Give Us Bread

by The Anthropologists and Melissa Moschitto

Written by Melissa Moschitto
Devised by Jean Goto, Jennifer Griffee, Melissa Moschitto, Jennifer Moses, Shayna Padovano, Katy Rubin and Sonja Sweeney

Food prices shot up overnight. Starvation threatened families from Williamsburg, Brooklyn to the Lower East Side to the Bronx. The city did nothing. A group of women came together to demand action. Boycotts accelerated into riots. The year was 1917.

Using original text and primary source materials, Give Us Bread tells the remarkable true story of immigrant women who united to feed their families… and a city...

Food prices shot up overnight. Starvation threatened families from Williamsburg, Brooklyn to the Lower East Side to the Bronx. The city did nothing. A group of women came together to demand action. Boycotts accelerated into riots. The year was 1917.

Using original text and primary source materials, Give Us Bread tells the remarkable true story of immigrant women who united to feed their families… and a city, providing a lens with which to examine today’s food crisis.

Written by Melissa Moschitto
Devised by Jean Goto, Jennifer Griffee, Melissa Moschitto, Jennifer Moses, Shayna Padovano, Katy Rubin and Sonja Sweeney

Learn more about this 80-minute play at https://www.theanthropologists.org/give-us-bread

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Give Us Bread

Character Information

  • Hannah
    A young immigrant from Russia, Rivka’s niece. An aspiring musician who plays the violin, she is now plunged into a world that she is utterly unprepared for. She yearns for independence but is hampered by a lack of English and a lack of working skills.
    18-22
    Russian immigrant
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      Teens,
      20s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Female
  • Concetta
    A newly immigrated woman from Italy, to join her husband and sons. At first shy and limited by language, she emerges as a confident, wry and fiery presence.
    30s-40s
    Italian
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      30s,
      40s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Female
  • Jenny
    A newsie, born and raised on the streets of the Lower East Side. Fiercely independent, spunky and ready for a fight but with a tender side that is only available to those who know her best. She must fend for herself until she realizes there can be more power in the collective.
    Asian / Japanese American,
    Asian / Chinese American
    a cis Female or non-binary
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      Teens
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Asian, Pacific Islander, or Asian American
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Female,
      Non-binary
  • Elizabeth
    An immigrant from Ireland and a new mother. Hardworking, compassionate and struggling with poverty. Naturally protective, she often puts up a shield but ultimately finds alliances with another immigrant mother, Concetta.
    30s
    White/Irish
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      30s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      White
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Female
  • Marie Ganz
    A well-known activist and anarchist in NYC’s Lower East Side. Fiery and passionate, a natural born leader. Originally from Russia; emigrated to America as a young child. This role is based on an actual historical figure and draws from her memoir of growing up on the Lower East Side.
    30s-40s
    Russian Jewish immigrant
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      30s,
      40s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Female
  • Rivka
    An immigrant from Russia; friend to all. Prefers to watch the world from inside her tenement apartment, rather than go outside and engage. Ultimately, she overcomes her fears to join her community. Protective and caring. Caretaker to her niece, Hannah.
    30s
    Russian immigrant,
    Jewish,
    Ashkenazi Jewish
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      30s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Female

Development History

  • Workshop, Tenement Museum (NYC), 2009
  • Residency, Abrons Arts Center, 2008
  • Workshop, BAX (Brooklyn Arts Exchange), 2008

Production History

  • Fringe, Berkshire Fringe, 2010
  • Professional, The Milagro Theatre / The Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural & Educational Center (NYC), 2009
  • University, Hofstra University, 2009