In Memoriam: Bread & Roses Missouri’s Agnes Wilcox

Agnes Wilcox, the artistic director for Bread & Roses Missouri, died unexpectedly Aug. 28 while vacationing with her husband in Ontario, Canada.

Ms. Wilcox, 70, had worked closely with Bread & Roses Missouri over the last two years writing and directing “Then & Now, Again: ‘A Workers’ Opera.’” She had been working on a revamp of the theatrical production, which was held Sept. 10 at the Missouri History Museum.

Bread & Roses Missouri announced Ms. Wilcox’s death on its Facebook page and plans to dedicate the performance in her memory.

“We’re heartbroken by the news that our dear friend has passed away,” the group wrote. “She was a champion and an unshakable force for justice, for brilliant theater, for creative expression and for the St. Louis community. We’re deeply grateful to have built with her, grown with her and learned from her.”

Ms. Wilcox was known as a major force in the St. Louis theater scene, founding The New Theatre (TNT), which focused on contemporary plays, and Prison Performing Arts, a multi-discipline, literacy and performing arts program that serves incarcerated adults and youth in Missouri. She was also an adjunct professor at Webster University and Washington University and a member of Equity, the Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA).

Her husband, longtime St. Louis theater critic Bob Wilcox, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch his wife went for a swim on Aug. 28 and her body was later found at the edge of the water. Wilcox said he was puzzled about his wife’s death because she was an avid swimmer, who was healthy and in great physical condition.

Wilcox said an autopsy would be performed in Ontario and a memorial celebration would be held in St. Louis at a later date.