Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Produced by Expand the Canon
Monday 30 March 2026
Classics are very often the first entry point into the theatre for communities across the world. Whether it’s a community theatre performance or a play read in school, classics are a major window into the theater arts. So what if someone doesn’t respond to the incredibly limited classic canon presented to them? What happens when the history and culture of the world is diluted to a predominantly male and white western lens? Do they disengage with theatre altogether? What do we lose as a culture when narratives are systematically excluded?
At Expand the Canon, we are on a mission to make a more inclusive classic canon by uncovering and advocating for the performance, teaching, and reading of classic plays by women and gender-expansive playwrights. In this panel discussion, we will unpack how a more inclusive canon could radically change the future of the theatre, and the histories we present to the world. We’ll assess where we are now, and propose opportunities for change to move the needle toward a more inclusive canon.
Panelists include:
Hillary Cohen: Executive Director of Institutional Advancement of The Acting Company
Emily Lyon, Artistic Director of Expand the Canon
Sarah Spring: Actor, Coach Shakespeare Made Clear
Arminda Thomas: Dramaturg, Archivist, Director and Producing member of CLASSIX
Moderated by: Rhiannon Ling: Dramaturg, Playwright, Actor, ETC Researcher
Presented in partnership with: The Acting Company.
Learn More About the Panel
Arminda Thomas (she/her) is a dramaturg, director, and archivist. She is a resident dramaturg and producing member of CLASSIX, and a resident dramaturg/curator for New Perspectives Theatre’s On Her Shoulders reading series. She has served as associate artistic director and resident dramaturg for the Going to the River Festival and Writer’s Unit and as archivist and literary manager for Dee-Davis Enterprises, where she was an executive producer for the Grammy-awarded audiobook, “With Ossie and Ruby: In This Life Together,” and consultant for the film Life’s Essentials with Ruby Dee.
Hillary Cohen (The Acting Company Executive Director for Institutional Advancement) has arts administration experience working with Vox Populi co-operative art gallery, Manhattan Theatre Club, Film Forum, Wave Hill public garden and cultural center, the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Cherry Lane Theatre, and New York Classical Theatre. She has served as a Creative Space Grant panelist for the Alliance of Resident Theatres/New York.
Sarah Spring (aka "Dame Sarah") is a professional actor, coach, and Shakespeare influencer. She has degrees in theater from Interlochen Arts Academy and Fordham University at Lincoln Center, and has played many of Shakespeare's most powerful women, including Lady Macbeth, Isabella, Viola, Hermione, and Beatrice. For more, follow Sarah on social media and Patreon @shakespearemadeclear.
Emily Lyon is a director, artistic director, and dramaturg that carves out the humor and authenticity in new and classic texts. She co-created, leads, and curates Expand the Canon – a call to action to include a global intersection of historic women writers in the canon of classics – as Artistic Director of Hedgepig Ensemble. Find out more at EmilyALyon.com and ExpandTheCanon.com.
Rhiannon Ling (she/her) is a bisexual, multi-industry artist, specializing in the creation and development of politically-driven, community-engaged story across mediums. Her work often revolves around gender and sexuality and its entwining with history, politics, the arts, and identity; she is passionate about amplifying the voices of those silenced, providing unity in discomfort, and sparking genuine query between opposition. rhiannonlingnyc.com
About Expand the Canon
Expand the Canon uncovers and uplifts classic plays by women and underrepresented genders–and is a call to action to produce them**. Expand the Canon champions women and gender-expansive playwrights whose works should have always been considered classics. For over a decade, our partnerships with theatres, educators, and advocates have established a legacy of storytelling with gender equity at its core. By curating a collection of excellent **historic plays, we’re building a more inclusive and accurate theatrical canon. expandthecanon.com @etcclassics.
Produced by Expand the Canon
Monday 30 March 2026
Classics are very often the first entry point into the theatre for communities across the world. Whether it’s a community theatre performance or a play read in school, classics are a major window into the theater arts. So what if someone doesn’t respond to the incredibly limited classic canon presented to them? What happens when the history and culture of the world is diluted to a predominantly male and white western lens? Do they disengage with theatre altogether? What do we lose as a culture when narratives are systematically excluded?
At Expand the Canon, we are on a mission to make a more inclusive classic canon by uncovering and advocating for the performance, teaching, and reading of classic plays by women and gender-expansive playwrights. In this panel discussion, we will unpack how a more inclusive canon could radically change the future of the theatre, and the histories we present to the world. We’ll assess where we are now, and propose opportunities for change to move the needle toward a more inclusive canon.
Panelists include:
Hillary Cohen: Executive Director of Institutional Advancement of The Acting Company
Emily Lyon, Artistic Director of Expand the Canon
Sarah Spring: Actor, Coach Shakespeare Made Clear
Arminda Thomas: Dramaturg, Archivist, Director and Producing member of CLASSIX
Moderated by: Rhiannon Ling: Dramaturg, Playwright, Actor, ETC Researcher
Presented in partnership with: The Acting Company.
Learn More About the Panel
Arminda Thomas (she/her) is a dramaturg, director, and archivist. She is a resident dramaturg and producing member of CLASSIX, and a resident dramaturg/curator for New Perspectives Theatre’s On Her Shoulders reading series. She has served as associate artistic director and resident dramaturg for the Going to the River Festival and Writer’s Unit and as archivist and literary manager for Dee-Davis Enterprises, where she was an executive producer for the Grammy-awarded audiobook, “With Ossie and Ruby: In This Life Together,” and consultant for the film Life’s Essentials with Ruby Dee.
Hillary Cohen (The Acting Company Executive Director for Institutional Advancement) has arts administration experience working with Vox Populi co-operative art gallery, Manhattan Theatre Club, Film Forum, Wave Hill public garden and cultural center, the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Cherry Lane Theatre, and New York Classical Theatre. She has served as a Creative Space Grant panelist for the Alliance of Resident Theatres/New York.
Sarah Spring (aka "Dame Sarah") is a professional actor, coach, and Shakespeare influencer. She has degrees in theater from Interlochen Arts Academy and Fordham University at Lincoln Center, and has played many of Shakespeare's most powerful women, including Lady Macbeth, Isabella, Viola, Hermione, and Beatrice. For more, follow Sarah on social media and Patreon @shakespearemadeclear.
Emily Lyon is a director, artistic director, and dramaturg that carves out the humor and authenticity in new and classic texts. She co-created, leads, and curates Expand the Canon – a call to action to include a global intersection of historic women writers in the canon of classics – as Artistic Director of Hedgepig Ensemble. Find out more at EmilyALyon.com and ExpandTheCanon.com.
Rhiannon Ling (she/her) is a bisexual, multi-industry artist, specializing in the creation and development of politically-driven, community-engaged story across mediums. Her work often revolves around gender and sexuality and its entwining with history, politics, the arts, and identity; she is passionate about amplifying the voices of those silenced, providing unity in discomfort, and sparking genuine query between opposition. rhiannonlingnyc.com
About Expand the Canon
Expand the Canon uncovers and uplifts classic plays by women and underrepresented genders–and is a call to action to produce them**. Expand the Canon champions women and gender-expansive playwrights whose works should have always been considered classics. For over a decade, our partnerships with theatres, educators, and advocates have established a legacy of storytelling with gender equity at its core. By curating a collection of excellent **historic plays, we’re building a more inclusive and accurate theatrical canon. expandthecanon.com @etcclassics.
