Lisa can cross The Book of Will by Lauren Gunderson off her bucket list of plays she hopes to direct. She has loved the play since first seeing it, and gratifyingly, it is opening this week at Elmwood under her direction.
Although it is set in early 17th-century England, Lisa deems that the show delivers a “modern and necessary message about art, its legacy and how friendship transcends death,” as it focuses on the historical true challenge of Shakespeare’s friends striving to publish his First Folio. Enhancing this true story of love, loss, and laughter is the cast. She modestly says that “these actors have come at their characters in very different ways, and they are so smart and skilled that I have just tried to give them support and a little guidance. I’m particularly excited that we have so many people new to Elmwood in the mix.”
Lisa, active at Elmwood since 2007, is an actress, singer, past Board President and director, having directed The Humans, Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike, and Our Town at Elmwood. Hard pressed to pick a favorite play she has been involved with, she remarks, “I’m just grateful for the chance to play and make art. Elmwood is a place to do the things we love best with people who are passionate and talented. It’s where friends become family, where shared love of art amplifies us and creates something we could not accomplish without each other. What could be better!”
