Let Genius Burn

Louisa May Alcott loved the theatre: she wrote and staged plays both at home and with amateur theatre groups; she attended plays and recorded her thoughts about them in her journals; she aspired to be an actress herself. And while there is much we can know about her personal world, it is more difficult to place her in the context of the 19th century theatre world from her primary source works alone.

Dr. Amy E. Hughes is a 19th century theatre scholar who joins Let Genius Burn to describe the culture of performing arts, the life of working actors as Alcott aspired to be, and how audiences experienced plays two centuries ago.

Amy E. Hughes (she/any) is Professor of Theatre & Drama (SMTD), a Faculty Associate of American Culture (LSA), and a Faculty Affiliate of Comparative Literature (LSA) at University of Michigan–Ann Arbor. She also serves as a Faculty Associate Director for U-M ADVANCE. Dr. Hughes is a theatre historian who researches US popular performance during the nineteenth century. BroadwayWorld.com included her latest book, An Actor's Tale: Theater, Culture, and Everyday Life in the Nineteenth-Century United States (University of Michigan Press, 2025), in its "25 Theater Books for Your Fall 2025 Reading List," and American Theatre magazine published an excerpt from the book’s introduction.

Useful links and resources mentioned:

• Amy's book (open access): Amy E. Hughes, An Actor's Tale: Theater, Culture, and Everyday Life in the Nineteenth-Century United States (University of Michigan Press, 2025)
• (open access) Charlotte M. Canning, "We the (Theatre) People," American Theatre, Summer 2026
• (open access) Anna Cora Mowatt, Autobiography of an Actress; or, Eight Years on the Stage (Ticknor, Reed, and Fields, 1854)
• Lisa Merrill, When Romeo Was a Woman: Charlotte Cushman and Her Circle of Female Spectators (University of Michigan Press, 2000)
• (open access) Amy E. Hughes and Naomi J. Stubbs, eds., A Player and a Gentleman: The Diary of Harry Watkins, Nineteenth-Century US American Actor (University of Michigan Press, 2018)
• (open access) The Diary of Harry Watkins: Digital Edition, co-edited by Amy E. Hughes and Naomi J. Stubbs 
• Bernth Lindfors, Ira Aldridge, 4 vols. (University of Rochester Press, 2011-15) 

Lauren M. Gunderson’s adaptation of Little Women is still in draft form, though it is already being staged by theaters across the country. This new play version offers an innovative use of a small cast and a single setting, yet it still captures the great breadth of the story. With a focus on relationships and an original use of narration strategy, Gunderson sheds new insight on the inner lives of the characters. In this interview, we sit down with Gunderson to discuss how to develop a successful adaptation and how a new version of Little Women holds up under bright stage lights.

Lauren M. Gunderson is one of the most produced playwrights in America since 2015 topping the list 4 times including 2025/26. She is a two-time winner of the Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award for I and You and The Book of Will, the William Inge Distinguished Achievement in Theater Award, the Lanford Wilson Award, the Otis Guernsey New Voices Award, The Jeff Award for New Plays, and was a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, the Arthur L. Weissberger Award, and John Gassner Award for Playwriting. Her musical adaptation of The Time Traveller’s Wife premiered on The West End, and her anthology of five plays, Revolutionary Women, was published by Bloomsbury in 2023. She studied Southern Literature and Drama at Emory University, and Dramatic Writing at NYU’s Tisch School where she was a Reynolds Fellow in Social Entrepreneurship. Her play The Catastrophist premiered digitally in January 2021 and is now in The COVID Art Capsule in the Library of Congress. She co-authored the Miss Bennet trilogy with Margot Melcon. The Half-Life of Marie Curie premiered off-Broadway and at Audible.com. Her work is published at Playscripts (I and You; Exit Pursued By A Bear; The Taming and Toil And Trouble), Dramatists Play Service (The Revolutionists; The Book of Will; Silent Sky; Bauer, Natural Shocks, The Wickhams and Miss Bennet) and Samuel French (Emilie). She is the book writer for musicals with Dave Stewart and Joss Stone (The Time Traveler’s Wife), Ari Afsar (Jeannette and I and You), Joriah Kwamé (Lady M), Kira Stone (Built for This and Pride & Prejudice) and Kait Kerrigan and Bree Lowdermilk (Justice and Earthrise). She is a former board member of The Playwrights Foundation, and a member of the Aspen Institute Science and Society cohort, and hosts the podcast How to Playwright. LaurenGunderson.com

In this special anniversary episode of Let Genius Burn, Jamie and Jill reflect on the past five years of creating this project and what it has meant to them.

They also discuss current events in Alcott, including recent Little Women adaptations and the meaning of Little Women today. Jill gives a detailed reading of Alcott's unfinished book, Diana and Persis, discussing its queer themes and characters, as well as the tension between art and domestic life.

In 1843, the Alcott family spent about nine months on a farm in central Massachusetts, a utopian experiment they called Fruitlands. The failure of this project marked a turning point in their lives as a family.

Louisa May Alcott memorialized this experience in a short story called "Transcendental Wild Oats," which was originally published in the New York newspaper The Independent in 1873. The short story was heavily satirical and, though fictionalized, was clearly based on the events of her life.

Edward Rowett, a writer based in Oxford, England has adapted "Transcendental Wild Oats" into an audio drama for BBC Radio 4, released this week. His play, which imagines Louisa May Alcott's early drafts of the story, is a recounting of the events of Fruitlands from the perspective of Louisa herself.

Edward Rowett takes us behind-the-scenes to discuss how the play was researched, written and recorded. We hear about the workings of a professional radio production, and how Rowett brought the Alcotts to life through his story.

To get the most from this episode, we recommend you either reread Transcendental Wild Oats, which is widely available in the public domain, or listen to Rowett’s audio drama, which is available to listeners in the UK on bbc.com. Listeners outside the UK should reach out to [email protected] for listening options.

Credits for Transcendental Wild Oats:

Dramatised by Edward Rowett
Original Story by Louisa May Alcott
Directed by Gordon Kennedy and Edward Rowett

Cast:
Louisa May Alcott and Louy Alcott - Louisa Harland
Bronson Alcott - Alistair Petrie
Abigail Alcott - Rebekah Staton
Charles Lane - Mathew Baynton

Christopher Godwin as Joseph Palmer
Tom Moores as Samuel Bower
Edward Rowett as Abraham Wood
Patricia Rodriguez as Ann Page
Jason Barnett as Ralph Waldo Emerson
Victoria Rigby as Anna Alcott

Production Manager - Sarah Tombling
Studio Engineer, Sound Design and Editing - Wilfredo Acosta
Produced by Gordon Kennedy
Recorded at The Soundhouse Studios, London

An Absolutely production for BBC Radio 4

Join us as we explore Louisa May Alcott in the broader context of Concord’s abolitionist movement, including her family’s activism, her interaction with fellow abolitionists, and the importance of Black abolitionist women in shaping the cause that she so passionately devoted herself to.

History 160: Abolitionist Women and Their Worlds is a seminar course made up of Harvard University undergraduates and taught by Professor Tiya Miles and Teaching Fellow Ciara Williams. After reading works by abolitionist women of many different racial and geographic backgrounds, students in the course set out to create a podcast that centers on positioning Louisa May Alcott’s abolitionist work in this broader context. Engaging in thorough primary and secondary source research, students worked together to create a historical narrative of Alcott’s relationship with the abolitionist movement in Concord and beyond while also centering the importance of women such as Maria Stewart, Susan and Ellen Garrison, and other members of the Concord Female Anti-Slavery Society. Through establishing these connections, we hope that this episode will provide an understanding of how Louisa’s activism was distinctly shaped by her historical and geographic contexts.

Professor Tiya Miles
Teaching Fellow, Ciara Williams
Ike Opayemi
Henry Santamaria
Kylan Benson
Sophia Liao
Kawsar Yasin
Tatum Mueller
Jubi Oladipo
Sa’maia Evans
Jade Stanford
Dulce Gonzalez Arias
Debora Ortega-Maldonado
Gabriela Vasquez Rosado
Tosin A.
Yasmeen Khan

This project was made possible by the generous support of the Schlesinger Library at the Radcliffe Institute, especially Patrice Green, Curator for African American and African Diasporic Collections and Tamar Brown, Head of Education and Outreach. We’d also like to thank the museum staff at Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House and The Robbins House in Concord, MA as well as the museum staff at the Museum of African American History in Boston. Finally, we extend our thanks to the Department of History, the Mindich Program in Engaged Scholarship, and the Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning at Harvard University.

For a complete list of sources, visit letgeniusburn.com

For over twenty years, the Louisa May Alcott Society has brought together Alcott scholars from around the world to discuss the work and relevance of Louisa May Alcott’s writing. The Society hosts panels and events at literature conferences and has been the center of Alcott study and scholarship, where ideas about her life and work are nurtured and grown.

In this episode, we are joined by former and current Presidents of the Louisa May Alcott Society: Anne Phillips, Gregory Eiselen, and Marlowe Daly-Galeano, who will share with us the many ways in which the Louisa May Alcott Society preserves and promotes Alcott scholarship.

Anne Phillips is Professor of English at Kansas State University. One of the founding members of the Alcott Society, she has served as Secretary and President of the organization. Along the way, with cherished colleagues, she has edited multiple books and special issues of journals devoted to the work and life of Louisa May Alcott. A highlight of her Alcott service was the opportunity during the Society's 10th anniversary to knock on the front door of Orchard House, be welcomed in by Louisa herself (Jan Turnquist), and take "Louisa's" guided tour of the Alcott home.

Greg Eiselein is Professor of English and University Distinguished Teaching Scholar at Kansas State University, where he also serves as the Director of the Program in Cultural Studies. The author or editor of seven books, his research focuses on nineteenth-century U.S. literature and culture. He currently serves as Past President of the Louisa May Alcott Society.

Marlowe Daly-Galeano is the director of the Center for Teaching and Learning at Lewis Clark State College. She also teaches American literature, writing, and interdisciplinary classes and serves as the faculty advisor for the Ambassador Honor Society. Her research interests include 19th-century American literature, inclusive pedagogy, book and print history, and the Alcott family. She is the current president of the Louisa May Alcott Society.

In today’s episode, we welcome Jen Turner, the Executive Director of the Robbins House Museum in Concord, Massachusetts. This historical house museum, situated today at the Minuteman National Park, is the hub of Concord’s African-American history. Through our conversation with Jen, we expand our understanding of Concord’s past and the experience of slavery survivors and free Black people who were part of the Alcotts’ world.

The Robbins House is a Concord-based nonprofit organization focused on raising awareness of Concord’s African, African American, and antislavery history from the 17th through the 19th centuries. Their mission is to reveal the little known African American history of Concord and its regional and national importance. Their vision is to inspire conversation, expand understanding and contribute to a better society.

Jen takes us on a deep dive into the lives of the family who owned this house and the work the museum does to remember them, giving us a richer, more complete picture of the Concord that the Alcotts knew.

Learn more:

https://www.robbinshouse.org/

Give:

https://www.robbinshouse.org/donate/

Through Alcott’s upbringing amidst the Transcendentalists, ideas about the healing power of nature found their way into her life and her written work. Much of what humans have long known about the connection to nature is now being grounded in scientific research. In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Heidi Lawrence, a scholar who studies the intersections of children’s literature with ecopsychology and ecotherapy. 

Dr. Lawrence considers the ways in which such readings allow audiences to re-imagine their connections to the nonhuman world, leading to increased well-being. She has a monograph with Routledge on Madeleine L’Engle and ecopsychology, as well as articles and a book chapter on L.M. Montgomery and a book chapter on Louisa May Alcott. She holds a PhD in English Literature from University of Glasgow, MA degrees in English from Brigham Young University and Medieval Studies from University of Leeds and an MPhil in English Literature from University of York. She works at Brigham Young University (Provo, Utah).

We were first introduced to Heidi’s writing and research when we served on a panel with her at the Thoreau Society Gathering with her in 2023. In today’s episode, we get to take a closer look at the ways in which ecotherapy shows up in many of Alcott’s writings, and in particular her juvenile novels.

In this episode, we focus on Heidi's book chapter: "Cozy Corners" and "Pebbly Beaches": Resolving Emotional Distress Through Nature Connectedness in Eight Cousins, Rose in Bloom, and Jack and Jill. If you haven't yet had a chance to read beyond Little Women, you'll be inspired by these references to Alcott's lesser-known works, which feature lovable characters and memorable scenes.

Find Heidi's book chapter here:

https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-80537-0_9

Lydia Olsson (1874-1958) was the daughter of Swedish immigrants, born in Kansas in the late nineteenth century. She moved to Illinois and attended Augustana College, where she kept diaries the documented her experience as a young woman coming of age in an exciting time, one where education and access was opening to women.

During this time, Olsson turned to one book in particular for comfort and direction: Little Women. As she navigated relationships, college, friendship, sisterhood, grief, she saw her own experiences reflected in Alcott's seminal work. Today, we can read Lydia's diaries as a time capsule of the 1890s, but we also see they have extraordinary resonance with our own experience as readers of Little Women.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Lydia Olsson's relationship to Little Women and Louisa May Alcott and the passages she chose to capture in her diaries
• How Little Women played a role in one immigrant-family's experience of assimilating into American culture and understanding what it meant to be American in the late 19th century
• Marriage, spinsterhood, queerness, female friendships, and emotional fulfillment in relationships, and how these were evolving and changing in Lydia's time
• The power of fiction in the lives of women across centuries

More about Rebecca: https://rebeccahopman.com/

More about Lydia: https://lydiaolsson.wordpress.com/

Rebecca Hopman is an archivist and historian who specializes in women’s history and life writing, American culture, and the history of entertainment. Currently, she serves as the Genealogy Services Librarian at the Wisconsin Historical Society, where she helps people discover their family stories. Prior to her work as a genealogy librarian, she specialized in topics as varied as the history of physics (at the American Institute of Physics); the art, science, and technology of glass (at the Corning Museum of Glass); and the groundbreaking career of Barbara Walters (at Sarah Lawrence College). She has a BA in History, English, and German from Augustana College (IL), an MLIS in Archives & Records Management from the University of Maryland, College Park, and an MA in Women’s History from Sarah Lawrence College.

In this conversation with authors Linda Epstein, Ally Malinenko, and Liz Parker, we discuss the authors' individual relationships to Little Women and how it influenced their writing of The Other March Sisters. We also discuss:

• How the authors made editorial choices and conducted research to include relevant information both about the March sisters and their historical Alcott counterparts
• The authors cowriting process and how they collaborated to weave the stories together
• The inclusion of queer characters and storylines in The Other March Sisters
• What led the authors to ultimately leave so much of Jo March out of the book, and why telling individual stories matters so much

Linda Epstein is a literary agent at Emerald City Literary Agency, freelance editor, and author whose novels include Repairing the World and The Other March Sisters. She lives in upstate New York with her ridiculous designer mutt, Gertie Gertstein. You can find her online at lindaepsteinauthor.com and @lindaepsteinauthor on Instagram.

Ally Malinenko is a poet, librarian, and author whose novels include the Junior Library Guild selection and Bram Stoker finalist This Appearing House, Ghost Girl, and the collaborative historical novel The Other March Sisters. She lives in Brooklyn, NY, where she works and writes in the early hours of the morning before going to work at the Brooklyn Public Library. She can be found online at allymalinenko.com and @allymalinenko on Instagram.

Liz Parker is an herbalist, witch, and the author whose works include In the Shadow Garden and the collaborative novel The Other March Sisters. She grew up in Tennessee and Nevada, but now lives in California with her husband, dog, and too many houseplants to name. She can be found online at LizParkerWrites.com and on most social media platforms at @LizParkerWrites.