Jayden Blumberg – Discussion Post #4

The musical Suffs on Broadway approaches the representation of the women’s suffrage movement through captivating visuals, humor, and an all-female cast. The most exciting scene from the musical was when the suffragists were marching, led by the actor playing Inez Milholland. She was wearing gold armor and riding a horse. The scene was very flashy and powerful. There was a lot of humor used throughout the show. Interestingly enough, most jokes were still relevant and relatable to modern women. There was a lot of laughter and agreement throughout the audience. One comment that most of the audience related to was, ‘When women get married, they sign their lives away.’ Another significant aspect of the musical was the use of an all-female cast. Even the characters that were male historical figures were played by women. The actor who was in a wheelchair caught my attention in the opening scene because I had never seen someone with a disability in a musical before. It was a great way to represent people with disabilities who are often a forgotten group. A potential challenge of portraying historical figures and events in contemporary theatre is being as historically accurate as possible without making it hard for the audience to understand. The historical information used in Suffs was informative enough for the audience to understand the context of scenes without being confused. The show influences the public’s perception of this moment in history by giving it more attention. It is not a moment that is talked about enough for the amount of impact it had on America. 

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