Radium Girls is D.W. Gregory’s gripping drama based on the true story of female workers who were poisoned, and in some instances died, as a result of working with their factory’s radium-based paint. Though the setting of Radium Girls ranges from 1918 through the 1940’s, the play is mainly centred on events in New Jersey in the mid 1920s.

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In particular, the play follows Grace, Irene, and Kathryn who paint dials at the U.S. Radium Plant and are instructed to finely point their brushes by moulding the bristles with their lips while painting.

The factory’s new owner, Arthur Roeder, is excited by radium’s promising future and believes in the company’s potential for growth. Roeder’s mindset is supported by Marie Curie, the internationally famous scientist, who believes radium provides many health benefits and could even cure cancer.

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However, many of the girls soon begin to notice disturbing health issues, and when one of their co-workers dies, her death is brushed aside. The company tries to prevent the girls, who are getting sicker, from talking to the press; push back lawsuit court dates and try to deflect any negativity toward the company.

Eventually, some of the girls get settlements and medical coverage for the rest of their shortened lives. This is their story.