JUN 17 – AUG 11, 2019
At the Old State House
The names you never knew. The stories you’ll never forget.
The original play Cato & Dolly offers a glimpse of everyday life inside the Hancock House through the eyes of those who lived there: Cato Hancock, an enslaved man serving the Hancock household, and Dolly Hancock, John Hancock’s wife and First Lady of Massachusetts.
Blood on the Snow playwright Patrick Gabridge gives life to the Revolutionary-era figures whose lives intersected at the famous Hancock House. Two actors take on eight real-life characters in a compelling drama that spans over 50 years, staged before the preserved front door of the iconic 18th-century mansion on display at the Old State House.
Unlock the forgotten stories of the past and step over the threshold of history to experience the lives of those who witnessed the dawn of American Independence.
Cato & Dolly is presented in partnership with Plays in Place, a group of theatre professionals working with cultural institutions to make site-specific theatrical experiences. Gabridge’s powerful site-specific play at the Old State House, Blood On The Snow, had sold-out runs in 2016 and 2017 and was called “electric and alive” by WGBH’s Jared Bowen. This production was made possible in part by the support of the New England Women’s Club.
Upcoming Events
- Massacre and Memory Tour
A half-mile guided walking tour that explores the surprisingly small geography of colonial Boston to uncover the roots of the Boston Massacre and includes entry to the Old State House and Old South Meeting House.Read more → - Haunted: A History Slam
OCT 20: Join us at Old South Meeting House, an almost certainly haunted building, to see storytellers spins spooky yarns supported by cursed PowerPoint presentations for fun, glory, and prizes!Read more → - Boston Reconsidered Tour
See how events in our backyard have shaped the entire nation. Trace the ideals of the Revolution through Independence, abolition, struggles for civil rights, and into the present day.Read more → - Representation and How to Get It
SEP 28-30: The new one-woman play about Julia Ward Howe performed at Old South Meeting House, featuring unique programs after every performance.Read more → - Material Memory: Warren Powderhorn
OCT 4: Witness a recently uncovered artifact from the home of Joseph Warren and learn about its legacy.Read more → - The Queen’s Visit
Explore mementos and artifacts that commemorate Queen Elizabeth II’s historic reign and visit to the Old State House in 1976.Read more →
Recent Online Events
- We Were Always Here
Join two esteemed professors to uncover the legacies of LGBTQ+ Colonial Americans and learn what life was like for those lived outside the gender and sexual norms of early America.Read more → - Cry Havoc! Legislative Violence in America
VIDEO: Explore an iconic artifact from the Revolutionary Spaces’ collection and the legacy of what this American relic symbolizes: violence perpetrated in the hallowed halls of Congress.Read more → - Unfinished Business Film Series
A film series exploring the legacy of protest, representation, and revolution embodied in our historical sites.Read more → - Joseph Warren, Medicine, and Activism
VIDEO: Explore the intersection of activism and medicine in this timely virtual panel discussion with scholars and doctors.Read more → - Violence, Revolution, and Memory
VIDEO | In commemoration of the Boston Massacre, this panel explores political violence, revolution, and memory in a global context.Read more → - Protest and Commemoration at the 1973 Boston Tea Party Anniversary
Who inherits a legacy of protest and revolution? Can we look back at a moment frozen in time and still march forward in the spirit of change?Read more → - Legacy of the Loyalists
A panel discussion on the legacy of Loyalists. How does the cultural memory of those early Americans left in the shadows transform over time?Read more → - Preserving All Under Heaven: The Gentrification of Chinatown
VIDEO | How can we preserve and empower the voice of the community, its history and its heart, in the face of encroaching development, displacement, and decline of housing?Read more → - Tea Party Tonight!
DEC 17: Our history-themed comedy talk show returns for our fifth episode!Read more →