The Forest City High School Theater Department is presenting the show Radium Girls. The story was inspired from true events. The Radium Girls were female factory workers who developed radiation poisoning from painting watch dials with luminous paint. The incidents occurred at three different factories in United States in the 1920’s. The paint was made from powdered radium, gum Arabic, and water.
D. W. Gregory captured the story in a gripping drama of the women who were poisoned and killed by the paint at the New Jersey plant. Because some of the watch dials on which they worked were extremely small, they were told to use their lips to bring their paint brushes to a fine point.
Cesar Lechuga is in the show and describes his role in uncovering the truth first before any other news source does.
Kyra Gibbs finds herself in a very difficult situation as one of the Radium Girls. Gibbs has to examine how a young girl must face a life cut short by corporate failures to protect employees.
For Gibbs, this becomes an exploration of a short life and what she must do to face the reality of what has happened to her.
Carson Strukel has the difficult task of protecting the company from the legal retaliation of the stricken women.
Brody Dirksen has an equally challenging role which continually expands as the show progresses.
Dirksen finds himself having to develop a pitbull-like mentality to accomplish his goal at the end of the show.
The show will run from March 31st to April 1st at the Boman Fine Arts Center at 7pm. Tickets are available online at bomanfineartscenter.org
