What started as a fast-paced improv comedy with dozens of rapid-fire micro-scenes has turned into a courtroom-style fight for justice in 1920s New Jersey.

The Creative Arts Department originally announced that this fall’s production would be Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind, an experimental show made up of thirty two-minute plays. After this fall’s auditions, however, the Department scrapped that plan and selected Radium Girls instead—a historical drama about young women poisoned by radium who take their employer to court.

“I had chosen a play that required more students, and fewer showed up for auditions,” Creative Arts Department Chair Bill Jacob said. “So there was an opportunity to do some smaller plays that the Arts Department had long wanted to do, such as Clue and Almost, Maine, among others.”

Assistant Head of School and former drama teacher Carl Coombs said the decision ultimately came down to choosing a show that fit the actual cast.

“We choose plays way in advance, and when you hold auditions, sometimes it’s just not feeling like the right play for the students and the cast we have,” Coombs said. “At Brimmer, we really tailor everything we do for the students. And sometimes, we realize that a decision we made months ago isn’t going to best serve the students who are in the play.”

Once the Department decided to pivot, Jacob said, the delay in announcing the show came from trying to secure performance rights.

“We tried to get the rights to these shows, but the organization that controls the rights was very, very slow this time,” he said. “So, we elected instead to go with Radium Girls.”

Set in 1920s New Jersey, Radium Girls follows three young women, Grace Fryer (Mary Wang ’26), Kathryn Schaub (Rachael Rosenberg ’27), and Irene Rudolph (Abigail MacLean ’27), who paint watch dials with glowing radium paint to support the war effort. When they begin to suffer serious illness from radium poisoning, they fight for recognition, accountability, and justice. The play is based on a true story.

Because the show was chosen later than usual, rehearsals are happening on a tighter timeline.

“I think everyone is now kind of nervous about the amount of time we have to actually rehearse because of the delay,” Alice Shimomura ’27 said, who plays Mrs. MacNeil and others. “But it’s been pretty relaxed so far, and I’m looking forward to seeing how it turns out.”

Jacob said the switch also gives students a chance to take on heavier material than usual.

“It’s a drama, which is something we don’t usually do,” Jacob said. “We tend to do comedies. It’s nice to have a drama in the mix for people to stretch and push themselves, especially since we’re going to go so light and fluffy with The Little Mermaid later in the year.”

Editors’ note: Radium Girls will perform November 13 and 14 at 7:00 p.m. There will be an invited faculty dress rehearsal on November 12 at 6:00 p.m. Tickets will be available online and at the door.