The Bear Stage Players premiered their production of Radium Girls this past Saturday, Oct. 10. This production is much like a documentary; it follows the lives of girls whom are forced to work in close proximity to radium in the 1920’s. It was a time where Madam Curie was an international celebrity, promoting radium as a miracle cure for cancer. The main character is Grace Fryer, a young girl who works in a warehouse painting watches with radium so that they glow in the dark in order to help war efforts. The people whom run the warehouse think that by having glow in the dark watches, soldiers can plan times at night and get ahead of the enemy.

The play follows Grace as she fights for justice in court. Arthur Roeder, her former employer, cannot bring himself to believe that the same element that shrinks tumors could have anything to do with the deaths of his employees. As the story progresses, Grace discovers that she does not only find herself facing the Radium Corp, but also the people closest to her. They think it will backfire and that the continuous fight is pointless.

Sydney Smith is phenomenal as the role of Grace. She makes the character believable, and entices pity from the audience. Her story is sad and she puts immense emotion into every line. Connor Alexander, as Arthur Roeder, also does an incredible job in his role. As a man that should be the villain, there is a gray area involving his motives. He really does not know that the radium is what is making those girls sick and he cannot make himself believe it. His guilt clouds his judgement. The audience feels compelled to dislike him, but cannot. His role is a powerful one, and he manages to pull off every side of Arthur. Tyler Reagan as Mrs. Wiley and Sam Ross as the lawyer defending the Radium Girls are just a couple of the other actors involved in the production that made it all that it was. Every night was as spectacular as the last.