Part of the genius of Louisa May Alcott’s novel “Little Women” is that nearly everybody can connect with one of the four March sisters — Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy.

“All of these sisters are really different people,” Aislinn Brophy told the Boston Herald. “What’s really great about the novel is that it shows so many models of how to grow up, how to navigate societal expectations, and how to try and find yourself in the world.”

“People love to talk about this novel saying, ‘I’m Meg,’ or ‘I’m Amy,’ or ‘I’m Beth,’ ” they added. “I’ve always been the kind of person who say, ‘I’m Jo.’ ”

So when Brophy auditioned for the Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s production of Kate Hamill’s adaptation of “Little Women,” they hoped director Shana Gozansky would agree they were Jo.

“My first thought was, ‘This is the perfect role for me,’ and my second thought was, ‘I’m desperate to be in this show and I’ll play any role,’ ” Brophy said.

Brophy won the role. And you can see them in the production now through March 1 at the Dorothy and Charles Mosesian Center for the Arts in Watertown.

While so many find connections to “Little Women,” Brophy comes into the role with some extra insight. They graduated from Harvard University with a degree in Theater, Dance & Media — part of Theater, Dance & Media program’s first graduating class in 2017. Since then, they have split their time between acting in half a dozen standout Boston theater productions and writing. Beyond penning plays, Brophy has written two young adult novels — very different and also not so different from Alcott’s books — for Penguin Random House, “How to Succeed in Witchcraft” and “Spells to Forget Us.”

“There’s something that really draws me in about coming of age stories,” they said. “When you write for young people, almost everything inevitably, is a coming of age story. That’s something that I have to keep reminding myself to bring to (my ‘Little Women’) performance. The special thing about children’s literature is the things that the characters are experiencing, they are experiencing them for the first time.”

Brophy’s writing for young people informs their performance. But just because Brophy spends a lot of time in charge of their own novels, they don’t feel the need to shape another’s script or production in any way.

“I love to cede control,” they said. “I think there is something magical about being an actor. I love being in control of only my little corner of the world as an actor… And I don’t need to think about the set design or the lighting design or the costume design and the director is there to look at me and tell if what I’m doing reads right.”

This is great because “Little Women” probably doesn’t need much outside tinkering from another writer. Hamill has become the nation’s premier adapter of classics for the stage — see her versions of “The Odyssey,” “The Scarlet Letter,” and “Emma,” which the Actors’ Shakespeare Project did a wonderful production of in 2024.

Give Brophy a role to play (preferably Jo), and she’s ready to leave her writing behind and just act.

For tickets and details, visit actorsshakespeareproject.org

Kaila Pelton-Flavin, Olivia Fenton, Sarah Newhouse, Aislinn Brophy, and Chloe McFarlane in a scene from Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s “Little Women.” (Photo Benjamin Rose Photography)