Press
MIss Nelson is Missing! at Imagination Stage
“Miss Nelson is Missing! is a musical and, at times, feels very “broadway”, so the fact that lead Emily Kester has such a commanding voice, is important and lends itself well to the production.”
Jennifer Muscato, Broadway World
“The fine Solas Nua actors deftly capitalize on both their characters’ specificity and the heightened language. Kester’s Maz, a rebellious-looking figure with pink-streaked hair, radiates woundedness and brooding rage.”
Celia Wren, The Washington Post
tHE tRIP tO BOUNTIFUL AT fORD’S tHEATRE
“In the most moving scene, on the bus, Carrie talks with the sweet, sad Thelma (a winningly understated Emily Kester)”
Celia Wren, The Washington Post
"In the less-predictable “The Revolutionists,” Charlotte Corday, of all people, is a flat-out riot. Emily Kester is a manic presence from the instant her Corday appears in frightening navy blue lipstick and frosty blond hair, matching her spectacular dress (David Burdick’s high-style costumes are terrific). “You can write my line while I practice my stabbing and scary eyes,” Corday tells Olympe as Kester’s wild gaze briefly stops the show."
Nelson Pressley, The Washington Post
“As the Washington region’s theaters subscribe to the national segue back to live, in-person theater, “Detroit ’67” […]featuring a terrific five-person cast — Stori Ayers, JaBen Early, Emily Kester, Valeka Jessica and Greg Alverez Reid — has been filmed on Signature’s main stage[…]
Peter Marks, The Washington Post
"Making an impressive Everyman debut, Emily Kester rounds out the production as young, vacant, one-pose-suits-all actress Brooke Ashton; the backstage scene of Brooke blithely going through yoga and vocal exercises as bedlam breaks out all around her is a production highlight."
Tim Smith, The Baltimore Sun
[...] and the wide-eyed Kester does the bimbo thing extremely well, especially once the family goes to bed and she fires up a joint in the living room."
Nelson Pressley, The Washington Post
"...what’s best about the production [...] is the edgy, energetic acting of Emily Kester and Maboud Ebrahimzadeh as Marianne and Nick. Kester is excellent at conveying Marianne’s grim commitment, while Ebrahimzadeh magnetically combines a casual facade with bottled fury."
Nelson Pressley, The Washington post