Musical · Two Acts
Justice is never as simple as guilt or innocence.
Available for Production
The Hanging of Mary Surratt is a historical musical that reexamines the Lincoln assassination through the eyes of the woman condemned alongside the conspirators. Tried for conspiracy in 1865, Mary Surratt became the first woman hanged by the United States government.
As war-scarred America demands justice, this mother of three is caught between truth, silence, and survival. Was her arrest and conviction a rational legal process, or the result of a public hungry for revenge? Blending intimate character songs with historical reenactment, the musical explores the contradictions surrounding her trial and leaves audiences with the haunting, timeless question: was she guilty, or innocent?
Song Samples
Hear selected songs from THE HANGING OF MARY SURRATT
Click the button below to open a playlist of song samples in Google Drive.
Listen to Song SamplesOpens in Google Drive
Inspired by a newspaper story and a historic photograph, the playwright spent three years researching the history of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, as well as the conspiracy to take down the United States government planned by John Wilkes Booth and his associates.
In that time, Tom read numerous books on the subject and publications by Lincoln historians. His research also included studying hundreds of pages of transcripts from the trial of Mary Surratt and the conspirators, and he visited the Ford Theater and the home where Lincoln died in Washington, DC.
Originally written as a non-musical historical drama, the playwright drafted a musical version of his play that included lyrics and music for 26 original songs in 2025.
Wheeler Library
Stonington, Connecticut
First reading with a public audience — May 22, 2025.
Epoch Arts Black Box Theater
East Hampton, Connecticut
Staged reading using props, costumes, and demo musical tracks performed for a public audience — August 17, 2025.
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