Writer of plays, screenplays, television content, podcasts, and endless lists.
For excerpts of the following projects, please contact Emma.
Iris
a five-part, episodic, thriller podcast
Iris blends cosmic horror and teen drama, telling the bone chilling journey of seventeen-year-old ballerina Isabella, who finds herself in a remote dance academy in the woods, unveiling a dark secret that could change her life forever. Finding her place with an elite group of friends, Isabella agrees to partake in a ritual rumored to bestow upon them a chance at fame and notoriety. When the halfheartedly-believed ritual becomes wholly realized, Isabella must reckon with her ambition and its consequences.
Image by Saskia Martinez
Code Words
a full-length play
In 1942, World War II is raging, and President Roosevelt makes it possible for women to serve in the military in non-combat roles. Four women uproot their lives to move to Virginia, take the Army’s oath of secrecy, and do their part to end the war. In the process, their lives are transformed by the trauma of war, their work, and each other.
Code Words is inspired by the true stories of women codebreakers who answered the call and made groundbreaking contributions to the war effort and the field of American codebreaking.
Workshopped at Playwrights Horizons Theater School, Jan-Mar 2020
Directed by Audrey Lane
Original cast: Olivia Basile, Beatrice Beutel, Char Nakashima-Conway, & Kristina Paul
Original music by Jessica Kantorowitz & Molly Kirschenbaum
Choreography by Maya Quetzali Gonzalez
Image by Audrey Lane
Fault
a feature screenplay
As the best doubles partnership on their prep school tennis team, Allison and Erica are well on their way to collegiate recruitment and scholarships. But in the wake of an assault by their coach, Allison must test her friendships, challenge the community’s status quo, and risk her college dreams in the search for justice.
In pre-production: short film adaptation of Fault
Directed by Emma Grasso Levine & Alexander Matteson
Produced by Nanou Matteson
Mandeville
a feature screenplay
When a wedding in rural Louisiana reunites Maisy with her late father’s family for the first time in years, she takes the opportunity to rekindle connections. Faced with the discovery of a long-held secret about her father, Maisy must dig for a painful truth, reckon with unprocessed trauma and grief, and find out if she can make up for lost time before it’s too late.
Londonderry
a feature screenplay
Twenty-four-year-old Annie Londonderry sets off on a quest to become the first woman to bicycle around the world. In the process, she grapples with her orthodox Jewish identity, her relationship with motherhood, and the price for independence as a woman in 1894.
Image courtesy of The Jewish Women’s Archive
“Knockout”
GLOW S2E1 spec episode
In an attempt to pull together the opening night of their Las Vegas live show, Sam bans the wrestlers from any distractions, upending Ruth and Russell’s romantic weekend together. As Ruth runs back and forth, trying to keep everyone happy, she isn’t alone — Bash’s focus is pulled by an ill-timed reckoning with a tragedy. The chaos that ensues jeopardizes Justine’s plans to set the people behind GLOW straight before she skips town.
Thoughts and Prayers
a full-length play
In a football stadium restroom, a teenager, a police officer, and a young girl meet for the first time and irrevocably change each other. This piece is a rumination on cycles of violence, transgenerational trauma, and what happens when “thoughts and prayers” are not enough.
Produced with the support of The Shotgun Players, June 2016
Directed by Emma Grasso Levine
Image by Remi Tupper
“She Sells Seashells”
an original TV pilot
In 19th century England, on the coast of the English Channel, a young woman with a talent for finding fossils strives to make money for her impoverished family. When she realizes that she deserves both money and credit for her ground-breaking discoveries, she sets out to challenge the man who has swindled her out of proper recognition.
Theater & TV for Young Audiences
various samples
“Permission Chicken” — a Sesame Street spec episode
“Cake” — an Elmo’s World spec episode
The Arabian Nights — 45 min play, kid-friendly adaptation of the classic tales
Produced at Backyard Theater Company’s Drama Camp, June 2018
Directed by Andy Spear