The touring production of "Silent Sky" by Ellipse Theatre Community will be performed Friday through Sept. 24 on stages in Bend, Prineville, La Pine, Sisters and Redmond.

During a time when women were prohibited from using telescopes, Henrietta Swan Leavitt developed a method for estimating the distance between the Earth and a star based on its brightness.

This month, Leavitt’s story will be told on stages across Central Oregon in Ellipse Theatre Community’s (ETC) production of “Silent Sky.” Juliah Rae directs the Lauren Gunderson play.

According to a press release, the discovery is now known as The Period-Luminosity law and led to the discovery of more than 2,400 variable stars by Leavitt and her team.

“Silent Sky” is woven together with humor, romance, feminism and universal truths.

“We are still in the unfortunate rut of under-opportunity and under-representation for women in the sciences and tech,” Gunderson said. “This play aims to expose and challenge that angering trend with a true story of a woman who changed the course of astronomy.”

The show is part of ETC’s Roadshow Program, bringing it to venues in Bend, Prineville, La Pine, Sisters and Redmond.

“Accessibility to the arts is so important and it is key to us that we continually provide that,” said Craig Brauner, ETC president.

In celebration of the upcoming production, the cast of “Silent Sky” visited Worthy Hopservatory dressed in 19th-century costume to star gaze on Friday.

Lauren Gunderson’s “Silent Sky; Opens 7 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. Saturday and 7 p.m. Sunday; Open Space Event Studios, 220 NE Lafayette Ave., Bend followed by performances at Bowman Museum in Prineville, La Pine Activity Center in La Pine, Camp Sherman Community Hall in Sisters and High Desert Music Hall in Redmond; $20; etcbend.org