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The cast of Liberation
Photograph: Courtesy Dana Scruggs | The cast of Liberation
Photograph: Courtesy Dana Scruggs

A Guide to Broadway's Best Ensemble: The Cast of Liberation

Playwright Bess Wohl spotlights the stellar cast of her captivating group portrait of 1970s feminists.

Adam Feldman
Written by Adam Feldman
Theater and Dance Editor, Time Out USA
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Bess Wohl's Liberation, the story of a feminist consciousness-raising group in 1970s Ohio, is very much about equality, common purpose and mutual support. "In our group, I don't think anyone should be higher than anyone else," says one character. "Hierarchy is patriarchy." So it is apropos that the play's Off Broadway premiere earlier this year was distinguished by exceptional ensemble acting. The cast was honored as a group by both the New York Drama Critics' Circle and the Drama Desk Awards—and all eight actors are now reprising their roles in Liberation's Broadway transfer, directed once again by Whitney White.  

Liberation
Photograph: Courtesy Joan MarcusLiberation

"I find it particularly meaningful and fitting that the New York Drama Critics' Circle has chosen to recognize all of our performers equally," said Wohl at the NYDCC ceremony in May. "Nobody higher than anybody else: seamless collaboration, the art of teamwork, egoless acting. These actors each portrayed their individual characters with truth and vibrancy, yet they also drilled the rhythm of the language as one organism."

Wohl's restless intelligence has previously yielded shows as diverse as the Broadway comedy Grand Horizons, the childhood-trauma exploration Make Believe, the nearly wordless Small Mouth Sounds and the porn-world musical Pretty Filthy. To help introduce audiences to the world of Liberation, we asked her to answer two questions about each of the actors: What do their performances render especially well in the characters as Wohl imagined them? And what do the performances bring to the characters that she hadn't expected? Here is what she had to say. 

Liberation is playing at Broadway's James Earl Jones Theatre through January 11, 2026. You can buy tickets here.

Liberation
Photograph: Courtesy Joan MarcusLiberation

Liberation's Full Cast of Characters

Susannah Flood as Lizzie

Susannah Flood as Lizzie
Susannah Flood as Lizzie
Photograph: Courtesy Joan Marcus
The role: The play's narrator in the present, who also portrays her own mother in the past: a journalist and organizer of the CR group
What aspect of the role as you imagined it does the actor capture especially well? Because Lizzie is our narrator, it's essential that the audience connect with her and immediately feel that they're in good hands. This is one of Susannah's many superpowers; from the moment she walks onstage, she is profoundly in tune with the audience and wins their trust.
What does the actor bring to the role that you had not imagined when you wrote it?  I originally conceived of the character as slightly apologetic and (charmingly?) self-deprecating. Susannah, however, has incredible strength and complete command—she demands that the audience take her seriously, while never sacrificing her sense of spontaneity and play. It's a thrilling combination and I have no idea how she does it, but I'm in awe.

Betsy Aidem as Margie

Betsy Aidem as Margie
Betsy Aidem as Margie
Photograph: Courtesy Joan Marcus
The role: A housewife in her 60s
What aspect of the role as you imagined it does the actor capture especially well? Betsy brings to Margie a tremendous sense of status and dignity. In lesser hands, Margie could easily become a sad sack. What Betsy reveals instead is a strong, intelligent woman trapped in a cage—which is much more dynamic and ultimately more heartbreaking.
What does the actor bring to the role that you had not imagined when you wrote it? As a person who is deeply engaged in politics and fiercely intelligent, Betsy imbues every moment of her performance with a subtle understanding of the larger political landscape of the play. If the personal is political, Betsy's performance is both. 
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Audrey Corsa as Dora

Audrey Corsa as Dora
Audrey Corsa as Dora
Photograph: Courtesy Joan Marcus
The role: A very pretty blonde in her 20s who works as a secretary at a wine-and-spirits company
What aspect of the role as you imagined it does the actor capture especially well? Audrey honors Dora's naivete and earnestness without ever dumbing her down or making her into a punch line. She reveals a very smart woman who is fiercely ambitious and underestimated at every turn.
What does the actor bring to the role that you had not imagined when you wrote it? I could argue that Dora changes more than any other character in the play. Audrey charts this arc with great subtlety and skill, so we barely see the shift, but by the end her transformation feels both earned and profound. 

Kristolyn Lloyd as Celeste

Kristolyn Lloyd as Celeste
Kristolyn Lloyd as Celeste
Photograph: Courtesy Joan Marcus
The role: A Black, Harvard-educated book editor in her late 30s, who has moved back to Ohio from New York to take care of her ailing mother
What aspect of the role as you imagined it does the actor capture especially well? Kristolyn illuminates Celeste’s fierce intellect while conveying the emotional weight of a life put on pause. She beautifully embodies the tension between devotion and resentment.
What does the actor bring to the role that you had not imagined when you wrote it? Celeste is accused of having no sense of humor, but Kristolyn is extremely, extremely funny in the role, which I absolutely love. She brings a delicious sense of play while also navigating the profound complexities and deep challenges her character faces. It's a revelation.
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Irene Sofia Lucio as Isidora

Irene Sofia Lucio as Isidora
Irene Sofia Lucio as Isidora
Photograph: Courtesy Joan Marcus
The role: An Italian woman in her 30s, an aspiring filmmaker in a green card marriage
What aspect of the role as you imagined it does the actor capture especially well? Isidora is a loud character; she's bold and she lives large. Irene manages to capture this beautifully, while always staying grounded and truthful, an incredibly delicate balancing act that she manages to make seem effortless.
What does the actor bring to the role that you had not imagined when you wrote it? Irene has found, in Isidora's bravado, surprising and completely unexpected moments of vulnerability. Beneath the swagger, she reveals a deep loneliness and sadness that absolutely breaks my heart. 

Adina Verson as Susan

Adina Verson as Susan
Adina Verson as Susan
Photograph: Courtesy Joan Marcus
The role:  A Jewish, queer intellectual in her 20s, also known as Susie Hurricane, who lives in her car
What aspect of the role as you imagined it does the actor capture especially well? Susan advocates for radical ideas, including replacing childbirth with artificial wombs. But Adina's grounded and truthful performance makes lofty or slightly out-there ideas feel grounded, reasonable, even necessary.
What does the actor bring to the role that you had not imagined when you wrote it? Adina is a singular actor, and it's a thrill to see them bring their particular and brilliant sensibility to the role. From Susan's unique physicality to the surprising cadence of their speech, it's a finely detailed portrait that is beautifully odd and utterly undeniable. 
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Charlie Thurston as Bill

Charlie Thurston as Bill
Charlie Thurston as Bill
Photograph: Courtesy Joan Marcus
The role: An ambitious lawyer in his 30s who is in love with Lizzie
What aspect of the role as you imagined it does the actor capture especially well? Bill desperately wants to marry Lizzie, but also wants to support her activism—even when those things conflict. Charlie does an expert job of showing us the nuances and emotional cost of this impossible balancing act. 
What does the actor bring to the role that you had not imagined when you wrote it? Charlie is one of the most generous and open-hearted actors I’ve worked with, and his portrayal of Bill radiates those same qualities. Instead of reinforcing narrow ideas of masculinity, he expands them to reveal a brilliantly specific human who—like the women in the play—is simply trying to live and love within an often inhuman system.

Kayla Davion as Joanne

Kayla Davion as Joanne
Kayla Davion as Joanne
Photograph: Courtesy Joan Marcus
The role: A mother of four and "women's lib" skeptic who fought for civil rights and intersects with the CR group while looking for her son's backpack
What aspect of the role as you imagined it does the actor capture especially well? As an outsider to the group, Joanne must arrive as a jolt of new energy, and Kayla delivers this energy beautifully. Her presence re-contextualizes everything we have seen, reminding the audiences that there is a vast and complicated world beyond the group. 
What does the actor bring to the role that you had not imagined when you wrote it? Kayla brings the house down! I never in a million years imagined that Joanne would stop the show with cheers and applause every night, but Kayla is just that good. 
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