Hello! My name is William Meurer, and I am an actor/playwright based in New York City, and me and my production team are currently trying to raise $1200 to help get my play "Lizzie Borden: Life After Death" to Spotlight New Works Fest (https://www.spotlightnewworksfest.com/) on June 29th!
A little bit about our play
"Lizzie Borden: Life After Death" is a new full length play that explores the thoughts, feelings, and potential motives behind one of the most infamous women in true crime history, Lizzie Borden.
The play takes place thirteen years after Lizzie's acquittal for the murder of both her father and stepmother. Lizzie live's comfortably with her sister, Emma in a mansion only a few miles from the scene of the crime. They try to forget the shadows of their past; but when an all too familiar face arrives at her door, Lizzie must relive her past and choose which secrets are worth keeping.
The play was originally written as my college senior thesis in 2019, before me and my dear friend (and director) Jess Reed produced the show in January of 2023 as a virtual reading.
The play was then selected for a staged reading at Live Arts in Virginia as part of their Water Works New Play Festival later that same year.
Now, me and Jess Reed are partnering up once again, along with our producer Graeme Cohen, to get this show ready for its NYC Festival Debut.
Meet the Team
William Meurer- William Meurer (He/They) is a queer and neurodiverse actor/playwright based in New York City. Recent writing credits include "The Many Gay Adventures of Nicholas Laurenstein" (Rogue Theater Fest NYC 2025), "I am Renfield: A Dracula Adaptation" (Live Arts Waterworks Festival: Short List Finalist 2025), and "Pride and Prejudice: Or A Queer Person's Guide to Surviving the Regency Era" (Fresh Fruit Festival NYC 2025.) "A Hundred Years" (SOOP Theater 2023), "Lizzie Borden: Life After Death" (Live Arts 2023), "Dracula" (Public Domain Players 2022), and "In A Tiger's Eye" (SOOP Theater 2021). @williammwrites
Jess Reed- Jess Reed (they/them) is a performer, artist, and director from Long Island, NY. Select roles: Hercule Poirot (Alibi), Algernon Moncrieff (The Importance of Being Earnest), B/Therapist (After the Flood), Holofernes (Love's Labor's Lost), Dr. Livesey (Treasure Island), Percy Talbot (The Spitfire Grill), Isabelle Grossman (Crossing Delancey). Directing credits: Radium Girls, Sense & Sensibility, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Peter and the Starcatcher, The Importance of Being Earnest, The Elephant Man. They have appeared on multiple Twitch channels including What Streams May Come, and Slaydies: Hunt for the Heart Shards. Jess can be found online at jess-reed.com.
Graeme Cohen- Graeme Cohen (Graeme/They/Them) is an agender producer from Manhattan producing their first show. Graeme has over 10 years experience working and managing various aspects of theatre and entertainment. Select projects include Box Office Management: Titus Andronicus (Red Bull Theatre); House Management: Vanya (Lucille Lortel Theatre), Oh, Mary (Lucille Lortel Theatre), Danny and the Deep Blue Sea (Lucille Lortel Theatre); Run Crew: One Night (Target Margin Theatre)
About the Festival
"Spotlight New Works Fest is a curated festival dedicated to showcasing new shows written for educational and community stages...Submissions are reviewed and scored by a committee of readers, resulting in a selective, thoughtfully balanced lineup.
Spotlight New Works Fest is the only festival devoted exclusively to the secondary market, elevating ambitious new work for the stages where so many artists and audiences first fall in love with theatre."
for more information, and reserve tickets, visit the festival website here.
Our Fundraising Goal
Getting a new play to New York City, even for a reading, is no small feat. This is where you lovely folks can help. Our goal is to raise $1,200 in order to offset some of our production costs. If you donate today you'll be helping us....
Pay our artists- This is our biggest, and most important expense. Our team firmly believes in making sure all of our artists (actors, directors, etc.) are paid for their time and contributions.
Rent Rehearsal Space- Rehearsal studio's in New York are not cheap, with some spaces charging $60+ per hour.
Promote the show- Help us pay for flyers, paid online space, and other ways we utilize to help get as many people to see this show as possible.
I can't donate, but still wanna support. What do I do?
Don't you worry, we understand that times are especially rough right now, so if you can't financially contribute we completely understand.
However, you can absolutely help us out by sharing our show and Gofundme information with your friends and loved ones on social media. The more eyes on this page, the more likely we'll be able to meet our fundraising goal!
Thank you in advance
If you've made it this far, wow you must really like us! We deeply appreciate you taking the time to learn about our show, and we hope that you'll either donate, or share this page with your friends to help us get "Lizzie Borden: Life After Death" to NYC!