“Bill & Lois Wilson: In Their Own Words” is the life and love story of the Wilsons, the respective co-founders of Alcoholics Anonymous and Al-Anon Family Groups, which led to today’s life-saving worldwide Twelve-Step fellowships. A unique staged reading of letters and remembrances will be presented Friday, Jan. 17 at 7 p.m. in Reynolds Hall, 52 Concord St., Peterborough.
Drawn from the archives of the Wilsons’s home in Katonah, New York, the play uses only words written or spoken by the Wilsons. Four actors lead the audience through the couple’s young love, Bill’s descent into addiction and, ultimately, redemption as Bill connected with others to create the Twelve Steps that have played a profound role in addiction treatment for 84 years. Lois co-founded Al-Anon Family Groups in 1951 to help the loved ones of alcoholics.
“Hearing the actual words and thoughts of Bill and Lois as they navigate Bill’s debilitating alcoholism presents a powerful witness about the recovery journey,” said Laurie Heffner Lewis, the play’s creator. “The audience becomes immersed in the couple’s lives – hearing their words; living their lives along with them – connecting Bill and Lois to all of us. Anyone who has found great difficulty in life can draw hope from the timeless message presented that there is no situation too difficult to be bettered; no unhappiness too great to be lessened.”
The production is presented by Recovery Ministries of the Episcopal Church New Hampshire, in cooperation with Stepping Stones- Historic Home of Bill & Lois Wilson. Stepping Stones is where Bill and Lois lived and worked from 1941 until their deaths in 1971 and 1988, respectively. Today, the Stepping Stones Foundation inspires recovery by preserving for the public the historic home and archives of the Wilsons. The Foundation maintains and offers tours of the home, 15,000 objects, the Wilsons’s papers, and several acres of gardens and grounds.
“The Stepping Stones Foundation Archives is the largest repository of the Wilsons’s personal papers, recordings, and photographs, including the important original letters featured in the upcoming reading,” said Sally Corbett-Turco, executive director of Stepping Stones Foundation. “The play is a chance to experience the powerful and moving thoughts, ideas and struggles that Bill and Lois shared. As the love story unfolds, so does the creation of A.A. and Al-Anon, which some consider America’s greatest contribution to humanity.”
“Bill & Lois Wilson: In their Own Words,” was developed in 2010 and presented in New York, Connecticut and California. The Peterborough performance will feature Kat Neary as Young Lois, Jake H. Lewis as Young Bill, Christine Howe as Older Lois, and Lauron Lewis as Older Bill. Historic visual images and music are integral parts of the presentation.
“Acclaim from our audience in September motivated us to mount an encore presentation,” said Rev. Sandi Albom of Episcopal Recovery Ministries of NH. “The story of Bill and Lois’s struggles and ultimate triumph conveys a timeless message – both for people in the recovery movement, and also for people who may have limited knowledge about what A.A. and Al-Anon are all about. Hearing the insights and revelations of both Bill and Lois in their own words creates a moving portrait of what is at the core of the recovery movement.”
The Jan. 17 performance is presented with permission from Stepping Stones Foundation.
Admission is free, but donations are welcomed. Advance tickets are recommended as the September presentation played to a standing-room-only audience. Advance tickets are available on-line at steppingstonesplay.eventbrite.com.
For information about Stepping Stones, email info@steppingstones.org, call (914) 232-4822, or visit steppingstones.org.