Angel in Angels in America Part 2: Perestroika at The Seaview Playwrights Theatre

Christine Linde in A Doll’s House at The Seaview Playwrights Theatre

Actress

Director

Dramatist Guild

Playwright

Courtney Emerson

From a very young age, Courtney Emerson knew she wanted to lead a life immersed in “The Arts”. When her family expressed concern that the career of “Artist” might not provide the stability they envisioned for their 7-year old’s future, she knew exactly what she would do. “I’ll be an actress, too!” and soon landed her first role as The Wicked Witch of the West in her elementary school’s production of The Wizard of Oz. Problem solved!

Fast forward to today, Courtney’s interest in the arts has widely expanded. Courtney has performed in various theatrical roles including the Angel (Angels in America Part Two: Perestroika), Ms. Linde (A Doll’s House) and Ann Deever (All My Sons) as well as numerous roles in festivals for new works. She has worked with local and community theaters as a director of both new plays (The Teachers Lounge) and published plays (The Grown Ups, The Big Bad Bullysaurus), a prop designer, and even a puppet-maker for IlluminArt Productions in Staten Island, New York.

In 2022, Courtney joined The Women’s Playwright Collective as a first time playwright. Her short play, “Flexible Fate”, which she also directed, was selected as the Jury Pick in the 5th Annual Not Forgotten Play Festival, allowing her to present a new One-Act play in their New Worlds Festival the following season in 2023.

Since then, Courtney’s original plays have been produced in multiple festivals, including Ghost Writers: A Playwrights Festival, and Sundog Theatre’s Scenes from the Staten Island Ferry. Her full length play, Lights Over Kansas, was recently produced by Staten Island Shakespearean Theatre company as a staged reading, kicking off their 50th Anniversary season, in which she played the role of Jeanette.

When not working on a show, Courtney tries to learn as much as she can about the art of storytelling, studying screenplay writing and filmmaking. Courtney’s self produced Short Story Podcast, “A Thousand Words or Less” will premiere in the Spring of 2025!