From 1969 to 1973, a Chicago-based organization known by the code name “Jane” brought safe and accessible abortions to more than 10,000 women. Paula Kamen’s Jane: Abortion and the Underground gives voice to the women who ran the resistance collective, risking their freedom to champion the right to choose.
Director Morgan Manasa and Idle Muse’s ensemble cast thoughtfully weave through firsthand accounts of the women who powered the abortion underground, beginning with its founding and ending with its shutdown after the Roe v. Wade decision came down.
Jane: Abortion and the Underground
Through 10/15: Thu-Sat 8 PM, Sun 3 PM; The Edge Off Broadway, 1133 W. Catalpa, 773-340-9438, idlemuse.org, $20 ($15 seniors/students, $10 industry Thu). On Sun 10/1 there will be a postshow discussion with playwright Paula Kamen, Jane members Jeanne Galatzer Levy and Eileen Smith, and Illinois state representative Kelly M. Cassidy.
Kamen pulls the “Janes’” stories from verbatim interviews, often highlighting how the women’s personal relationship to the cause intersected with the political and cultural circumstances driving the organization.
The story is well-paced and gripping, moving between the interviews and fictionalized scenes. Notably, it also provides plenty of space for the women who sought care from the service and never softens the emotional and physical struggles they endured.
In the show’s conclusion, the women of Jane celebrate the progress that resulted from their efforts but acknowledge the fight yet to come. A year out from the Dobbs decision, when Illinois remains a haven for abortion amidst a mass of regressive restrictions nationwide, this message feels particularly heavy. But as demonstrated by Jane, hope remains in the power of organizing.