Scirocco Drama presents two plays by Jessica B. Hill: The Dark Lady, a drama about Shakespeare’s mysterious “Dark Lady of the Sonnets,” and Pandora, a solo show about hope, interconnection, and life’s biggest questions.
Emilia Bassano, believed to be the woman known as “the Dark Lady” in Shakespeare’s sonnets, was actually one of England’s first female published poets. She was also trilingual, mixed race, and a force to be reckoned with. In The Dark Lady, Shakespeare and Bassano collide as they wrestle with artistic collaboration, ambition, envy, and love–an entanglement that will profoundly shape both their lives and their work.
Pandora is sorry. It’s all her fault and she’s so sorry. From devastating natural disasters to that time you hit your shin on the coffee table, Pandora’s been carrying the burden of world chaos and human suffering since the beginning of time. But she’s starting to feel pretty suspicious…What if it was a set up? What if the box was empty all along? If there’s one thing we know about Pandora, it’s that she’s curious. That curiosity leads her on a quest across time to discover the meaning of life, but the more she searches, the more questions seem to arise!
About the Author
Jessica B. Hill is an actor-playwright originally from Montreal. She was part of the Stratford Festival’s Birmingham Conservatory and graduated from McGill University, and Dawson College’s Dome program. Jessica established herself at the Stratford Festival over several seasons, starring in roles like Helena in All’s Well That Ends Well and Lady Anne in Richard III. Pandora, her playwriting debut, had its world premiere in 2023 at the Prairie Theatre Exchange, a co-production with Shakespeare in the Ruins. The Dark Lady, her second play, had its world premiere in 2023 with Shakespeare in the Ruins and then transferred to Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan in Saskatoon. Jessica teaches Chekhov and Shakespeare at the National Theatre School. She has worked as an actor in Montreal, Stratford, Toronto, Winnipeg, and Saskatoon and has been invited as a guest speaker at McGill, McMaster and York Universities.
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