Emma Roth 2/2/26 Emma Roth 2/2/26

“Your Door is Ajar”

Whether using her home’s tiny coat closet as a recording studio, penning plays with her neighbor, or hanging out with zombies, it’s just another day at the office for the multitalented Irene Ziegler. A creative to her core, Ziegler—who has called Virginia home since 1987—divides her talents between voiceovers, writing, and acting. She proudly calls herself “a messy artistic hybrid” with a mind that never rests. “I have a few irons in the fire most of the time,” she tells me. “When one of them heats up, that’s how I identify. Right now, I’m a playwright and am rolling that boulder up a hill.

Emma Roth 12/12/25 Emma Roth 12/12/25

Hard Knock Life

The sun comes out tomorrow in Cadence and ATLAS Partnership’s “Annie.”

The first time Mary Page Nance lit up Broadway in a principal role she nearly took the theater with her.

“It was terrifying and exhilarating and I almost burned the theater down,” says Nance of playing Marcia Murphey two years ago in “A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical.”

Emma Roth 12/11/25 Emma Roth 12/11/25

Two Annies Equal Two Times the Talent and Two Times the Fun

Audrey Esplin and Mallory Stark didn’t realize the friendship they would form by sharing the role of little orphan Annie.

“I have really loved sharing this experience with Audrey,” says Stark, a 7th grader at St. Catherine’s School. “She is so sweet and kind. It’s neat that we’ve been able to be there for each other and cheer each other on through this.”

Emma Roth 12/5/25 Emma Roth 12/5/25

‘Permission to Be Ridiculous’

Emma Roth 11/3/25 Emma Roth 11/3/25

Broadway’s Mary Page Nance to Play Miss Hannigan in the Cadence Production of Annie

Emma Roth 10/19/25 Emma Roth 10/19/25

A Productive Pipeline

Anna Senechal Johnson was a fan of David Lindsay-Abaire before his plays were produced on Broadway, before he won a Pulitzer Prize, before she had even met him.

“He was in an acting class I was in,” remembers Johnson, the artistic director of Cadence, a Richmond theater, film and arts education organization.

Emma Roth 10/13/25 Emma Roth 10/13/25

Long Day’s Journey Into Night

Eugene O’Neill’s Long Day’s Journey into Night stands out as a hauntingly authentic exploration of family bonds, dysfunction, addiction, and shadows from the past. From the very first moments, the play immerses the audience in a poignant portrayal of the Tyrone family, using the power of simplicity.

Emma Roth 9/30/25 Emma Roth 9/30/25

Life In Four Acts

Eugene O’Neill’s magnum opus “Long Day’s Journey Into Night” storms the stage in Cadence’s new production.

For actor Matthew Radford Davies, the title of the play he’s currently starring in, “Long Day’s Journey Into Night,” has special resonance.

Emma Roth 9/30/25 Emma Roth 9/30/25

Family Drama Unfolds in One Long Day’s Journey Into Night

Rusty Wilson was 17 years old when he first saw Eugene O’Neill’s landmark drama Long Day’s Journey Into Night with his father. The teen was blown away.

Emma Roth 9/22/25 Emma Roth 9/22/25

‘Long Day’s Journey Into Night’ Cadence Brings One of America’s Greatest Plays to Richmond

Cadence Theatre is staging Long Day’s Journey Into Night at Firehouse Theatre from September 26 through October 11, 2025. Hailed as one of the greatest American plays of the 20th century, it untangles the knots of family, addiction, love, and regret across the span of a single summer day.

Emma Roth 9/22/25 Emma Roth 9/22/25

LONG DAY’S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT – Cadence

Cadence proudly presents Eugene O’ Neill’s Long Day’s Journey Into Night September 26 through October 11, 2025, for ten performances on the Carol Piersol Stage at Firehouse Theatre. Recognized as one of the greatest plays in the history of theatre, this production explores themes that resonate today despite being written in the early 1940’s.

Emma Roth 9/15/25 Emma Roth 9/15/25

Critics’ Convo

Richmond’s theater companies kick off their new seasons in the fall and, with many of the prominent productions planned for the upcoming months, you’ll know the name even if you won’t know the specifics of the show’s story.

Emma Roth 6/2/25 Emma Roth 6/2/25

‘SMOKE’ at Firehouse, Fire in my Belly

Once again, a trip to the Firehouse Theatre has found a way to send me home with a boiling pit of emotions churning in my gut and fiery rants on the tips of my fingers.