Belle Esprit is committed to producing and developing new plays and adaptations that recenter the female narrative.
We call them the Classics of Tomorrow.
Hamlet
{a feminist bootleg}
Directed by Christopher Marino & Claire F. Martin
June 2026
Hamlet
{a feminist bootleg}
Directed by Christopher Marino & Claire F. Martin
June 2026
HAMLET
Directed by Christopher Marino & Claire F. Martin
Out of Box Theatre
Friday, June 26 | 7:30pm
~•~•~•~
"We see what we are but cannot tell what we shall be."
The court of Denmark is in turmoil. The King is dead, his widowed Queen Gertrude is remarried, and their son Hamlet has been passed over for the crown by his uncle, the King's brother...who also happens to be Gertrude's new husband. When the ghost of the dead King Hamlet appears, warning of a treacherous conspiracy, young Prince Hamlet vows revenge on his wicked uncle. But anger and grief are poor substitutes for clarity, and Hamlet's thirst for vengeance soon ends up wreaking havoc on the very people who love him most...namely, his own mother Gertrude, and his childhood sweetheart, Ophelia.
Conceived and directed by actor/director Christopher Marino, this sleek new adaptation of the Bard's classic tragedy explores the human cost of masculine rage and patriarchal values, while also celebrating the way Shakespeare's women speak truth to power.
Directed by Christopher Marino & Claire F. Martin
Out of Box Theatre
Friday, June 26 | 7:30pm
~•~•~•~
"We see what we are but cannot tell what we shall be."
The court of Denmark is in turmoil. The King is dead, his widowed Queen Gertrude is remarried, and their son Hamlet has been passed over for the crown by his uncle, the King's brother...who also happens to be Gertrude's new husband. When the ghost of the dead King Hamlet appears, warning of a treacherous conspiracy, young Prince Hamlet vows revenge on his wicked uncle. But anger and grief are poor substitutes for clarity, and Hamlet's thirst for vengeance soon ends up wreaking havoc on the very people who love him most...namely, his own mother Gertrude, and his childhood sweetheart, Ophelia.
Conceived and directed by actor/director Christopher Marino, this sleek new adaptation of the Bard's classic tragedy explores the human cost of masculine rage and patriarchal values, while also celebrating the way Shakespeare's women speak truth to power.
Cast & Creatives
Luke Robbins
Hamlet |
Christopher Marino
Ghost • Claudius |
Luis R. Hernandez
Polonius • Ensemble |
Amanda Lindsey McDonald
Queen Gertrude |
Nicholas Tycho Reed
Horatio |
Claire F. Martin
Ophelia • Ensemble |
Kevin Roost
Laertes • Ensemble |
Evan Hill Phillips
Rosencrantz • Ensemble |
Gabrielle Story
Guildenstern • Ensemble |
Claire F. Martin
Ophelia • Ensemble |
The Wayward Triptych
(or, America in Pieces)
Written & Directed by Claire F. Martin
June 2026
The Wayward Triptych
(or, America in Pieces)
Written & Directed by Claire F. Martin
June 2026
THE WAYWARD TRIPTYCH
3 Plays • 2 Days
Written & Directed by Claire F. Martin
Balzer Theater at Herren's
June 12-13, 2026
~•~•~•~
"Empires fall, my boy. That is all they are designed to do."
The Wayward Triptych is feminist anthology about three viruses plaguing the never-less-United States of America: imperialism, nepotism, & capitalism.
Comprised of three full-length plays--Wayward Daughters (which follows the rise of the Roman Empire), Wayward Sisters (the Tudor Dynasty), and Wayward Mothers (the Medici Bank)--the Wayward Triptych is a quasi-historical call-to-arms rooted in the female experience. Belle Esprit is thrilled to bring the first public presentation of this 3-play cycle to Atlanta just a few weeks shy of the 250th birthday of the American Empire itself.
3 Plays • 2 Days
Written & Directed by Claire F. Martin
Balzer Theater at Herren's
June 12-13, 2026
~•~•~•~
"Empires fall, my boy. That is all they are designed to do."
The Wayward Triptych is feminist anthology about three viruses plaguing the never-less-United States of America: imperialism, nepotism, & capitalism.
Comprised of three full-length plays--Wayward Daughters (which follows the rise of the Roman Empire), Wayward Sisters (the Tudor Dynasty), and Wayward Mothers (the Medici Bank)--the Wayward Triptych is a quasi-historical call-to-arms rooted in the female experience. Belle Esprit is thrilled to bring the first public presentation of this 3-play cycle to Atlanta just a few weeks shy of the 250th birthday of the American Empire itself.
Cast & Creatives
Golbanoo Setayesh
The Devotee |
Destiny Danielle
The Diplomat |
Claire F. Martin
The Rebel |
Amee Vyas*
The Warrior |
Roberto Méndez Rodríguez
The Princeling |
Nicholas Tycho Reed
The Lover |
Derrick Robertson
The Opportunist |
Matt McVay
The Autocrat |
WAYWARD DAUGHTERS |
"Empires fall, my boy. That is all they are designed to do."
|
"God is a matter of politics; she is our blood!"
|
WAYWARD SISTERS |
WAYWARD MOTHERS |
"You don't work, Giovanni; you buy. It's avarice by way of apathy."
|
London Assurance
By Dion Boucicault | Adapted by Claire F. Martin
June 2023
London Assurance
By Dion Boucicault | Adapted by Claire F. Martin
June 2023
War and Peace
By Claire F. Martin | From the novel by Leo Tolstoy
April 24-25, 2023
War and Peace
By Claire F. Martin | From the novel by Leo Tolstoy
April 24-25, 2023
