When the curtain rises on Conscience at Taproot Theatre this month, the story won’t be confined to the stage.
Throughout the run of Taproot’s latest production, the theatre’s lobby gallery will feature Reflections on Conscience, a solo exhibition by artist Liesl Lavery inspired by the same remarkable historical figure at the center of the play: U.S. Senator Margaret Chase Smith. It makes for an intriguing intersection of visual art, theatre, and history.
Taproot’s Conscience, by playwright Joe DiPietro, tells the true story of Margaret Chase Smith, the Republican senator from Maine who took to the Senate floor in 1950 to deliver what became known as her Declaration of Conscience. At a time when Senator Joseph McCarthy’s accusations of Communist infiltration of the State Department and scare tactics against fellow politicians and government officials were fueling fear across the country, Smith publicly rejected the political climate of character assassination and fear, taking a stand that put her at odds with members of her own party.
Taproot describes the regional premiere as the story of one person “summoning the courage to speak the truth”—and the personal cost that followed. For Lavery, that same story became the starting point for an entirely different body of work:
Transcribing Margaret Chase Smith’s Declaration of Conscience word for word in watercolor and ink, rooted me in her courage and opened the door to creating an original series inspired by her truth. She was a light in dark times— and relevant as ever.
Lavery’s Reflections on Conscience series combines bold linocut prints, hand-drawn typography, and collage to explore integrity, civic courage, political extremism, and what it means to speak up when doing so comes with consequences. Her use of vibrant color, sharp visual contrasts, text, and imagery invites viewers to consider their own relationship with conscience and courage.
That means a trip to Taproot during the production offers two opportunities to encounter the same questions: first through the artwork surrounding audiences in the lobby, and then through the actors bringing Smith’s story to life onstage.
Reflections on Conscience will be on display in Taproot’s lobby gallery from September 18 – October 17, coinciding with the run of Conscience on the Jewell Mainstage. The play itself runs September 16 – October 17 at Taproot Theatre, 204 N 85th Street, right in the heart of Greenwood. For those looking for an affordable opportunity to see the production, Taproot will offer a Pay What You Can performance on Wednesday, September 23 at 7:30 p.m.
And the next time you head to Taproot, give yourself a little extra time before the curtain—or linger afterward. There’s more than one show worth seeing.