Plays Featuring Notable Women in History

From science to literature to politics, women have always shaped our history. Celebrate their accomplishments with these titles about women who left their mark and made a difference.

Ada and the Engine by Lauren Gunderson (Drama / 3w, 3m) (US)
Who: Ada Byron Lovelace, Mathematician
Synopsis: As the British Industrial Revolution dawns, young Ada Byron Lovelace (daughter of the flamboyant and notorious Lord Byron) sees the boundless creative potential in the “analytic engines” of her friend and soul mate Charles Babbage, inventor of the first mechanical computer. Ada envisions a whole new world where art and information converge – a world she might not live to see. A music-laced story of love, friendship, and the edgiest dreams of the future. Jane Austen meets Steve Jobs in this poignant pre-tech romance heralding the computer age.

The Agitators by Mat Smart (Drama / 1w, 1m) (US/UK)
Who: Susan B. Anthony, Suffragette
Synopsis: Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglas were great allies, and at times, great adversaries. Young abolitionists when they met in Rochester in the 1840s, they were full of hopes, dreams, and a common purpose. As they grew to become the cultural icons we know today, their movements collided and their friendship was severely tested. This is the story of that forty-five-year friendship – from its beginning in Rochester, through a civil war, and to the highest halls of government. They agitated the nation, they agitated each other, and, in doing so, they helped shape the Constitution and the course of American history.

The Anastasia Trials in the Court of Women by Carolyn Gage (Drama / 9w) (US)
Who: Duchess Anastasia Romanov, Royalty
Synopsis: An engrossing, controversial courtroom drama, where the audience must serve as judge and jury, deciding motions and verdict, in a case against the five women who betrayed the Grand Duchess Anastasia Romanov, the last surviving daughter of the Tsar of Russia. Complex ethical questions on a set of folding chairs. A farcical but profoundly engaging excursion into the hidden world of ethics for women who are both survivors and perpetrators of abuse toward women.

Ann by Holland Taylor (Drama / 1w) (US)
Who: Ann Richards, Governor of Texas
Synopsis: Ann is an intimate, no-holds-barred portrait of Ann Richards, the legendary late Governor of Texas. This inspiring and hilarious play brings us face to face with a complex, colorful and captivating character bigger than the state from which she hailed.

The Audience by Peter Morgan (Drama / 4w, 9m) (US)
Who: Queen Elizabeth II
Synopsis: For sixty years, Queen Elizabeth II has met with each of her twelve Prime Ministers in a private weekly audience. The discussions are utterly secret, even to the royal and ministerial spouses. Peter Morgan imagines these meetings over the decades of the Queen’s remarkable reign, through Prime Ministers from Winston Churchill, Margaret Thatcher to David Cameron.

The Belle of Amherst by William Luce and Emily Dickinson (Drama / 1w) (US)
Who: Emily Dickinson, Poet
Synopsis: In her Amherst, Massachusetts home, the reclusive nineteenth-century poet Emily Dickinson recollects her past through her work, her diaries and letters, and a few encounters with significant people in her life. William Luce’s classic play shows us both the pain and the joy of Dickinson’s secluded life.

Bernhardt/Hamlet by Theresa Rebeck (Comedy / 3w, 8m) (US/UK)
Who: Sarah Bernhardt, Actress
Synopsis: In 1899, the international stage celebrity set out to tackle her most ambitious role yet: Hamlet. A rollicking high comedy with human drama, set against the lavish Shakespearean production that could make or break Bernhardt’s career.

Bronte by William Luce (Drama / 1w) (US/UK)
Who: Charlotte Brontë, Author
Synopsis: In 1849 Charlotte, at thirty-three, returns from Scarborough, where she has buried Anne, her youngest sister. Only Charlotte and her stern God-fearing father are left in this house of memories and she has resigned herself to the notion that she will live and die a lonely old maid. As the play unfolds, Charlotte comes to terms with her genius and her need for love.

Bull in a China Shop by Bryna Turner (Comedy / 5w) (US/UK)
Who: Mary Woolley and Jeannette Marks, Activists and Educators
Synopsis: Inspired by the real letters between Mary Woolley and Jeannette Marks spanning from 1899 to 1937, this fast-paced comedy asks: What is revolution? What does it mean to be at odds with the world? How do we fulfill our potential? And how the hell do we grow old together?

The Chinese Lady by Lloyd Suh (Drama / 1w, 1m) (US)
Who: Afong Moy, America’s first female Chinese immigrant
Synopsis: Afong Moy is 14 years old when she’s brought to the United States from Guangzhou Province in 1834. Allegedly the first Chinese woman to set foot on U.S. soil, she has been put on display for the American public as “The Chinese Lady.” For the next half-century, she performs for curious white people, showing them how she eats, what she wears, and the highlight of the event: how she walks with bound feet. As the decades wear on, her celebrated sideshow comes to define and challenge her very sense of identity.

Decision Height by Meredith Dayna Levy (Drama / 9w) (US/UK)
Who: The Women Airforce Service Pilots
Synopsis: Virginia Hascall has left her home and fiancee to become a Women Airforce Service Pilot, and do her part to help defeat the Axis powers in the Second World War. Through triumph and tragedy, she and her sisters in flight suits learn as much about themselves as they do about airplanes. As the war rages over there, the women form a sisterhood that cannot be broken, and Virginia must make a decision that will change her life forever. A story about friendship and the complex, but essential role of women in wartime.

Dodi & Diana by Kareem Fahmy (Drama / 1w, 1m) (US/UK)
Who: Princess Diana; Dodi Fayed, Film producer
Synopsis: August 31, 2022: Jason and Samira are staying at the Hôtel Ritz Paris, the same hotel where Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed spent some of their last moments alive. They’re there for the “cosmic convergence,” the twenty-fifth anniversary of the untimely deaths of Diana and Dodi, which Jason’s astrologer has promised will awaken and possibly unite the two couples spiritually. But what’s really at stake is the future of Jason and Samira’s relationship. They’re desperate to lose themselves in the type of passion they had at the beginning of their relationship. Will the couple be able to overcome Jason’s jealousy over Samira’s acting career and their differing opinions over starting a family and find their way back together?

Golda’s Balcony by William Gibson (Drama / 1w) (US)
Who: Golda Meir, Israeli Prime Minister
Synopsis: This tight-knit story of war and peace opens in 1973, on the eve of the Yom Kippur War, and uses flashbacks to let Golda tell the story of her life: her journey from her birthplace in Russia to the United States where she settled in Milwaukee, became a school teacher and married. She describes her role as a socialist Zionist, her emigration to Palestine in 1921, the birth of her two children and the breakup of her marriage. These details form an intriguing backdrop for a dramatic look at idealism, power and the strength it takes to shape the destiny of a nation.

Hillary and Clinton by Lucas Hnath (Drama / 1w, 3m) (US)
Who: Hillary Clinton, US presidential candidate
Synopsis: In an alternate universe light-years away from our own is a planet called Earth. It looks a lot like our Earth, except it’s slightly different. And living on this other Earth is a woman named Hillary. Hillary is trying to become the president of a country called the United States of America. It’s 2008 and she’s campaigning in a state called New Hampshire. She’s not doing very well in the polls. She needs more money to keep the campaign going, so she calls her husband for help. He offers her a deal, a tough deal, but when she gets his help, she gets more than she bargained for. You may think you know where this story is going, but you don’t. After all, the play takes place in an alternate universe where anything can happen.

Joan of Arc by Thomas Wood Stevens (Drama / 5w, 32m) (US)
Who: Joan of Arc, Saint and Military Leader
Synopsis: This remarkable play about Joan of Arc was especially prepared for production in Domremy, birthplace of Joan, in September, 1918. The occasion was a most impressive one, since the production was undertaken by American actors aided by members of the A. E. F. The play was later performed in other towns of Lorraine, the province surrounding Domremy. The play is based to a great extent directly on the testimony actually taken down at the trial of Joan. Nearly all of the Maid’s speeches are taken literally from the evidence.

Las Meninas by Lynn Nottage (Drama / 3w, 4m +ensemble) (US)
Who: Queen Marie-Therese, Queen of France
Synopsis: A true story of the illicit romance between Queen Marie-Therese (wife of Louis XIV) and her African servant, Nabo, a dwarf from Dahomey, and the hilarious consequences that scandalized the French court.

Marys Seacole by Jackie Sibblies Drury (Drama / 6w) (US)
Who: Mary Seacole, Nurse
Synopsis: Born in 1805 Jamaica, Mary Seacole is determined to live an extraordinary life. As she travels across oceans and centuries, through a Jamaican hospital, a Crimean battlefront, a contemporary nursing home and everywhere in between, Mary moves through life with Herculean fortitude. But as her brazen spirit meets historical reality, Mary’s world explodes, splitting, multiplying and redefining her narrative.

Meg by Paula Vogel (Drama / 2w, 3m) (US/UK)
Who: Margaret More, Writer
Synopsis: With the action of A Man for All Seasons as backdrop, Meg explores the forces imprisoning Margaret More, daughter of Sir Thomas More. “Meg,” uniquely isolated from her time and environment, finds being an intelligent, independent woman in such a male-dominated society to be a double-edged sword. The play intertwines several themes on multiple levels: the story of Sir Thomas More as seen through his daughter’s eyes; the story of a young wife and mother that also explores dynamics of the father-daughter relationship as Meg discovers her role in both her father’s legacy and her own place in history.

The Miracle Worker by William Gibson (Drama / 7w, 7m) (US/UK)
Who: Annie Sullivan, Special Needs Teacher; Helen Keller, Author and Political Activist
Synopsis: This classic tale dramatizes the volatile relationship between Annie Sullivan and her student, the deaf and blind Hellen Keller. Trapped in a secret, silent world, unable to communicate, Helen is violent, spoiled, and treated as sub-human. Only Annie realizes that there is a mind and spirit waiting to be rescued from her dark, tortured silence. With scenes of intense physical and emotional dynamism, Annie’s success with Helen finally comes with the utterance of a single, glorious word: “water.”

Mom, How Did You Meet the Beatles? by Adrienne Kennedy and Adam P. Kennedy (Comedy / 1w, 1m) (US/UK)
Who: Adrienne Kennedy, Author
Synopsis: Adrienne Kennedy relates her star-studded experience of moving to London and working on The Lennon Play: In His Own Write. Her absolute astonishment at being thrust in among the rich and famous of the theater and film world is really refreshing and charming. This is a great story, told in an interview-style conversation between a mother and son.

The Most Spectacularly Lamentable Trial of Miz Martha Washington by James Ijames (Satire/Political Satire / 4w, 2m, 1boy) (US)
Who: Martha Washington, First Lady of the United States
Synopsis: The recently widowed “Mother of America” lies helpless in her Mount Vernon bed, ravaged by illness and cared for by the very slaves that will be free the moment she dies. As she begins to slip away, she falls deep into a fever dream of terrifying theatricality that investigates everything from her family to her historical legacy.

Mother of the Maid by Jane Anderson (Drama / 4w, 3m) (US/UK)
Who: Joan of Arc’s Mother
Synopsis: The story of Joan of Arc’s mother, a sensible, hard-working, God-fearing peasant woman whose faith is upended as she deals with the baffling journey of her odd and extraordinary daughter. This riveting play is an epic tale told through an unexpected and remarkable perspective.

Mrs. Stern Wanders the Prussian State Library by Jenny Lyn Bader (Drama / 1w, 2m) (US/UK)
Who: Hannah Arendt, Political thinker
Synopsis: An encounter in 1930s Berlin takes a surprising turn as an earnest young officer must interrogate the iconic political thinker Hannah Arendt – a woman in possession of untold wit, charm and ideas. Inspired by real events, this fantastical drama delves into the life and mind of one of history’s deepest thinkers.

Murder, Margaret and Me by Philip Meeks (Dark Comedy / 3w) (US/UK)
Who: Agatha Christie, Author; Margaret Rutherford, Actress
Synopsis: Queen of Crime, Agatha Christie didn’t want Margaret Rutherford to bring her fabled spinster to life. And Margaret Rutherford was mortified at the prospects of sullying her reputation with something as sordid as murder. This is the story of the real reason why the acting legend and “the funniest woman alive” didn’t want to take on the role that made her celebrated across the world. Margaret and Agatha form an unlikely friendship filled with high tea, brandy snaps and gossip. Meanwhile Agatha turns detective herself and she’s on a mission. She’s determined to unearth Rutherford’s tragic and shocking secret.

My Name is Rachel Corrie by Rachel Corrie, Alan Rickman and Katharine Viner (Drama / 1w) (US)
Who: Rachel Corrie, Activist
Synopsis: On March 16, 2003, Rachel Corrie, a 23-year-old American, was crushed to death by an Israeli Army bulldozer in Gaza as she was trying to prevent the demolition of a Palestinian home. My Name is Rachel Corrie is a one-woman play composed from Rachel’s own journals, letters and emails – creating a portrait of a messy, articulate, Salvador Dali–loving chain-smoker (with a passion for the music of Pat Benatar), who left her home and school in Olympia, Washington, to work as an activist in the heart of Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Nest by Bathsheba Doran (Drama / 2w, 5m) (US)
Who: Susanna Cox, Indentured Servant
Synopsis: A taut domestic love triangle set against the landscape of a fledgling nation on the verge of realizing its manifest destiny at a terrible bloody cost. The play re-imagines the real life story of Susanna Cox, a young indentured servant from Pennsylvania who murdered her baby in 1809, and the story of the man who wrote the ballad that was sold at her hanging. The play is a searing exploration of American dreams and violence and their place in the national psyche.

Or, by Liz Duffy Adams (Dramatic Comedy / 2w, 1m) (US)
Who: Aphra Behn, Poet
Synopsis: Or, takes place (mostly) during one night in the life of Aphra Behn, poet, spy, and soon to be the first professional female playwright. Sprung from debtors‘ prison after a disastrous overseas mission, Aphra is desperate to get out of the spy trade. She has a shot at a production at one of only two London companies, if she can only finish her play by morning despite interruptions from sudden new love, actress Nell Gwynne; complicated royal love, King Charles II; and very dodgy ex-love, double-agent William Scot – who may be in on a plot to murder the king in the morning. Can Aphra resist Nell’s charms, save Charles’ life, win William a pardon, and launch her career, all in one night?

Orlando by Sarah Ruhl and Virigina Woolf (Dramatic Comedy / 4 any gender plus ensemble) (US/UK)
Who: Queen Elizabeth I
Synopsis: Spanning three centuries, Orlando chronicles the boisterous adventures of a young nobleman in Queen Elizabeth’s court who awakens in the middle of his life to discover he is now a she – and immortal to boot. This fresh stage version of Woolf’s novel uses narrative and a chorus to enact lyrical, instant and whimsical transformations to the original story.

Poor Clare by Chiara Atik (Dramatic Comedy / 5w, 1m, 1 any gender) (US)
Who: St. Clare of Assisi
Synopsis: It’s 1211 in Assisi, Italy, and Clare’s got beauty, wealth, and a rich suitor who showers her with expensive presents. So why is she so drawn to this guy Francis who gave up all his possessions just because poor people are suffering? Everyone in town says he’s crazy. And yet… she starts seeing everything in her life differently.

Radiance: The Passion of Marie Curie by Alan Alda (Drama / 3w, 5m) (US/UK)
Who: Marie Curie, Scientist
Synopsis: With backbreaking work in a ramshackle lab in Paris, Marie Curie and her husband, Pierre, achieve a revolutionary understanding of radiation and share a Nobel Prize. When her beloved Pierre dies in an accident, Marie is plunged into depression. Paul Langevin, fleeing an unhappy marriage, gives her the strength to return to her work. But the scandal over their affair threatens to end her career — just when she might become the first person ever to receive a second Nobel Prize.

The Revlon Girl by Neil Anthony Docking (Drama / 5w) (US/UK)
Who: The Survivors of the Aberfan Disaster
Synopsis: Eight months following Aberfan Disaster of 1966 (in which 144 people were killed; 116 of them children) The Revlon Girl tells the real life story of a group of bereaved mothers who met every week above a local hotel to talk, cry and even laugh without feeling guilty. At one of their meetings, the women looked at each other and admitted how much they felt they’d let themselves go. So afraid that people would think them frivolous, they secretly arranged for a representative from Revlon to come and give them a talk on beauty tips.

The Revolutionists by Lauren Gunderson (Comedy / 4w) (US)
Who: Olympe de Gouges, Playwright; Charlotte Corday, Assassin; Marie Antoinette, Queen of France; Marianne Angelle, Rebel
Synopsis: Four beautiful, badass women lose their heads in this irreverent, girl-powered comedy set during the French Revolution’s Reign of Terror. They get together to murder Marat and try to beat back the extremist insanity in 1793 Paris. This grand and dream-tweaked comedy is about violence and legacy, art and activism, feminism and terrorism, compatriots and chosen sisters and how we actually go about changing the world. It’s a true story. Or total fiction. Or a play about a play. Or a raucous resurrection that ends in a song and a scaffold.

These Shining Lives by Melanie Marnich (Dramatic Comedy / 4w, 2m) (US)
Who: Catherine Donohue, Worker
Synopsis: These Shining Lives chronicles the strength and determination of women considered expendable in their roles working at the Radium Dial Company, exploring their true story and its continued resonance. Catherine and her friends are dying, it’s true, but theirs is a story of survival in its most transcendent sense, as they refuse to allow the company that stole their health to kill their spirits – or endanger the lives of those who come after them.

Toni Stone by Lydia R. Diamond (Dramatic Comedy / 1w, 8m) (US/UK)
Who: Toni Stone
Synopsis: Toni Stone is an encyclopedia of baseball stats. She’s got a great arm. And she doesn’t understand why she can’t play with the boys. About the first woman to go pro in the Negro League and featuring a bullpen of players crossing age, race and gender to portray all supporting roles, Toni Stone is a vibrant new play about staying in the game, playing hard, playing smart and playing your own way.

Top Girls by Caryl Churchill (Comedy / 7w) (US/UK)
Who: Various Women in History
Synopsis: Marlene has been promoted to managing director of a London employment agency and is celebrating. The symbolic luncheon is attended by women in legend or history who offer perspectives on maternity and ambition. In a time warp, these ladies are also her co-workers, clients, and relatives. Marlene, like her famous guests, has had to pay a price to ascend from proletarian roots to the executive suite: she has become, figuratively speaking, a male oppressor, and even coaches female clients on adopting odious male traits. Marlene has also abandoned her illegitimate and dull-witted daughter. Her emotional and sexual life has become as barren as Lady Macbeth’s.

The True by Sharr White (Drama / 2w, 5m) (US)
Who: Polly Noonan, Confidante to veteran Democratic Albany Mayor Erastus Corning
Synopsis: When it comes to Polly Noonan, there’s no fine line between the political and personal. For her, it’s only personal. Especially now that her hero, “mayor for life” Erastus Corning, is in a pitched battle for control of the Albany Democratic Party. The True explores the bounds of love, loyalty and female power in the male-dominated world of 1977 machine politics. Sharr White’s sharp exploration of the force and fury needed to survive in the dog-eat-dog world of politics presents a female trailblazer who strove to redefine the boundaries of power.

To learn more about these and other plays, visit Concord Theatricals. In the US/North America, click here. In the UK/Europe, click here.