The Public Theater will present Suffs, a new musical from Shaina Taub following the lives and legacies of the key leaders in the Women’s Suffrage Movement of 1920. Suffs tickets are available on New York Theatre Guide now.
Just roughly one century ago, the voting rights of some women were finally achieved through the Nineteenth Amendment, largely thanks to key figures of the Women’s Suffrage Movement: Inez Milholland (Philippa Soo), Ida B. Wells (Nikki M. James), and Alice Paul (Shaina Taub), to name a few. However, just like many of the efforts to improve our society today, this movement was not without its faults. With an honest, 21st-century lens, Suffs seeks to examine both the crucial building blocks and the cracks in the foundation of the Women’s Suffrage Movement through the women that pioneered it.
With a book and score by up-and-coming composer Shaina Taub, Suffs off-Broadway brings forth an exciting new voice in musical theatre. Taub was the 2014 recipient of the esteemed Jonathan Larson Award, and recently gained notoriety with her work composing for and starring in the Public Theater’s most recent Twelfth Night and As You Like It adaptions. Taub is also writing the upcoming The Devil Wears Prada musical.
In 2020, The New York Times profiled Suffs for their Offstage documentary series, which highlighted the process of theatermaking during the pandemic. Suffs will feature choreography from Raja Feather Kelly, who is known for his radical downtown surrealist productions, as well as his own dance-theatre-media company, the feath3r theory, which aims to broaden the space for unheard voices. Kelly has also recently made headlines as the choreographer for the Pulitzer Prize-winning new musical A Strange Loop, now opening on Broadway in spring 2022. Two-time Obie Award-winning director Leigh Silverman will lead the production.
Suffs premieres at The Public Theater on April 6, with previews beginning March 10.
Tickets to Suffs are available now. Get your Suffs tickets on New York Theatre Guide today.
A musical event one hundred years in the making, Suffs brings to life a complicated chapter in the ongoing battle for the right to vote: the American women’s suffrage movement. Written by and featuring one of the most exciting new voices in theater, Shaina Taub, this epic new musical takes an unflinching look at these unsung trailblazers. In the years leading up to the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment, an impassioned group of suffragists — “Suffs” as they called themselves — took to the streets, pioneering protest tactics that transformed the country. They risked their lives as they clashed with the president, the public, and each other. A thrilling story of brilliant, flawed women working against and across generational, racial, and class divides, Suffs boldly explores the victories and failures of a fight for equality that is still far from over.
The world premiere of the new musical Suffs, with a book, music, and lyrics by Shaina Taub, has announced casting. Performances will begin at The Public Theater on March 13, 2022 ahead of an April 6 opening night.
There’s one moment in Suffs that will make you want to get up and raise your fist. It’s early on in Act One, during a 1913 protest where over 5,000 women, wearing white, marched on Washington to demand the right to vote. In real life, suffragist and lawyer Inez Milholland led the procession astride a white horse, wearing a crown and cape. Suffs impressively recreates that moment, with the... Read more