About Emily
Freelance Theatre Director
I am a freelance theatre director in Louisville, KY.
I am interested in telling stories that center women, particularly topics that don’t tend to be discussed – pregnancy, abortion, motherhood, body image, and mental health.
I am interested in directing new plays that discuss these topics or devising work to address them and encourage social change.
Background
While I have chosen to focus my directing on these very serious topics, my performing experience is quite different.
I fell in love with musical theatre at an early age, watching many film versions of musicals like My Fair Lady, Guys and Dolls, Oklahoma, and Singing in the Rain. I loved singing and dancing along. I knew I wanted to perform but it took me a while to overcome my fear and actually audition for a musical.
In my junior year of high school I auditioned for my first musical You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown. While in the show, a castmate introduced me to ballroom dancing and from there I was hooked. Ballroom dancing became a huge part of my identity for over ten years and continues to influence my choreography. Ballroom was my creative outlet until I fell back into theatre in 2015 and while I don’t dance as much as I used to, I still find time to go out salsa dancing with my husband.
Outside of theatre and dance, I am a wife, mother, and feminist. My journey as a mother is what led me to plays about motherhood. I rarely see myself reflected on stage and I want to change that. I want to tell those stories so other mothers can see that they’re not alone in their struggles.
As a feminist, I believe in reproductive justice so I seek to tell stories of women making difficult decisions about their bodies. I hope these stories can touch audience members and create a dialogue about these issues.
Values
I believe in a collaborative, non-hierarchical theatre space. I listen to everyone involved in the theatre process: the actors, stage managers, designers, and playwright. We make great art together.
I believe theatre can be used to enact social change and I am exploring ways to do that.
I believe in creating a safe rehearsal space by:
- Making everyone feel welcome
- Respecting individual boundaries
- Encouraging questions
- Addressing harm when it is caused and working to repair the damage
- Focusing on the process, not the product. This means the people come first.
