Kate Sheppard is a name and a face well known to many New Zealanders – it’s her image on our ten-dollar note, after all.
And many of us will have some vague awareness of her importance in the movement that led to New Zealand being the first country to embrace universal suffrage.
New Zealand suffragist Kate Sheppard (1847 - 1934) Photo: Public Domain
But who was she? And 125 years on, what relevance does the suffrage movement have to modern-day New Zealand?
In May, Centrepoint in Palmerston North will present a new production of the punk rock musical That Bloody Woman, based on the life of this formidable historical figure.
Upbeat talks to composer Luke di Somma, and the musical’s original Kate Sheppard, Esther Stephens.
