DIRECTING
“Working with Emerson Helmbrecht was a masterclass in how a director should treat all members of their creative team. He approaches a project with an immense amount of respect and graciousness for the work and for process. It was incredibly refreshing in a creative zeitgeist that feels that it only cares about product. He cares deeply for creating community among all members of a project, and approaches every detail with a reverence for new ideas, integrity and collaboration.”
The first role of director is that of leader. Emerson prides himself on his leadership and community facilitation skills. He believes that the director nurtures the company - by way of compassion and challenge. Practical applications of these values are implementing collaborator contracts and cast representatives in each production undertaken.
Each project is its own puzzle, requiring different creative muscles and methodologies. Emerson believes in working “text first” meaning whatever the basis of the work - play, script, poem, prompt - is where we start. Whether it be tackling an obscure Shakespeare play with rigorous text work, or meeting Sophocles with devised movement, Emerson honors story first. He hones a specific approach to cultivating the ensemble to excavate the story.
Coriolanus
A seldom-produced Shakespeare play, Coriolanus goes like this: a young Roman Republic is on the brink of collapse, faced with rioting Plebeians and a warring enemy tribe, the Volsces. Amid this conflict, the talented Roman soldier Caius Martius is honored for valiant service in the war and earns the name Coriolanus. Having defeated his Volscian rival, Tullus Aufidius, he returns home to his family and runs for consul. However, his pride and arrogance prevent him from getting the peoples’ approval, and Coriolanus is eventually banished from Rome, only to ally himself with the Volsces in revenge. Coriolanus’ friends plead with him to spare Rome, but to no avail. Finally, his mother, wife, and son come to him and beg for their lives. The proud soldier relents, promising to spare Rome. Enraged by Coriolanus’ mercy, Aufidius kills him.
This fiery 2024 production, presented at John DeSotelle Studio’s The Nu Box in Hell’s Kitchen, brings the reality of the veteran’s experience to the forefront through brutal fight choreography, stunning performances, and inserts of interviews with veterans.
PRODUCTION TEAM
Director: Emerson Helmbrecht
Producer: Melody Fay Browning
Assistant Director/Fight Choreographer: Cade Koch
Stage Manager: Stephanie Kaufman
Dramaturg: Melina Rabin
Intimacy Coordinator: Sonia Victoria Werner
Fight Captain: Elijah Meyers
Social Media Coordinator: Ailina Dohn
Poster Design: Harris Singer
Filmed and Edited by: Grant Thorshov
CAST
Caius Martius Coriolanus: Matthew Harmon
Tullus Aufidius: Elijah Meyers
Volumnia: Bianca Martel
Virgilia: Sarah Liu
Menenius Agrippa: Calvin Osorio
Cominius: Hassina Sadara
Junius Brutus: Adam Grodman
Sicinius Velutus: Annie Saenger
Titus Lartius/others: Tomas Lignore
Valeria/others: Emma Spencer
Antigone
In the aftermath of an invasion, in the face of a raging pandemic, one faithful sister defies a tyrant to uphold the Law of the gods and honor her fallen brother. Produced by The Pop-Up Players in 2021 and performed at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic via Zoom, this production utilizes Sophocles’ poetry, masks, and Zoom to explore the timeless themes of pride, faith, justice, devotion, and grief.
PRODUCTION TEAM
Director: Emerson Helmbrecht
Producer: Hope Cassandra
Assistant Director: Cat Moreschi
Stage Manager: Maddy Hurd
Costume Designer: Finch Lynch
Graphic Designer: Jules Talbot
Dramaturgs: Annie Sheneman and Kate Joseph
CAST
Antigone - Alana Markel
Creon - Jules Talbot
Ismene - Mia Cohen
Haemon - Kenyon Terrel
Tiresias - Jessica Schultz
Eurydice - Hannah Ford
Guard - Cade Koch
Messenger - Lucie Bhistikul
