Mothers. To some, they are quiet nurturers; to others, they will always be constant naggers; to others still, they represent the overlooked superwomen of all time.  But to Dr. Beth Osnes, they embody the peacemakers of the world — who may very well be able to save it.

In her one-woman play “(M)other,” Osnes explores the revolutionary idea that peace can be generated through the care and natural affection of mothers.  The play’s premise: A program designed by the United Nations mandates that seven mothers from seven different countries exchange their six-month-old babies with each other for a month.  As their individual stories unravel and gradually overlap, they begin to understand their innate relation to one another and better identify with each other’s worlds — all thanks to the sole performance of Osnes herself.

Hosted by the Marquette University Center for Peacemaking and co-sponsored by local nonprofit organizations including the Milwaukee Muslim Women’s Association and the Iraqi Student Project, Osnes’ one-woman play will make its Marquette premiere Thursday, April 15 at 7 p.m. in the Weasler Auditorium.

For Osnes, bringing “(M)other” to Marquette is like coming home. After graduating from Marquette in 1986 with a major in Theology and an interest in theater, Osnes attributes some of the ingenuity of her work to the years she spent here. Now a professor of theatre at University of Colorado who strives to draw inspiration from her students, she will have the opportunity to debut her work in a community that launched much of the basis of her own inspiration.

Her vision within this play also stems from her personal experiences as a mother of three.  In discussing these experiences, Osnes affirmed how drastically motherhood impacted her life.

“It immersed me in the tasks of nurturing and daily peacemaking until I became, in my very self-definition, a nurturer and a peacemaker,” Osnes said in an e-mail.

In particular, she said the adoption of her third child, Lerato, from South Africa helped her truly grasp the essence of her play.

“Actually receiving into our lives a baby from the other side of the world allowed me to experience firsthand how capable I believe we all are of expanding our care to include all the world’s children,” Osnes said.

With her play’s ambiguous title, “(M)other,” Osnes intended to reflect how the “other” resides within the mother.

“When you become a mother, a part of you is outside yourself, and that leaves you open to the ‘other,’ including the needs of other people beyond just yourself and your family,” Osnes said.

In addition to the financial benefits, performing “(M)other” as a one-woman play enables Osnes to step onstage and portray how each person has value and something meaningful to share with their own voice.

It took Osnes almost a year to write and craft the nuances of “(M)other,” and has since performed in her home state, Colorado, as well as in major cities including Austin, Nashville, New York, and Columbus. She has even expanded to a more global level, appearing in Toronto and Antigua, Guatemala, and teaching workshops in Guatemala, Malaysia, Vietnam, Panama, and soon Rwanda under The Mother Tour.  The tour functions as a part of Mothers Acting Up, an activist group Osnes co-founded to reach out to women in advocating for themselves and for all children around the world.

The workshops, which accent the themes of the play, promote what Osnes describes as vocal empowerment for women. Using skills that Osnes has developed as an actor, she teaches women how to express themselves with confidence and character so that they feel better equipped to tackle issues of social justice.

This remains one of the primary focuses of the Center for Peacemaking here at Marquette. Patrick Kennelly, the center’s associate director, explained its mission as engaging the universe in peacemaking.

“We need to have a skill set to resolve conflict so the decision doesn’t have to be made to resort to violence,” Kennelly said.

When Mothers Acting Up sent footage of the play, Kennelly said, it just clicked.

“After viewing the play, it seemed like a natural fit,” Kennelly said.

Kim Brown, a sophomore in the College of Health Sciences, has been involved with the Center for Peacemaking for two years.  Because of the center, she said, she has discovered how to take a more active approach toward nonviolence.

“I encourage people to go because you just learn so much and it really opens your eyes,” Brown said.

Which captures the exact purpose behind Osnes’ work.

“If we could all realize the ways in which our lives are inextricably linked with people from all over the world, their well-being would reside in our circle of care,” Osnes said.

A discussion panel revolving around motherhood and peacemaking from the perspectives of nursing, journalism, psychology and the performing arts will precede the play at 5:30 p.m. in Weasler Auditorium. For complete details, visit www.marquette.edu/peacemaking/