EMILIA is a dynamic, high-energy ensemble piece that blends music, movement, and storytelling to celebrate the life and legacy of one extraordinary woman. It is funny, fierce, lyrical, and unapologetic - a rallying cry across the centuries. We are seeking a diverse, committed, and enthusiastic cast of women and non-binary performers to bring this contemporary classic to life. All roles are open. Performers of all backgrounds and experience levels are encouraged to audition. This is an ensemble-driven show requiring a willingness to: •Develop a strong presence onstage and take creative risks •Work with heightened text and develop your vocal skills •Explore physicality and movement •Collaborate with your fellow cast members Audition material will be provided. Links to this material will be posted on the HG website by July 1. Principal Roles: Emilia (Adult) – The central figure. Intelligent, passionate, sharp-witted, and fiercely determined to have her voice heard. We follow her journey from youth to published poet. Person of color. Young Emilia – Emilia as a child/teenager. Curious, observant, imaginative; already questioning the world around her. Person of color. Older Emilia – A reflective, often more direct-address presence who helps frame the story and its legacy. Person of color. Lady Mary Sidney – Countess of Pembroke; educated, literary, politically aware. Represents female intellectual possibility within constraint. Susan Bertie, The Countess of Kent – A noblewoman and patron figure; independent and outspoken. Lady Katherine Howard – A courtly woman who reveals the precarious position of women at court. Lord Thomas Howard - He embodies the patriarchal values of the time, believing that women should be obedient, modest, and silent rather than intellectual or outspoken. Lady Margaret Clifford – A noblewomen who encourages Emilia intellectually and symbolizes women pursuing learning despite societal barriers. Lord Henry Carey (Lord Hunsdon) – Emilia’s patron and lover; powerful, charismatic, entitled. Alfonso Lanier – Emilia’s father, a court musician. William Shakespeare - Famous playwright who appears as one of the men in Emilia’s life. Alfonso Lanier Jr. - Emilia’s husband, through whom the audience sees how Emilia’s talents and ambitions are restricted. Ensemble: The remaining cast members form a highly active ensemble who: •Play courtiers, noblemen, priests, servants, and members of the public •Have dialogue and comment on the action. •Provide choral speech, movement, and musical elements •Frequently step in and out of historical and contemporary voice Important Note for Casting: The script is intentionally designed to be performed by women and non-binary performers only, including roles of male historical figures. Plot: Emilia tells the story of Emilia Bassano, a 16th-century poet widely believed by some scholars to have been the “Dark Lady” of Shakespeare’s sonnets — and one of the first published female poets in England. Plot: The play traces Emilia’s journey from her childhood in a household of court musicians, through her experiences as a young woman navigating the male-dominated world of Elizabethan England. Intelligent, ambitious, and fiercely independent, Emilia becomes the mistress of a powerful nobleman, discovering both the privilege and the limitations placed upon women of her time. Through love, betrayal, and societal expectation, she learns how deeply women’s voices are controlled and erased. After being cast aside, Emilia marries and attempts to conform to the role of obedient wife. Yet her creative fire refuses to be extinguished. In a bold act of defiance, she writes and publishes her own volume of poetry — Salve Deus Rex Judaeorum — becoming one of the first English women to assert her literary voice publicly. Told through a dynamic all-female ensemble, the play moves fluidly between past and present. Modern language, music, and movement collide with period drama as the performers reclaim Emilia’s story from history. The play not only chronicles one woman’s life, but also becomes a celebration of women’s resilience, creativity, and solidarity across generations.