The Pittsfield Players will premiere Concord writer George Kelly’s new play, “A Time to Gather Stones,” at the Scenic Theatre in Pittsfield on Friday, June 27 through Sunday, June 29.

On October 4, 1875, 17-year-old Langmaid of Pembroke was on her way to Pembroke Academy when she was attacked, raped, murdered, and dismembered. Her murder made front page headlines in newspapers up and down the East Coast. The brutality of it all was horrific and shocking. The populace in Pembroke and Suncook were afraid to walk the streets, and the pressure on law enforcement to find her killer was enormous. After some intense investigation, Joseph LePage, a French- Canadian woodcutter, was accused of the murder and faced trial for his alleged crime.

For Kelly, who is also directing the play, this historical crime sparked inspiration for the play.

“Years ago, I saw the monument to Miss Langmaid, on Academy Road in Pembroke, and thought it kind of a grizzly tribute,” he said. “In typical Victorian style, the monument has engravings on it that describe where Miss Langmaid’s head and torso were found.”

Behind the monolith there are additional granite markers indicating where her body parts were found. Kelly’s curiosity continued and brought him to the Concord Public Library, where he spent months reading micro fiche front page articles about the trial from in the Monitor-Patriot, now the Concord Monitor. There were editorial condemnations of the accused LePage. Kelly found that the editors of the paper slanted their coverage of the trial and stoked the dislike of the French-Canadians who had immigrated to work as loggers and wood cutters.

Foreigners were suspect in the greater Concord community, and the newspaper reflected the prevailing mood. A mob formed, ready to hang LePage, but they were stopped by the local sheriff, who, as the Monitor-Patriot reported, “was compelled to draw his revolver.”

Although “A Time to Gather Stones,” is set in the 1800s, there are a host of parallels in the world we live in today: xenophobia, prejudice, a distrust of immigrants, hypocrisy in our system of justice, and downright bigotry, come through as witnesses are called to testify. Behind them all, in the background scenery, is Blind Justice, created by local artist Emily Marsh. The play also focuses on the pressures faced by each of the principal characters.

“Nearly every character must deal with the societal pressure on them, to convict the accused killer LePage. There is no escape,” Kelly said. “Josie Langmaid’s ghost hovers over a fractured community, and someone is going to hang for the killing”.

Kelly is a founding member of Granite Playwrights. Recently, his play “The College Game” took Best Play honors at The Palace Theatre in Manchester. He has been writing one-act plays for years and putting them up in New England. “A Time to Gather Stones,” is his second full length play. 

“This play was workshopped, deposited in a drawer as hopeless, and then resurrected about a year ago,” he said. “When I began reading an old draft of the play, it really began writing itself. When I rewrote it, I knew I had written an historical courtroom drama.”

Kelly shopped the play around and, Carole Neveux, board member of The Pittsfield Players and now-producer of the play, granted him a reading, after which the Players Board unanimously voted to bring the story to life at The Scenic Theatre. Kelly remains grateful to them for helping him assemble a cast of experienced actors who have appeared in plays across the area, the state and the country at large.

“A Time to Gather Stones” went into production the last week in May. The short timeframe has not been easy, but progress was immediate. Actors have risen to the challenge and literally inhabited their characters.

“The most rewarding part of working on this play are the actors, and production crew involved with it,” Kelly said. “Each rehearsal is still another chance to see the set creation, the lighting, and hear what I’ve written – spoken. This journey is immediately rewarding, because of the creative people involved.”

This historical account of the trial of Joseph LePage though based in fiction, will allow the audience some insight into a dark place in history, as well as illuminate some of the contemporary dilemmas that are present in our modern day.

“I am in awe that even after all these years, someone places fresh roses at Josie’s grave, as others tend the monument to her,” Kelly said.

The play will be performed on Friday, June 27 at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, June 28 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, June 29 at 2 p.m. Tickets to “A Time to Gather Stones” may be purchased in advance, at www.pittsfieldplayers.org. Parents of young children may find some of the descriptive language unsuitable. Discretion is advised.