The DC Traveler

In the early 1900s, infanticide (or killing a newborn) was a fairly common society issue. Unmarried women who became pregnant or had a bastard child were considered to have loose morals and were shunned by “polite” society.

Ending a pregnancy was not only illegal but also considered a very high risk medical procedure, as they were often performed by untrained practitioners. So some women simply made their problem child simply “disappear” once born. If discovered, she was both disgraced but also a felon.

Susanna Cox, a 24-year old servant girl, was the first woman to be hanged in Pennsylvania in 1908, for infanticide. She was bartered as an indenture servant for seven years to pay some family debts. While working off the debt, she fell for a horse trader and later became pregnant. After hiding her condition and giving birth secretly, she killed the child. The corpse was found weeks later on the farm where she worked and she was arrested. Within a year of her confinement, she was hanged for her crime in front of a crowd estimated to be nearly 20,000 people.

The new play Nest is based on the events surrounding Susanna Cox and her death sentence. The story may look surprisingly familiar to events (the death penalty debate, post-partum depression, infant killings, etc.) that seem to be making headlines in modern America.

This play is not suitable for children and is intended for mature audiences only.

Nest
Signature Theatre
2800 South Stafford St., just off I-395 in Shirlington Village.
Arlington, VA

Dates- through June 24th with performances throughout the week.

Tickets - $44-.00 - $49.00 and are available online

Nearest Metro subway station- Pentagon City - Blue line. Then a then a 7-minute bus ride on the A7 Metrobus or take a taxi from the Ritz Carlton Hotel (approximate fare - $6.00 - $ 8:00)

Parking - Free public garage at 2780 S. Stafford St. adjacent to the theater.

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