The Church is pleased to host two performances of The Ecstasy of Victoria Woodhull presented by Owl & Pussycat Theatre Company. Victoria Woodhull was a brazen and irrepressible Suffragette who was the First Woman to run for President of the United States in 1872. The audience will join Celeste in an immersive séance, where she endeavors to bring back Victoria Woodhull’s spirit to learn her full story.

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The Ecstasy of Victoria Woodhull was born out of the #MeToo movement by wife and husband duo Ashely Ford and Theo Salter. The two wanted to tell the story of this heroic and near forgotten American woman who rose from rags to riches – despite no formal education, and then peddled out by her snake oil salesman father as a Child Clairvoyant. She eventually became the first woman to run for President, the first woman to address Congress, and ran her own Wall Street firm and progressive newspaper in New York. Iris Mann from StageRaw reviewed the play and wrote “Ashley Ford’s solo performance as the fascinating historical figure, Victoria Woodhull, engages rapt attention on an intellectual level.”  

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Originally presented at the 2018 Hollywood Fringe Festival as “The Terrible Legend of Victoria Woodhull”, the production received ecstatic audience and professional reviews (“Exciting, fresh and ready to be devoured” – All About The Stage, Mary Montoro). The show then went on to perform in New York for a one night, sold out engagement on Theatre Row. While the show was unfortunately shelved due to the pandemic, Owl & the Pussycat is thrilled to bring back an updated version with a new and sensational production team for two special performances at The Church before taking it to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival for 21 shows through August. Award-winning L.A. playwright Ernest Kearney reviewed the play and wrote, “The show, directed by Sean Harris, achieves that wondrous union of imparting historical fact while being totally entertaining. What more could you ask for.”

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Written by: Theo Salter. Directed by: Sean Harris. Performed by: Ashley Ford. Sound Design by: Nina Field. Costume Design by: Raven Ong. Movement Coach: Eunyoung Bona Young.