Actors' Shakespeare Project brings a fresh, feminist twist to 'Emma'

On a Saturday afternoon in October, a rehearsal space came alive with laughter. Cast members ran through a scene for Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s upcoming production of “Emma,” opening Nov. 14 at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge.

Emma Woodhouse, portrayed by Josephine Moshiri Elwood, and her impressionable friend Harriet Smith (Liza Giangrande) are conferring about a suitor. Harriet giggles girlishly as she inquires of Emma, “Do you really think I am capable of driving a man mad with love?” Emma confidently replies, “I never think, Harriet. I only know.”

They are interrupted by the entrance of Mr. Knightley, who objects to Emma’s machinations. The two melodramatically bicker over biscuits, before Emma announces her grand schemes to the audience, throwing her hands in the air with glee and bombast.

This is the world of the production. The script by Kate Hamill is based on Jane Austen’s classic, Regency-era novel, but it feels fresh, fast-paced and lively. The precocious titular character is not allowed a profession and therefore devotes her energies to playing cupid, though her plans often go awry. Along the way, Moshiri Elwood’s bold heroine collides with other society figures, like Miss Bates (Jennie Israel), headmistress of a struggling school for girls, her rival Jane Fairfax (Lorraine Victoria Kanyike), and the prospective paramour Mr. Elton (Fady Demian).

The farcical story is one of self-discovery, perhaps a coming-of-age tale, said director Regine Vital, who admired Hamill’s approach to feminism with her portrayal of strong but complicated and flawed women.

“Emma is an incredibly intelligent, confident, capable individual, overachieving in a lot of ways, and actually a bit of a people pleaser,” said Vital. “As a result of that, she’s living a life that isn’t really for herself. She’s living a life that’s been prescribed for her and performing a version of herself that she believes is the one that has to be out in the world.”

While Austen’s novel was written over two centuries ago, Vital said this production feels “fundamentally now.” In many ways, the problems that women face in society have not changed. Hamill’s work sparked questions for Vital: Why is it still hard to allow women to thrive? Why is it hard for us to allow women to have the space and freedom to become who they want to be? And why does it take Emma the duration of the play to find who she really is?

Dramaturg Kristin Leahey, who worked with Hamill during her writing process, said that the stage show is different from the book in that it places friendships — particularly female ones — front and center. While Hamill keeps Austen’s story intact, she doesn’t feel the need to “keep all the rules of the period,” using theatricality and wit to challenge systems and put her own feminist twist on the tale.

“[Hamill] is asking these integral questions about courtship, about marriage, these major narrative questions. You can push the plot forward, but then, you can break away from things,” Leahey said. She added, “It’s suited for today.”

Moshiri Elwood said that she enjoyed the way Hamill elevates the perspectives of young women while writing personalities who are human and make mistakes.

“I think there’s something about [Emma’s] female relationships, with her dear friend Harriet and with her former teacher Mrs. Weston, who provide a kind of balance in her that then allows her to become vulnerable,” said Moshiri Elwood. “The catalyst for her to be able to really change is when she realizes she’s wrong.”

By the end of Emma’s journey, she’s able to cut through the artifice, Moshiri Elwood explained, discover what she really wants, and pursue what truly makes her happy.

Exploration of that dramatic trajectory was helmed by Vital, who supported a collaborative creative environment and exchange of ideas. Israel, who was part of a group that founded Actors’ Shakespeare Project 20 years ago, said that the director brought an air of safety and intellectual curiosity to the production.

“Whatever she doesn’t know, she’s just dying to figure out,” Israel said. “She knows that it’s more valuable to welcome the voices than to limit them.”

Representation was important to Vital. She explained that in her casting of “Emma,” she envisioned artists of color in lead roles, choosing Moshiri Elwood, who identifies as Iranian American, to play the title character, and having a Ugandan American actress, Kanyike, portray Jane Fairfax, a young woman who seemingly embodies perfection and often described as Emma’s foil.

“Emma” gives insight into how women can live together in a world that often doesn’t validate their points of view and hope to ultimately find themselves, Vital explained.

“Instead of working within the strictures of that imposition by society, if we could just see each other, that does so much,” she said. “I think Emma grows a lot from that.”

Actors' Shakespeare Project's production of "Emma" runs Nov. 14-Dec. 15 at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge.