Stories of women's suffrage movement to come to live on stage
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — The 19th Amendment granted women the right to vote 104 years ago, but we rarely hear about what it took for women to get that right through the women's suffrage movement.
Some of their stories will come to life on stage on Friday and Saturday. The "Proclamations of Courage II" concert recounts major moments in the long fight for women's suffrage.
Telling the unsung stories of the struggle and triumph during the women's suffrage movement through songs, narrations and images.
During "Proclamations of Courage II" this weekend, Belle Voci will perform "Suffrage Cantata" by composer Andrea Ramsey.
"It's really names of individuals who are involved, quotes of their speeches, but the lyrics are all from the words of suffragists," said Craig Cannon, president of Belle Voci.
Cannon founded Belle Voci 12 years ago. He said the all-female choir's mission is to connect song and community.
The 60-plus member chorus will perform songs of empowerment, while Lynne Hayes-Freeland narrates stories of women's long fight to establish the 19th Amendment, including Susan B. Anthony.
"Though she didn't live to see the day she could vote, she knew that day would come," Hayes-Freeland said while narrating the concert in 2022.
The concert also shares stories of women you may not have learned about in school, including Ida B. Wells, Alice Paul, Mabel Ping-Hua Lee and Pittsburgh native Daisy Elizabeth Adams Lampkin.
Belle Voci singer and board chair Doris Zurawka said it's a powerful experience. It's emotional even for her. She holds back tears because the show must go on. There are also uplifting moments that will make people smile.
"There's some snippets of this piece that really speak to me. For example, it says one day, the women got tired, got tired enough to move, and I love that play on words. They were tired enough to move forward with trying to get the right to vote," Zurawka said.
The composer wrote in her notes that she learned women silenced other women. In some instances, leading white suffragists would omit the efforts of suffragists of color from historical records.
"That discrimination even infiltrated the movement itself. So, these are stories that we don't hear. These are not recorded in the history books, but the composer spent a lot of time studying this, looking and researching," Cannon said.
"Suffrage Cantata" teaches why it's important to keep telling and singing the stories of women who lit the flame that gave women the right to vote.
"I know in history class growing up, I didn't learn about this stuff. So, we need to educate people and that's what Andrea Ramsey did with this piece," Zurawka said. "The final words are lifting as we climb, as if to say this isn't done. We still have more work to do."
There's no cost to see the two showings for "Proclamations of Courage II" on Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Duquesne City School in Duquesne and on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. at Pentecostal Temple Church in East Liberty.
The second half of the program will feature performances by Essence of Joy Alumni Singers who are alumni of Penn State University. Their performances will focus on music by Black female composers.