Take 5 with Emilia Torello

EMILIA TORELLO’S life in theater and performing has spanned many roles, and many mediums, all leading to her newest endeavor: founding Professional Theatrical Performance Training (PTPT) in Wilmington.  

Hosted by Thalian Hall, PTPT defies the bounds of a typical theater company. While the group presents various shows, and offers an apprenticeship program, Torello designed the PTPT Studio and its curriculum with her own experiences in mind. “You don’t have to compete, you get to just show up,” she says. 

Her innate interest in theater led her to this moment. From a young age, Torello was obsessed with playing pretend as a princess with her sister. Torello’s parents, her biggest champions, noticed her inclinations early on and introduced her in the Wilmington theater scene when she was nine. She was cast in The Music Man by age ten, and she played the titular role in Annie at age eleven.  

Her passion for production exceeded beyond acting. At age thirteen, she was asking LJ WOODARD at Performance Club Kids to let her begin directing. “I begged her for three years, and finally I became her first youth director when I was sixteen,” says Torello. 

Torello’s talent and dedication led her to the University of Miami, where she graduated with her BFA in musical theater in 2022. That same year, she returned to Wilmington and was cast in her dream role: Katherine Plumber in Newsies. Also cast in his dream role was her co-star, the late PAUL TEAL, playing Jack Kelly. Teal and Torello fell for each other in and out of character. Their first interactions were vulnerable and palpably kismet, she says. 

After the show’s run, Torello began further training in Atlanta, and Teal joined her in the move. Their relationship was new, but their love, mutual respect, and unwavering grit in the pursuit of creating art made it simply make sense.  

“My mom always says, we didn’t waste any time,” Torello says.  

In April 2024, Teal received his diagnosis of neuroendocrine pancreatic cancer. Both of their worlds rocked, the couple returned to their Wilmington community as Teal’s cancer progressed, and he passed in November 2024.  

Torello took her pain and turned it into purpose. “Paul never stopped fighting, so I can’t. If he saw I’d given up, he’d be so mad at me,” she jokes, misty-eyed.  

Growing up as Wilmington theater kids who later pursued higher degrees, Teal and Torello frequently discussed how inaccessible formal performing arts training could be.  

“You have to audition to get into shows, and most of the time, when you’re in shows is when you improve,” Torello says on the insularity of theater. “If you don’t fit the mold for a given cast, the gap keeps widening.” 

The answer to these problems came to Torello in September 2025. “It was around one in the morning, and I felt like the universe, like Paul, was pulling me out of bed,” Torello says. “The whole idea of PTPT came to me, and I knew I had to write it down.”  

Torello, possessed with this epiphany, wrote until the early morning hours, jotting down names of local, veteran theater workers she could enlist, class ideas, and goals that would ultimately become the ethos for PTPT. By December, she had secured a lease at Thalian Hall. 

In addition to PTPT Studio classes, Torello also helps budding theater professionals build their experience through the PTPT Apprentice Theatre. Serving as a bridge between study and hands-on involvement, PTPT apprentices take on positions during shows such as directors, choreographers, and stage managers while being mentored by theater professionals. “I’m surrounded by a huge, amazing team,” she says.  

The Paul Teal Legacy Funding Program for the PTPT Studio works overtime to ensure development is open to everyone. “We need art, especially in hard times when we don’t have money or resources,” Torello says. “Having access to a creative outlet will save you. I would have loved it growing up, and Paul would have loved it growing up, too.” 

As the company rises in its mission and reputation, its next transition is making the PTPT Apprentice Theatre a registered nonprofit organization. In addition to public donations, locals can support the program by attending upcoming PTPT shows: Carrie: The Musical, runs from July 9 to 12, and The Wolves runs from October 1 to 4. 

The heart of PTPT remains the person who led Torello back here, and the company’s name invokes the initials of her soulmate. She describes the studio as a “living love letter” to him. 

“This is Paul’s legacy, this is our legacy,” she says. “And I want it to live on.” 

Take 5 with Emilia Torello

Thalian Hall has been the backdrop for many of EMILIA TORELLO’s major life moments. It was there she performed over the years, growing up in Wilmington’s theater scene, including in roles like Annie and Eliza Doolittle in 2018. “That year, I walked across the stage to graduate high school and immediately ran down to the theater to finish a matinee performance before leaving to earn my BFA in Musical Theatre from the University of Miami,” she says. It was at Thalian where she shared the stage with her eventual fiancé, PAUL TEAL. After he died from cancer in 2024, Thalian Hall is now where Torello now wants to carry on her and Teal’s love for the theater community. In December, Torello moved into Thalian Hall as the historic venue’s first-ever commercial tenant. Her new venture, Professional Theatrical Performance Training (PTPT), “is a performing arts training center that provides elite classes and hands-on production experiences,” says Torello, who serves as its executive artistic director.

What role do you see PTPT filling in the local theater scene?

“I see PTPT as a bridge to the professional performing arts community. We want to create opportunities for artists to refine every aspect of their craft, so they are fully prepared for professional employment.”

Why did you want to base it out of Thalian Hall?

“Thalian Hall, funnily enough, was the final piece of the puzzle. We initially had no idea where PTPT would live, but I eventually spoke with SHANE FERNANDO, CEO of Thalian Hall, who is a dear friend and had directed Paul and me in Newsies in 2022. I knew Paul had already been in talks with Shane about educational opportunities at Thalian during his battle with stage IV neuroendocrine pancreatic cancer. I have worked with Shane for years and grew up on that stage, so it felt truly kismet when we realized our visions were so aligned.”

This also is your first season for PTPT Apprentice Theatre. How many shows do you plan to stage this year?

“We have four exciting shows lined up. Our first is Dear Evan Hansen, produced in partnership with And Seen Theatrical Productions. Our main Apprentice season includes Carrie: The Musical, The Wolves, and The Mystery of Edwin Drood, all of which will be led by our apprentice creative teams and designers.”

How do you see PTPT growing in the future?

“I see PTPT growing to fill every need in the theater community. From increasing professional employment through our productions to offering teaching positions, we won’t stop until every artist can live and work sustainably in Wilmington.”

What’s a favorite production you’ve either had a role in or watched as an audience member?

“My all-time favorite production was Newsies at Thalian Hall in 2022. That is where I met the love of my life, Paul Teal. He was cast as Jack Kelly, and I was Katherine Plumber; we fell in love both on stage and off. Katherine had always been a dream role for me, and Jack was one for Paul, so our love story couldn’t have had a more perfect beginning.”

EMILIA TORELLO’s full profile will appear in an upcoming WILMA Lifestyles email. To sign up for the email, go to WILMAmag.com/email-newsletter.

To view more of photographer Maggie Beck’s work, go to www.magsphotography.shop.

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