“‘Who was Joe Hill?’ That question was scrawled on a rest room stall wall only to be answered at a later date, “If you don’t know…learn. If you do, then…teach.”
Glenn Plummer, a union worker, discovered that writing, and decided he needed to learn the answer. Years later, he taught Dr. Stephen A. Schrum, and together they are working on teaching the world.
These two Westmoreland County residents have collaborated on a new musical play, Labor’s Martyr: The Story of Joe Hill, to teach in a way that promises to be educational, entertaining and inspirational. Their play includes songs written by the play’s authors in addition to many written more than 100 years ago by Hill. Audiences will be encouraged to sing along to some of the show’s numbers.
A Showcase performance is scheduled to be held at the Christ United Church of Christ, Latrobe, PA on Saturday, November 16, 2024, International Day for Tolerance; tickets for this event are $5 and can be purchased through Eventbrite. A number of songs, from the play’s script, will be sung at the Showcase. A full production is is scheduled for May 1 (International Labor Day), 2 and 3, 2025, also at the church.
Books and songs have been written about Joe Hill since his execution by the state of Utah in 1915. One song, “I Dreamed I Saw Joe Hill Last Night,” was recorded by Paul Robeson and Joan Baez among others. It was written 10 years after Hill’s cremation and led to Hill’s international recognition as being “the man who never died.”
Hill’s story, that of a Swedish immigrant, itinerant worker, singer, songwriter and labor agitator as a member of the Industrial Workers of the World, sometimes called the ‘Wobblies,’ is a timely reminder of problems faced today by those looking to find a better way of life in the United States of America. The play, Labor’s Martyr: The Story of Joe Hill, tells a story of America and the immigrant experience, then and now. “
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