In Tony-nominated ‘Suffs’, girl power comes to Broadway, South Jersey style

Last Thursday, Lenape High School senior Morgan Hann, 18, and a bunch of her friends hopped on a train for a big theater night on Broadway.

But it wasn’t just any musical, and Hann and her friends weren’t just any girls.

They went to see Suffs, a musical based on South Jersey’s own Alice Paul, a leader in the fight for women’s right to vote. And for the friends — all members of Mount Laurel’s Alice Paul Institute’s Girls Leadership Council — this wasn’t just a night of fun. It was a rallying cry.

“I feel like a lot of people are going to be talking about the musical and what it means,” Hann said. “Like with Hamilton. No one really cared about Hamilton outside the history books. Then you had all these people talking about him. I feel once people hear about Suffs, more people are going to start talking about Alice Paul and the others and their work, and start demanding change.”

That was always the hope for Suffs, an ensemble musical written and starring Shaina Taub that premiered at Manhattan’s Public Theater in 2022 and came to Broadway April 18. Yesterday, it garnered six Tony nominations — including best new musical and best book of a musical.

“By telling suffrage stories, I hope to inspire the next generation to dig up the hidden histories of our country and to take action themselves for progress and equality,” said Taub during Suffs’ Public Theater run.

Many of the characters in Suffs are unknown to most Americans, even though their work on the passage of the 19th Amendment laid the foundation for other changes to come.

Bringing Suffs’ story to Broadway may change that, said Rachael Glashan Rupisan, executive director of the Alice Paul Institute.

“Being able to share Alice’s story on this platform enables more people to understand that women have made really effective change in our country,” Rupisan said.

Paul, a Burlington County Quaker whose historic Mount Laurel family homestead houses her namesake institute, was a determined political strategist whose gutsy moves included leading the first-ever protests in front of the White House. As Suffs shows, she was incarcerated for her activism and force fed while behind bars.

“I think this will help people understand that was maybe the most militant period of feminist history,” said Molly Gonzales, the Paul Institute’s advocacy manager.

Paul died at 92 in a Moorestown nursing home and is buried in Cinnaminson. That she didn’t live to see the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment was a disappointment she took to her grave.

But the ERA has now been ratified by the necessary 38 states. Activists around the country like members of the Young Feminist Party and supporters in Congress’ ERA Caucus are working to make it a law, said Gonzales. That includes the Alice Paul Institute, which provides information about the ERA on its website.

After last Thursday’s performance, the institute was one of the sponsors of ERA Night, a program at the theater that included a panel discussion with second-wave feminism leader and journalist Gloria Steinem.

“It was so wonderful to hear Gloria Steinem speak,” said Lydia Smith, 17, of Moorestown. “We had an unexpected opportunity to meet her before the musical, which was absolutely amazing. It was such an honor.”

In their monthly meetings, the Girls Leadership Council members discuss issues facing women in the country and the world. Over the past two years, they’ve tackled period poverty, creating and stocking a feminine hygiene products pantry at the Cherry Hill Library.

“They’ve already seen a difference in their period pantry,” said Quincy Wansel, institute youth program coordinator. “That’s one library in one town, but it’s helped over 300 community members. That makes them feel great, and it should. Even if it helps just one person, that’s making a difference in the world.”

Being at Suffs made the young theatergoers feel they were already part of something bigger than themselves, especially as their fellow audience members cheered the suffragists, booed the men who stood in their way, and laughed at the play’s jokes.

“There were definitely key moments in the play that I really felt inspired by. I got goose bumps,” said Salmah Khalil, 18, who started a feminists club at her school, Cherry Hill West. “Specifically when they were going on that march on Washington. It was very inspiring because it’s not as recognized, but there was major change because of that. It was almost like I was in the march when I was watching it happen.”

Kennedy Dancy, 17, of Mount Laurel said she enjoyed seeing so many men in the audience enjoying the play.

“Just seeing men in that theater really moved me and made me think about my own future with my own kids,” she said. “If I had a male [child], I would absolutely want him to see this.”

And like the Alice Paul character in Suffs, these girls said they see more fight in their futures given recent events like the reversal of Roe v. Wade and persistent problems of gender inequality. The prospect didn’t seem to daunt them.

“It kind of makes me want to fight more,” said Cora Schmidt, 18, of Moorestown. “It makes me excited because I love having those conversations and bringing those more difficult topics to people. It’s a good way for people to acknowledge there’s still struggles for women in this country.”

Lindsey Catlett, 18, of Mount Laurel seems to view the future as a certain suffragist had.

“I think there’s still more fighting, a lot more work to be done because there’s still the gender wage gap and there’s still a lot of other issues in the world,” she said. “Like they say in the show, it’s not going to be done and most people are not going to live long enough to see it. I think that’s true. That doesn’t mean you should stop.”

“Suffs” runs through Sept. 1 at New York City’s Music Box Theatre. https://suffsmusical.com/tickets/