Emily Carding is an experienced Shakespearean actor, having appeared in versions of over twenty of Shakespeare’s plays, both on stage and screen. They hold a BA (hons) in Theatre Arts from Bretton Hall and an MFA in Staging Shakespeare from the University of Exeter. Emily has, together with independent theatre company Brite Theater, created a number of challenging and innovative shows including Hamlet (an experience) and Richard III (A One Woman Show) - now retitled Richard III (a one person show)-both of which have won awards and rave reviews internationally. Both adaptations use the audience as characters within the play and create a truly immersive experience with very little other than actor, text, space and audience. Emily is also an accomplished screen actor, and played opposite Martin Freeman in the British horror movie hit, Ghost Stories.
In 2018 Emily was commissioned by London Science Museum to create a solo theatre piece inspired by Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Quintessence imagines a future where humanity has become extinct and must be recreated by an AI, using Shakespeare as a guide to the human spirit. This won the outstanding theatre award at Brighton Fringe in 2019. A new version is being developed with director Susan Luciani to incorporate immersive projection.
Emily is also a published creator of a number of highly popular Tarot decks including The Transparent Tarot, The Transparent Oracle and Tarot of the Sidhe, and author of esoteric works, including Faery Craft,(Llewellyn 2012) So Potent Art: The Magic of Shakespeare (Llewellyn 2021) and Seeking Faery (Llewellyn 2022)
Latest News
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Magic of Shakespeare
online workshop
"We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep"...
In this three hour workshop, participants will explore their connection with the world and themselves via the use of Shakespearean text and Renaissance philosophy. Activities will include creating sacred (or Shake-Read) space, using Shakespeare's works as raw material to spark your own creativity and writing and performing affirmations inspired by the qualities of Shakespearean characters for self-empowerment.
More info and book online HERE
Richard III (a one person show)
Richard III is back, after a wonderful response to shows in Kansas City!
This innovative and exciting solo adaptation of Shakespeare's play is coming to the Brockley Jack studio theatre and Shakespeare North in June 2023
‘Emily Carding and Kolbrun Bjort Sigfusdottir’s adaptation of Richard III is a smart, sparse, stripped back version of the text built around Carding’s utterly compelling performance.’ ★★★★ The Stage
‘Emily Carding’s portrayal of the king who murders his way to the English throne is in a league of its own.’ ★★★★★ Broadway Baby
‘an extraordinary performance from Emily Carding, a female Richard as bitter, damaged, ingenious and irresistible as any I’ve ever seen.’ ★★★★ The Scotsman
‘Coolly psychotic’ ★★★★ New York Times
Booking is open for London dates HERE!
The Locksmith's Dream
Emily is currently playing the role of The Curator in the luxury immersive experience, The Locksmith's Dream which is next running at Treowen House in Monmouthshire in Spring 2023 after extremely successful events in October and December 2022. Read a review HERE
Step into a 17th Century manor house seemingly trapped in the 1920s. Unravel the narrative mysteries, solve puzzles and enjoy the unique atmosphere of the house and its grounds.
For more information visit the WEBSITE
Shadowless
SHADOWLESS is a ghost story thriller, featuring a girl artist and a master female shaman who becomes her mentor…and tormentor: inspired by the diaries of women working with Carlos Castaneda, whose books about their group have sold more than 8 million copies worldwide and published in 17 languages. The production blends stage performance with film sequences as the girl navigates her shaman apprenticeship, isolated in a Mexican farm house in the Badlands. What begins as a mystical adventure quickly descends into a nightmarish existence where the boundaries of reality become blurred between waking and dreaming as she comes face to face with manifestations of her greatest fears.
Starring award winning actor Emily Carding "One of the UK's leading Shakespearean actors" The Stage Writer Director Susan Luciani creates the show as a thrill ride, full of twists and turns and scares in an exploration of Womanhood, power play and the realm of the Unexplained. "
Book HERE!
Brave New World
Brave New World is a new play written and performed by Emily Carding and Miguel Perez, using the works of Shakespeare combined with original material to lead the audience on a journey through one man's soul. Started in lockdown, they are finally ready to share what they have been slowly piecing together over the last two years- and what better day to share it than on Shakespeare's birthday!
Miguel and Emily met whilst working on The Show Must Go Online's production of Hamlet and wanted to collaborate on something which would reflect the strange times and grief that so many shared but also celebrate the international creative connections and collaborations that emerged, art born of adversity.
Directed by Sara Berg (NY, USA)
This play will take place on Zoom, limited space available-** please ensure you enter the zoom with cameras and mics OFF**- a link to a recording will be sent to all ticket holders the next day.
Followed by Q&A/discussion with cast and director
(Tickets are structured on a pay what you can afford basis and income will be split equally between the artists) BOOK HERE
Quintessence tour
Emily's award-winning Shakespeare-infused sci-fi solo show, Quintessence, will be touring again in 2023, beginning with the British Invasion festival in Kansas City, Missouri, USA.
In May 2023 it will be playing in the mornings at the Plough Arts Centre in North Devon, in a reimagined production with new direction and projection from director Susan Luciani, who will be giving a Q&A about her work in film and special effects after the performance. Tickets HERE!
If you'd like to discuss booking this award-winning, political sci-fi for your venue, please contact Emily HERE
Workshops and Lectures
Emily has run workshops and given talks on many subjects internationally, including Shakespeare, Tarot, Mythology, Alternative Spirituality and Folklore. Their most recent speaker event was the Hekate Symposium, where they explored the presence of the Goddess Hekate in Shakespeare's works. This was virtually attended by roughly 700 people around the world and was a huge success. More details here!
To book Emily for your event or workshop, please email using the button below:
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