An Evening with Louisa May Alcott

With JAN TURNQUIST

This American author brings us behind the scene stories from her life; family friendships with Thoreau and Emerson; her unconventional upbringing in dire poverty and family love that inspired her to write the classic, Little Women. This interactive presentation is an inspiring experience for the mind and heart.

One of America’s most prolific writers, Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888), the fiercely independent author of Little Women, was born to an unconventional family who were leaders in abolition, women’s suffrage, educational reform, child welfare, and much more. In 1868 Louisa wrote the now-classic Little Women in her family’s home, the Orchard House, in Concord, Massachusetts, the heart of the “literary flowering” of New England.

Due to a “minor carriage accident,” 20th century audiences have the opportunity to “meet” Louisa May Alcott through the living history portrayal of Jan Turnquist. Audience members gain insight into important19th century issues such as suffrage, abolition, the underground railroad, and equal education. They will hear about Alcott’s friendships with Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson. “Louisa” tells about writing the autobiographical Little Women, and how writing took her from “rags to riches.” Audiences learn about the courage and determination of a unconventional woman and her unusual Victorian family, including their Utopian community experience, Louisa’s work as a Civil War nurse, and many of her other writings including thriller tales and serious adult works.