In June 2023 our Musical Theatre Alliance company presented their first original musical theatre piece.

The stories of the bravery and dedication of the English suffragettes to their cause are very well-known. Key figures such as Emmeline and Sylvia Pankhurst, Emily Davison and Millicent Fawcett are widely regarded as some of the most important figures in modern British women’s history. But what about Scotland?

The stories of the Scottish suffragettes and their militant rebellion are far less well known, but they are of equal importance. Flora Drummond, Ethel Moorhead, Frances Parker, Maude Edwards, Dorothea Smith, Helen Craufurd, Frances Gordon, Arabella and Muriel Scott were some of Scotland’s leading and most militant pioneers in women’s suffrage, and their bravery, sacrifice and suffering deserve to be far more widely known. The stories of these Scottish women deserve to be heard and their achievements celebrated.

The story in ‘Silenced’ begins in 1911. Parliament has dismissed the latest Conciliation Bill which would have granted some women the vote, despite the bill receiving a majority of 167 votes in favour. There is then the announcement that there will be a new manhood suffrage bill to give more men the vote.

This is a clear betrayal of the women’s suffrage campaign. There seems to be no alternative left but to resort to militant action.  

Silenced premiered at Glasgow’s Websters Theatre to critical acclaim and packed houses. The show was written & directed by Marlisa Ross with musical arrangements and new music by Stuart Bird.