History

“I’ll have a starling shall be taught to speak…”

-William Shakespeare; Henry IV, Part 1

Starling Shakespeare Company was founded by Jessie Lillis and Heron Kennedy in 2020. Jessie and Heron met when they began their graduate school studies in 2017 at Mary Baldwin University in Staunton, Virginia. During their first year in graduate school, they performed in their first play together, Shakespeare’s Henry IV, Part 1. Heron played Prince Hal, and Jessie played Hotspur. Henry IV, Part 1 is the only play in the Shakespeare canon which references starlings, so this experience would become partial inspiration for the name Starling Shakespeare Company.

Over the next three years, Heron and Jessie became closer as friends and colleagues, frequently collaborating on projects. During their final year of their MFA studies, Heron and Jessie talked about the idea of starting a permanent company frequently, in the hopes that it might be possible in 5-10 years.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit and several plans at the end of the MFA year had to change, they were at first unsure of how to proceed. Many companies that they had intended auditioning for had cancelled auditions, and indoor theatre seemed to be put on hold indefinitely. However, they did not let this crisis entirely divert their careers-- instead, they used the new restrictions as inspiration for creativity, as they thought through how theatre companies might need to exist in a post-COVID world. As they faced the reality of many brick-and-mortar theatre companies closing, Heron and Jessie decided to accelerate their plans for starting their own company, with the understanding that their model would need to be adaptable, and embrace outdoor performance spaces. It is through this crisis that the idea for a company that relies on temporary residencies, rather than one performance space, came to be.