The Last Reading of Charlotte Cushman: A One-Woman Play

by Carolyn Gage

Captivating evening with one of the greatest actresses of the nineteenth century. Charlotte Cushman, a large butch woman, made a name for herself in “breeches parts,” and treats the audience to excerpts from her Hamlet, Romeo, and Cardinal Wolsey—as well as scenes and other monologues from her repertoire. National award for “best play about a lesbian historical figure.”

35 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 17, 2013

About the author

Carolyn Gage is a lesbian feminist playwright, performer, director, and activist. The author of nine books on lesbian theatre and sixty-five plays, musicals, and one-woman shows, she specializes in non-traditional roles for women, especially those reclaiming famous lesbians whose stories have been distorted or erased from history. In 2011, her play Stigmata won the Maine Literary Award in Drama from the Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance. Also in 2011, her play The Ladies' Room was named national finalist for the prestigious Heideman Award, given to the winner of the National 10-Minute Play Contest of the Actors' Theatre of Louisville. Her collection of plays The Second Coming of Joan of Arc and Selected Plays won the 2008 Lambda Literary Award in Drama, the top LGBT book award in the US. In 2009, she was named one of the "Ten Most Intriguing People in Maine" by Portland Magazine, and was awarded a three-month residency at the Wurlitzer Foundation in Taos, New Mexico. In 2010, she was named one of the "Most Influential People in Portland" by the Portland Phoenix. Gage tours internationally in her award-winning, one-woman play, The Second Coming of Joan of Arc, offering performances, workshops, and lectures on lesbian theatre.