Women + on the Edge of Democracy
Shakespeare & Company
By: S&Co - Oct 22, 2026
Shakespeare & Company Presents Select Works from Women+ On The Edge of Democracy
On Sunday, November 1, nine plays will be read as part of a 12-day International event
Lenox, Mass.– Shakespeare & Company is proud to announce its presentation of select plays from Women+ On The Edge of Democracy on Sunday, November 1 at 5 p.m., in Studio 3 of the Elayne P. Bernstein Performing Arts Center. There is no charge to attend.
A groundbreaking initiative encouraging conversation about American democracy created by the Flynn Center in Vermont (Jay Wahl, Executive Director) and The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize (Leslie Swackhamer, Executive Director), Women+ On The Edge Of Democracy sets out to form a collective portrait of a nation in doubt and transformation–seen through the eyes of women+ playwrights from around the world who have long chronicled America’s contradictions and dreams.
Ariel Bock, producing associate with Shakespeare & Company, said she’s pleased to be able to take part in an international movement.
“I’m glad we have the opportunity to present some of these amazing plays, and that we can be part of an effort to mobilize theater as a means to help start important conversations, and encourage all of us to vote as the election gets closer,” she said.
Shakespeare & Company will present nine readings of 10-minute plays, selected from Women+ On The Edge Of Democracy anthology of 34 woman-identifying playwrights. The titles were chosen by a committee of Company Artists, and will be presented in two acts with talkbacks at the end of each act:
Things I Worry About by Bridget Carpenter
Churn by Justice Hehir
Pecking Order by Elizabeth Diggs
Attestation by Lynn Nottage
An Uplifting High School Graduation Speech by Sarah Ruhl
Reasonable Suspicion by Lisa Loomer
The Betsy Ross Book of the Dead by Paula Cizmar
Searching for Elsie Parrish by Heidi Schreck
Common Ground by Lauren M. Gunderson
Production Manager Erika Johnson said that in reading the plays, she returned often to the notion that what is happening in our democracy affects all of us in many different ways.
“Not everyone can see the perspective of others in their day-to-day reading of the news and social media,” she said. “In fact, sometimes these outlets actually further isolate us from knowing what others are going through, or try to invalidate those experiences.”
To that end, patrons will be invited to share their thoughts by completing the sentence “As a ________________, America makes me feel ______________________,” and posting their answers on a wall display.
According to the Flynn Center and The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize event organizers, “The commission welcomes work from across the political spectrum. Through comedy and tragedy, rage and tenderness, hope and fear, these writers will map a picture of America today–revealing how democracy feels to those who have spent their lives giving voice to the unseen and unheard.”
The Flynn, an artistic catalyst in Burlington for nearly 100 years, created this groundbreaking cultural and civic initiative which commissioned 34 prominent women+ playwrights from around the world to write 10-minute plays or monologues in response to these urgent questions: What is the current state of democracy in America? What can history, global context, or futurism offer us in this pivotal moment?
As the U.S. marks its semiquincentennial, the Flynn has published the complete collection of plays as an anthology–free to perform–and invited artists, community groups, and citizens across the country to stage readings and performances ahead of the U.S. midterm elections. The anthology is available for purchase, with rights waived for individuals and non-profit organizations who would like to present the plays free of charge to the public. Organizations and individuals wishing to participate can sign up at democracy.flynnvt.org.
Free tickets can be reserved at shakespeare.org. For more information, email news@shakespeare.org, or call the Box Office at 413.637.3353.
Approaching fifty years, the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize is the largest and oldest international playwriting prize recognizing and celebrating women+ playwrights writing for the English-speaking theater. The 34 commissioned playwrights are Jane Anderson, Leslie Ayvazian, Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti, Moira Buffini, Lucy Caldwell, Bridget Carpenter, Paula Cizmar, Migdalia Cruz, Erika Dickerson-Despenza, Elizabeth Diggs, Hannah Doran, Stella Feehily, Lauren M. Gunderson, Zinnie Harris, Justice Hehir, Beth Henley, Elizabeth Kuti, Haruna Lee, Kimber Lee, Rebecca Lenkiewicz, Lisa Loomer, Sarah Mantell, Deb Margolin, Ellen McLaughlin, Susan Miller, Rona Munro, Lynn Nottage, Ife Olujobi, Dael Orlandersmith, a.k. payne, Heather Raffo, Sarah Ruhl, Heidi Schreck, Jenny Schwartz, Judith Thompson, and Else Went. Dramaturgs for the project include Martine Kei Green-Rogers, Sarah Mantell, Amrita Ramanan, Zeina Salame, and Jenny Worton.
Image caption: Original artwork created by Paula Scher/Pentagram
ABOUT SHAKESPEARE & COMPANY
Shakespeare & Company was founded in 1978 by Tina Packer. Located in the Berkshires of Massachusetts, the Company offers performance, education, and actor-training opportunities year-round, and attracts more than 40,000 patrons annually with a core of more than 150 artists.
ABOUT THE FLYNN
Located in Burlington, Vt., the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts invites everyone to imagine, create, and connect through the power of live performance. An acclaimed theater and performance center since 1930, the Flynn presents a broad array of artistic forms that reach 1 in 4 Vermonters annually. The Flynn’s facilities include a 1,439-seat Main Stage theater, Flynn Space (a black-box performance venue), education and dance studios, and a visual art gallery. Throughout its 30+ years as a nonprofit organization, the Flynn has earned a national reputation for presenting theater, jazz, and dance—performances that were previously rare in a small, rural state. Today, The Flynn is also a statewide leader in performing arts education, presenting art in public spaces, and producing innovative works that open new ways of seeing, dreaming, and being.
Through bold, accessible, and expansive programming, the Flynn is continually pushing beyond the bounds of its physical spaces, taking performances into parks, outdoor marketplaces, schools, and farms across Vermont–engaging, challenging, and reimaging what the performing arts can look like. Guest curators have helped to bring new perspectives to performance series, and partnerships with nonprofits and other arts organizations have further expanded community impact.
In the 2025/26 season, the Flynn hosted 148,000 people at 259 performances and events, including on the mainstage, at the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival, and in education programming, free community events, and Student Matinee shows. The Flynn is a cultural anchor for Vermont, presenting diverse, high-quality artistic experiences that celebrate global perspectives, elevate local voices, and invite the entire community to take part in the transformative power of live performance.
ABOUT THE SUSAN SMITH BLACKBURN PRIZE
The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize is the largest and oldest international award recognizing women+ writers for plays of outstanding quality written for the English-speaking theatre. For nearly fifty years, the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize has recognized the most visionary women writing for the stage—artists whose voices have defined and redefined contemporary theatre. Past Winners of the Prize include Annie Baker, Alice Birch, Benedict Lombe, Julia Cho, Caryl Churchill, Jackie Sibblies Drury, Katori Hall, Lucy Kirkwood, Marsha Norman, Lynn Nottage, Dael Orlandersmith, Lucy Prebble, Sarah Ruhl, Paula Vogel, Wendy Wasserstein and Timberlake Wertenbaker.
Since 1978, over 500 plays have been honored as Finalists of the Prize and many have gone on to receive top honors, including Olivier, Lilly, Evening Standard and Tony Awards for Best Play. Twelve Susan Smith Blackburn Finalist playwrights have subsequently won the Pulitzer Prize in Drama. The Prize results in more productions of plays by women+ writers and fosters the interchange of plays among the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and other English-speaking countries.