This pivotal story is connected to workers’ rights, particularly women’s workplace protections, in America. Based on a true story, where a watch company knowingly poisoned their employees by having their workers dab radium dust in their mouths to paint the dials. I’ve now seen this play done in various forms. This was definitely not my first introduction to this story. I’m sure this play has been introduced many more times since its world premiere in 2008.

TSL is truly an ensemble piece. But the characters who really get the meat of the material are Catherine and, to a lesser extent, Charlotte (Ruth Gray). Giana Garcia (Catherine Donohue) effectively projects Donohue’s optimism and team-player spirit while also conveying the character’s unease in response to the production’s revelations. Garcia is the narrator in this piece and does a fabulous job of bookending the play with very strong, confident monologues, with an intriguing variation: the character’s portrayal in the show is way more reserved and unsure, but firm. This is well complemented by Charlotte’s character, who is fast-talking and boastful, and by Ruth, whose delivery is, in some ways, reminiscent of Hollywood’s golden age.