Opera singer, local students, renew appreciation for the suffrage movement through song

DELPHI, Ind. − Lafayette-based opera singer, Audrey Johnson, performed throughout Delphi to round out her month-long tour of her Women's Suffrage program "We've Come a Long Way, Ladies!"

This month, Johnson has traveled to Louisiana, Texas, Illinois and throughout Indiana performing her program. She also visited multiple schools in Delphi, including Delphi Community Middle School and High School and Delphi Elementary School.

Johnson's shows combine historical knowledge with operatic musical performances of songs from the time period. Audience engagement, costume changes and the use of props are all present in Johnson's shows and you just might learn a thing or two while you're there.

The program, "We've Come a Long Way, Ladies!" focuses on the herculean tasks that women before, during and after the suffrage movement went through. The victories and darker parts of history from both men and women's sides are discussed in Johnson's programs.

Songs primarily came from historical archives of suffrage song books published by different suffrage organizations throughout the country, according to Johnson.

"In the middle schools in Indiana, they learn about the period in American history that goes up through the Civil War," Johnson said. "And so what I decided to do, when I compared the suffrage movement to that period in history, I realized that it mapped quite well onto the first half of the suffrage movement.

"I shared with (the students) the first half of this program, essentially. So we came to a close at the point when Susan B. Anthony was passing along her knowledge to the next generation."

The students' takeaways

Johnson delved deeper into what she wants the students who hear her program to leave with once the performance concludes.

"I think that it is extremely important for students to understand how long women had to fight for the right to vote," Johnson said, "and what that meant. It wasn't only admission into the polling place to cast your vote, but that also meant that women couldn't sit on juries. So they literally did not have a jury of their peers."

One of the early focuses in Johnson's program is the lack of help and options women had in marriage. If their husbands drank away their money or became abusive, they had little to no recourse. This was also something the suffrage movement wanted to change.

"Women were completely disenfranchised," Johnson said. "... It was a very real situation for women. This wasn't just some fun novelty. This was real life. And that's what I really was hoping students would take away.

"... Another flipside to that, it was important to me to show the examples of the good guys, the men who supported women."

The importance of studying the Women's Suffrage movement

Acknowledging and appreciating what the suffragists went through to earn the right to vote is something that should never be lost to history. Johnson further explained the importance of remembering and studying the suffrage movement.

"I think we need to renew our sense of appreciation and our depth of gratitude for these suffragists," Johnson said. "They worked so incredibly hard against seemingly insurmountable odds. But they pulled together and that is such an incredible message of what's possible when people work together."

Johnson also noted that her performance tour through Delphi public schools was made possible through a grant from The Arts Federation.

Upcoming shows

On Saturday, Johnson will be performing "We've Come a Long Way, Ladies!" at the Delphi Opera House. Tickets to the 3 p.m. show, starting at $10, are available online at www.delphioperahouse.org/event-list.

Johnson will also be performing her program, "To Keep Truth Marching On!" at the Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center in Sioux City, Iowa, on April 22 and at the North Sioux City Community Library in North Sioux City, South Dakota, on April 25.

To learn more about Johnson's programs and upcoming performances, visit her website www.oftheeising.com.

The National Endowment for the Arts alongside The Arts Federation provided the grant funding that made Johnson's tour through Delphi public schools possible.

Margaret Christopherson is a reporter for the Journal & Courier. Email her at mchristopherson@jconline.com and follow her on Twitter @MargaretJC2.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Opera singer Audrey Johnson performs history program in Delphi schools