Hello everyone!

My name is Shelby, and I am a playwright producing my first play as a part of the Broadway Bound Theater Festival this summer in NYC!

Started at the National Theater Institute as part of the Advanced Playwright program, By Design was unfortunately one of many casualties from the Spring 2020 cohort as we were forced online by COVID-19 restrictions in March. Even though it never got an in-person reading that semester, I took the summer of unexpected free time to expand it into a full-length play that was then workshopped with the Skidmore College Playwright’s Lab program that fall. Following that process and more online readings throughout the years, By Design is finally getting on its feet! This production is an essential next step in its journey as I explore how the themes and messages in the text translate to the stage.

Synopsis

In a pre-apocalyptic world not unlike our own, a rare group of people called 'readers' can read a person's mind or an object's history in the span of a single touch. Ale, desperate to find her long-lost mother and free herself from her controlling father, teams up with Nat, a reader, and their investigation begins. But it's a race against time - The Scientist, Ale's father, isn't far behind. After experimenting on his daughter for years in a desperate bid to produce a cure that would shield people’s memories from readers, he has no designs of letting her go now that he’s close to succeeding. In their quest for truth and freedom, what the two young women discover may not be what they're looking for, but what they thought they’d never find.

Praise for By Design

“[The] world-building, philosophical themes, and poetic dialogue create a rich and immersive atmosphere. The play’s exploration of power, memory, and fate is thought-provoking”

“…extraordinary - unique and powerful, with incredible world-building”

2025 SheNYC Semi-Finalist

Funding

Much of the fundraising from this campaign will go towards ensuring that every member of this show’s team is compensated not only fairly, but well for their passionate work – without my collaborators, this show would not go up. Other costs include rehearsal spaces, props, costumes, and advertising.

Any additional funds raised will go towards reimbursing other out-of-pocket costs and the cast and crew.

Each donation is an investment in a new, unique, and thought-provoking piece of theater that also aims to normalize LGBT relationships within whatever genre they happen to star in.

Thank you for reading, and an even bigger thank you for your support! If you are unable to donate but still want to show your support, sharing this campaign with your community and social media circles is a great way to contribute to the success of this piece.

In NYC this August? Come see the show!

Performances held at the AMT Theater in Midtown Manhattan.

August 1 @8pm

August 2 @5pm + Audience Talkback!

August 3 @5pm

Purchase Tickets Here ! And while you're at it, check out the other awesome shows presented by this festival!