The U.S. Capitol Historical Society is excited to partner with StoryWorks Theater to teach the Constitution through theater in order to develop inclusive and transformative educational experiences that foster a deeper understanding of the U.S. Constitution. The plays developed through this program engage students in inquiry based and experiential learning to inspire them to ask complex questions about the historical underpinnings behind contemporary issues. The process creates pathways to civic engagement and the fundamental recognition that “We the people” includes us all.
StoryWorks Beautiful Agitators is a virtual play reading about Vera Mae Pigee, a hair stylist and business owner in Clarksdale, Mississippi, and one of the unsung heroes of the civil rights era. Using her beauty parlor as a hub for Delta-based organizing and resistance, Pigee operated her salon by day and then transformed it into a clandestine center for civil rights organization and education in the evenings. Known for her big hats and larger than life personality, Mrs. Pigee led the direct action that registered nearly 6,000 African Americans to vote in the region. Although Pigee was largely left out of the history books, along with many women of the movement, this abridged version of Beautiful Agitators and accompanying curriculum revives her legacy, highlighting her methods and tactics.
StoryWorks Now’s The Time written by Jean P. Bordewich is a filmed performance that opens at the dawn of Reconstruction, the Civil War has just ended but the nation is plunged again into crisis with the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. Andrew Johnson ascends to the Presidency determined to restore white supremacy in the South. Congressional radicals led by Thaddeus Stevens are fighting for a different vision. They intend to create a new society of full racial equality, where Black Americans will have real economic and political power, including ownership of land confiscated from the rebels, education, suffrage and election to public office. This titanic political battle between President and Congress culminates in the first impeachment and trial of a U.S. president, and to more than 150 years of continuing violence and discrimination against Black Americans.
Electionland is the story of the violent, highly partisan, disputed presidential election of 1876 and its consequences. The election takes place in the waning days of Reconstruction, as efforts to ensure Black Americans a role in political and economic life after the Civil War were unraveling in the face of growing public opposition and the resurgence of white political power in the South. In some parts of the former Confederacy, horrific acts of intimidation and violence, even murder, against Black voters marred the casting of ballots for the Republican party. On election night, it appeared that the Democratic candidate had won the popular vote. But Congress and the electoral college faced a difficult dilemma: how to turn an unfair election, when thousands were thwarted from voting, into a fair result. After three months of political maneuvering, backroom bargaining, and a Congressional process never used before or since, the Republican Rutherford B. Hayes became president by a single electoral vote.
This new play, written by Jean P. Bordewich, will weave together information from primary resources at the National Archives and Records Administration and documents and artifacts held at the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Libraries and Museum to tell the story of the disputed 1876 presidential election. Highlighting the role of Congress, student audiences will experience a new story-telling model for learning about the Electoral College.
Please contact Janna Deitz, PhD, Project Director and Senior Advisor, at jdeitz@uschs.org with any questions about this program.
Discover the heart of American history with the U.S. Capitol Historical Society! Founded in 1962, the U.S. Capitol Historical Society has proudly worked to preserve and share the history of the Capitol, the Congress, and the people who work therein. As a nonpartisan, educational 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, the Society was chartered by Congress in 1978, in part, “to foster and increase an informed patriotism.” In service of this mission, the Society conducts historical tours of the Capitol Building, hosts both virtual and in-person public history programming, publishes scholarly research in various aspects of Capitol History, coordinates a digital civics education resource hub for teachers, manages a renowned civics education field trip program for Title I D.C. public school students, and commissions works of fine art for the Capitol collections.
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