Overview

Many have heard about the devastating Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire on New York City's Lower East Side in 1911, and about the important labor laws enacted in its deadly wake. But no one knows much, if anything, about the lives of the young women caught up in this tragedy. Now David Brendan Hopes beautifully imagines their lives for us, bringing us their passions, hopes, and dreams, as well as their songs and laughter, in an effervescent, moving world premiere.

Full Product Details

9781952720123

Table of Contents

Reviews

Simply the most moving and inspiring piece of theater I saw all year. It also reminded me of just how wonderfully intimate theater can be... Set against the ominous horrors of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911, David Brendan Hopes' new play, Washington Place, tells a story of hope and inspiration about the workers within that doomed building. The Magnetic Theatre has something special on its hands in this great play by a local author [about] a day in the life of women who are not allowed to dream of more or aspire to better lives. Some accept it, some protest it. There is no sense of their impending doom, which makes what is to come all the more unsettling. We get to know, and develop an affection for, these women and their plight. The show is powerful. It reminds us of the sacrifices of those who died over a century ago. It is also a cautionary tale to warn us that such struggles are still playing out in our world today. This is what theater can and should be. -Jeff Messer, Mountain Xpress

Author Information

"David Brendan Hopes is a poet, a playwright, and an author of fiction and nonfiction prose. His theatrical works have been produced in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and regionally, including Asheville, NC, where he lives. He has twice received the North Carolina New Play Project Prize, as well as the Holland New Voices Playwriting Award, the Sprenger Foundation Award for Historical Drama, the Desert Star Award for Best Original Writing, the Arch and Bruce Brown Foundation Award for Playwriting, and the Siena Playwrights' Prize. Poetry accolades include the Juniper Prize and the Saxifrage Prize. Originally from Ohio, Hopes taught at Hiram College, Syracuse University, Phillips Exeter Academy, and the University of North Carolina at Asheville. His published novels include ""The Falls of Wyona,"" which won the Quill Prize from Red Hen Press; ""Night, Sleep and The Dreams of Lovers""; and ""The One with the Beautiful Necklaces."" His nature essays, ""A Sense of the Morning"" and ""Birdsongs of the Mesozoic,"" appeared from Milkweed Editions and his memoir, ""A Childhood in the Milky Way,"" from Akron University Press."

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available