Emmy-Nominated Poet Susanna Rich Brings Suffrage History to Life for the Lorton Prison Museum
Written by: Carla Welborn
Poetry reading SHOUT! Poetry for Suffrage highlights the complex voices and sacrifices of the Women’s Rights Movement.
LORTON, VA (September 29, 2026) — The Lorton Prison Museum, featuring the Lucy Burns Gallery at the Workhouse Arts Center, is proud to present "Learning at Lunch: SHOUT! Poetry for Suffrage," featuring award-winning poet, scholar, and performer Susanna Rich on Friday, October 16, at 12:00 PM.
Rich’s inspiration for her acclaimed collection, SHOUT! Poetry for Suffrage, began during a November 2019 visit to the museum at the Workhouse Arts Center. Moved by the historic site and the brutal night of November 14, 1917—when suffragists picketing the Wilson White House were imprisoned and tortured at the former Occoquan Workhouse—Rich set out to give voice to over 65 central figures of the movement.
Published on the 200th anniversary of Susan B. Anthony’s birth, SHOUT! brings to life critical moments between the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention and the 1920 ratification of the 19th Amendment. In this dynamic, PowerPoint-supported performance, Rich will step into the shoes of iconic historical figures, including:
· Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass in dialogue on civil rights;
· Matilda Joslyn Gage, the suffragist who inspired L. Frank Baum’s Good Witch of the North;
· Amelia Bloomer, who popularized revolutionary clothing reform for women;
· Ida B. Wells, who confronted racism and marched triumphantly in Alice Paul’s 1913 Woman Suffrage Procession; and
· Lucy Burns, chronicled on the fateful night she was hung by her wrists in the very cells where the performance takes place.
"We're so excited to welcome Susanna Rich back to the place where her collection was born," said Katie Crooks, Director of Museum and Visitor Experience at the Workhouse Arts Center. "Her poetry bridges the gap between historical artifact and human emotion, offering our community a powerful way to reflect on the legacy of the women’s suffrage movement."
Event Details:
· What: Learning at Lunch: SHOUT! Poetry for Suffrage with Susanna Rich
· When: Friday, October 16 | 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM
· Where: McGuireWoods Gallery (2nd Floor, Building W16), Workhouse Arts Center, 9518 Workhouse Way, Lorton, VA 22079
· Admission: Free; open to the public (No registration required)
· Format: 30-minute talk/reading followed by audience Q&A. Table seating is provided; guests are invited to bring their own lunch (snacks and beverages available for purchase in W16). Rich will sell and sign copies of SHOUT! following the event. Guests are invited to the Lorton Prison Museum following the event, at no charge.
For more information or to view the event listing, visit https://www.workhousearts.org/calendar/learning-at-lunch-1-5mrbd-yrdd3-wdn64 or contact the museum at (703) 584-2972.
About Susanna Rich:
Susanna Rich is an Emmy Award nominee for poetry, a Fulbright Fellow in Creative Writing, and recipient of the Presidential Excellence Award for Distinguished Teaching at Kean University (NJ). With over 1,000 publications, performance, and presentation credits, she is the founding producer, writer, and principal performer at Wild Nights Productions, LLC, through which she crafts immersive visual-poetic experiences across the country.
About the Workhouse Arts Center:
The Workhouse Arts Center is a nonprofit cultural destination in Lorton, Virginia, located on the historic grounds of the former Lorton Prison. Welcoming more than 225,000 visitors annually, the Workhouse offers artist studios, gallery exhibitions, live performances, arts education programs, and community events that expand access to the arts and drive positive social impact for visitors of all ages. For more information visit: www.workhousearts.org