inscape ministries
 
We have all known the long loneliness and we have learned that
the only solution is love and that love comes with community.
It all happened while we sat there talking, and it is still going on.
 Thanks be to God.
 Dorothy Day
Conversations with Dorothy Day

"As one who was blest to know Dorothy Day, I was deeply moved by "Conversations With Dorothy Day." Sharon Halsey-Hoover give a very authentic portrayal of this remarkable woman.  I hope that people take the time to see it and let themselves be touched by Halsey-Hoover's inspired performance."  Bishop Tom Gumbleton 

"Conversations with Dorothy Day" depicts Dorothy stopping by to share a cup of coffee and to visit with friends while she talks about her life.  The setting is the present time and the "powers that be" have given Dorothy permission to be gone from the heavenly realm for a very short time. During the visit Dorothy reads from her journals, her books, and other writings as she shares the story of her conversion and the founding of The Catholic Worker. The length of the visit is approximately 45-60 minutes and can be adapted as appropriate to the audience that is gathered.  It is followed by a time of questions and answers.
"Conversations with Dorothy Day" was first performed in June 2002 at Womens Voices Rising, a womens convocation sponsored by The Center for Spiritual Development in Orange, California.  Since then it has been presented numerous times in different venues. These  include church settings, (St. Columban's Catholic Church, Garden Grove, CA.; St. Matthias Episcopal Church, Los Angeles, CA.)  high school and college students, (Rosary High School, Fullerton, CA; Mount St. Mary's College, Los Angeles, CA.) small gatherings of friends and numerous groups at The Center for Spiritual Development. In January of 2013 this play was performed at Maryhouse Catholic Worker in New York City where Dorothy was living when she died.

Today the sixth through ninth grade students at Saint Joseph School in Fort Collins, Colorado were treated to a dramatic presentation of the life of Dorothy Day performed by Sharon Halsey-Hoover.  Her portrayal is so convincing that we really felt as though Dorothy Day had indeed stopped by to share a cup of coffee and visit. Sharon did a wonderful job of transporting us back to a time and place we had only read about.  I'm sure the students have a much better understanding of this unique lady and the important work that she did for the poor.
Sue Zaloudek

"Every single person you meet IS Jesus!" asserted Dorothy Day as she sipped coffee with nearly 70 women who were mesmerized when Dorothy briefly returned to earth (St. Anne's Church hall) to share her humor and humility as well as her sorrows, sacrifice and surrender on her journey to conversion and to the creation of the Catholic Worker movement!

The St. Anne's Women's Guild was privileged to present Sharon Halsey-Hoover as she portrayed Dorothy Day (1897-1980) in a convincing and emotional rendition of "Conversations With Dorothy Day."  Sharon had many of us in tears as she shared the tumultuous life of Dorothy Day who is considered by many to be the most influential Catholic woman of the 20th Century!

St. Anne's Women's Guild, Seal Beach, California

Click on the PDF below to view the
Conversations with Dorothy Day Brochure
Document