fact that Radium Girls was a true story, and included morally grey characters instead of just good and evil is super cool.”

Connor Roberts ’22, a veteran of the GNS theatre, who plays Arthur Roeder, states what drew him to this play was the connections with real day issues, “I thought it would be a compelling production for extremely important gender issues, which we still see today.”

Luise Rau ’24, who plays shop owner, dial painter, and model, says this is something she has always wanted to do and confides that this is the first time she has been part of a play.

“I’ve always wanted to be a part of a play, especially since I’ve never been able to do it before. So this was the perfect opportunity!”

Keith Sze ’25 says he chose to be a part of this year’s production because of “The experience to work for a theatre backstage, and get to be the behind-the-scenes people that helped to put up the show.” There are only two live performances remaining, tonight at 7 p.m (November 26) and tomorrow at 2 p.m. (November 27), so hurry and get your tickets, from the school website. For the live performances, adult tickets cost $15 and students/senior tickets are $10. For the live-streamed performance tonight at 7 p.m (November 26), tickets are $15 each.