With just eight days and two previews away from the opening of WAM Theatre’s production of Emilie: La Marquise Du Chatelet Defends Her Life Tonight, I am very delighted to introduce myself to you as the newest member of the Emilie: Education Outreach Project.

My name is Shanae Burch and I’m honored to be supporting a production with such an incredible message by getting on some social media platforms and talking to YOU! That’s right YOU reading this right now.  Whether you’re a young tween of 12, a young professional, theatre patron, or scientist – I hope to be generating enough content for us all to meet in the middle of this wonderful World Wide Web and have a conversation (or twenty).

My goal leading up to the show and throughout the run is to open up a friendly forum where we can freely discuss girls education, leadership, and the modern day Emilie that is somewhere deep inside us all (Men included).  Along the way we’ll learn more about Emilie’s story, spotlight the amazing organizations that are collaborating with us on this project, and have a ton of fun while we do it!

So why me?  Great question – I thought you’d never ask!  I recently graduated from Emerson College’s Acting program and during my time as a student I was a member of a local, professional sorority with a mission very similar to WAM’s mission and values.  As sisters of Kappa Gamma Chi, we were dedicated to the promotion of women’s advancement in society, personal growth, and service to our communities. While I am no longer an active member of the organization, my allegiance to those three things has been instilled in me to never change. It is with great honor to join this movement and pay homage to a very great woman who did a quite remarkable thing.  It’s just about Halloween and this introduction is quite spooky because it comes only days after closing a different show that was written to honor the legacy of another unsung hero.