Emma When You Need Her
An original devised piece by Rudy Ramirez & Ensemble
Directed by Rudy Ramirez
Co-produced by Vortex Repertory & Shrewd Productions
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"I want freedom, the right to self-expression, everybody's right to beautiful, radiant things."
- Emma Goldman
In the last two decades, Emma Goldman has become a largely forgotten figure in history. But in a world where a handful of rich men control the government, where women fight to control their bodies, and immigrants escaping war and poverty are met with fear and mistrust - well, it could be Austin, 2015 or New York, 1914, but whenever we are we need to find the crowd-charging, hard-writing, fast-dancing, freedom-fighting, anarchofeminist firebrand inside us all! It’s time to answer the question, where, oh where is...Emma when you need her?
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Emma When You Need Her was first produced as a workshop at the UTNT New Works Festival.
It ran May 1-16 at the VORTEX.
Ensemble
Katie Baskerville, Susan Bennett, Samuel Blake, Shannon Grounds, Kevin Hippler, Nickclette Izuegbu, Keith Machekanyanga, Jules Minkoff, Jesus Valles, and Tiffany Watson
“'Emma When You Need Her' is a piece bursting with energy and fire, a piece of dynamite and dance, celebrating the life of this history-making revolutionary, while always reminding us of the harsh things she went through, and the hard times our nation, and the world, were facing... It’s one of the most powerful pieces I’ve seen in some time, and one that I cannot recommend enough."
- Ryan E. Johnson, Austin Theatre Examiner
"Through the lens of Goldman's life, the play brings up some important questions about activism and revolution. What should we give up for the cause? What must never be given up? What makes life worth living? Who can we trust? How can we make sure everyone is included? “Beautiful things are not luxuries,” Goldman says. “Life would be unbearable without them.”
- Dana Sayre, The Horn
Production Crew
Director - Rudy Ramirez
Producer - Bonnie Cullum, Melissa Vogt, Shannon Grounds
Stage Manager - Keith Sechrest, Tamara Farley
Media Design - Kate Ducey
Costume Designer - E.L. Hohn
Lighting Designer - Patrick Anthony
Sound Design - Rudy Ramirez
Video Trailer - Magic Spoon Productions
Production Photos - Errich Peterson