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A simple message adorns the backs of T-shirts worn by the crew of the current show at Oak Park and River Forest High School’s Little Theatre: “We do not have to accept injustice!”

The injustice refers to that suffered by the “Radium Girls,” the namesakes of a play that opened May 12 at the Little Theatre at the high school, 201 N. Scoville Ave. in Oak Park. The show can be seen at 7:30 p.m. May 18 and May 19.

The play, written by D.W. Gregory, is based on true accounts of women in the 1920s employed at the U.S. Radium Corporation factory in New Jersey, painting watch dials with luminous paint. As the women become ill and die, one former employee, Grace Fryer, pursues a lawsuit against the company, which maintains its innocence.

Linda Burns, the show’s director and OPRF history teacher, said during dress rehearsal May 11 she was looking for a play that offered plenty of female roles, and one that focused on women’s empowerment. Although selected prior to the women’s marches that took place globally earlier this year, the play seemed especially timely, Burns added.

“I always try to choose things that are going to engage the kids,” Burns said. “They really love the story. It’s so amazing that nobody knows about this.”

Many members of the 23-person cast portray more than one character, which Burns said challenges the students. And the ensemble piece allows everyone to participate in telling the story, she added.

“I’m really drawn to plays like that,” she said.

Cast members of”Radium Girls,” the last production of the school year for Oak Park and River Forest High School’s Little Theatre, rehearse May 11 at the high school, 201 N. Scoville Ave. The show opened May 12 and will run at 7:30 p.m. May 18 and May 19.

Junior Julie Cozette, who plays Grace Fryer, and junior Thomas Weinheimer, who portrays U.S. Radium company president Arthur Roeder, both said the themes of the play continue to resonate today, with issues like workers’ rights, female empowerment and denial of the truth at the forefront.

“I think it’s just so important for a show like this to be done, especially today. The message is still so relevant,” Cozette said.

“There are still an exponential number of corporations just like this,” Weinheimer added.

Weinheimer said his character, Roeder, is guided by his morals and struggles with the realization that the women are being poisoned by radium due to work at his company.

“I think we’re really trying hard as a cast to show these characters are almost allegorical,” Weinheimer said.

Cozette and Weinheimer said they appreciate the show’s dynamic characters who experience a range of emotions during the show.

“It’s just amazing how incredibly strong and brave these women were,” Cozette said. “They were dying, and they did all this. It’s really inspiring.”

Caitlin Mullen is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.