ACT Theater Presents 'The Belle of Amherst'

Artists Collective Theatre Brings Emily Dickinson to Nashua

(Nashua, NH) Artists Collective Theatre (ACT) has added a two night only special event to their season with William Luce’s one-woman play about the life of Emily Dickinson titled The Belle of Amherst. Featuring New Hampshire native Jennifer Burke, the show will run for two performances only Friday, October 24 and Saturday, October 25 at 8pm at the Hunt Building located at 6 Main Street in downtown Nashua. Tickets are available through ACT’s website: www.act-theatre.org or by calling 603-703-4221. “We are thrilled to offer our audiences a uniquely New England theatrical experience,” stated ACT founding member Josiah George. “Not only is Emily Dickinson an American treasure from the Northeast, but the actress portraying her, Jennifer Burke, is returning to New Hampshire after eight years away from the local stage.”

The Belle of Amherst uses American poet Emily Dickinson’s own words from her personal letters and poetry to recreate her life. The play invites the audience in to her home in Amherst, Massachusetts, for tea and cake as Emily recounts her life and what led to her isolation from the world at large. The play sheds light on the inspiration for her poetry, the new form she was working to create, and her love and devotion to her family. The script was written by William Luce in 1976 for Julie Harris and she went on to win the Tony Award for Best Actress in a play. The New York Daily News wrote of the play, “Magnificent... Full of passion and poetry and heart... An arresting, riveting experience.”

Jennifer Burke is a New Hampshire native and worked for many years as an instructor of voice, speech and acting at the Boston Conservatory. Area acting credits include roles with the Community Players of Concord, Stage One Productions, The New London Barn Playhouse, QE2 Productions and the Boston Playwrights’ Theatre. Since 2006 she has called South Florida home and is currently an Associate Professor at the University of Miami, teaching voice and speech in the Bachelor of Fine Arts theatre training program and serving as Artistic Director of the SEEDS (Scientists and Engineers Expanding Diversity and Success) Interactive Theatre Ensemble. Jennifer holds a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre from Bates College and a Master of Fine Arts in Acting degree from Brandeis University.

More information about The Belle of Amherst and all of the plays chosen for ACT’s second season can be found at their website act-theatre.org or on their Facebook page. Tickets can be purchased on line at https://www.artful.ly/store/events/3970. ACT is a group of professional theatre artists who are committed to producing provocative theatre that speaks to their local community