We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sami Weathersby a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Sami, thanks for joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?
I recently wrote a play called GIRLTHING which follows a 27-year-old woman as she unravels a chaotic tapestry of interactions with so-called Nice Guys. The action orbits around a singular rupture in her worldview: the day her childhood dog turned violent. GIRLTHING asks, what happens when “boys will be boys” bites back? It’s absurd, it’s dark, it’s funny. But this project is meaningful to me because the way we raise boys is such a huge contributor to violence in society. I’m looking at violence through romantic relationships in this play, but it’s bigger than that, and the problem starts so innocuously. I think it’s an important conversation to have.
Sami, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I’m a theatre writer, based in Astoria.
I first fell in love with theatre as a little kid in community theatre on the Indiana side of Louisville, Kentucky, and took my growing obsession to the next level by studying Musical Theatre at Shenandoah University in Virginia. I moved to NYC in 2021, where I met an incredible acting teacher, Joan Rosenfels, who encouraged me to explore my writing abilities. She remains my #1 fan and I’m so grateful.
Nowadays, I write music, lyrics, and plays. My music will appear in an upcoming feature film, a web series, and a pilot project, and I’ve showcased it at various venues around the city, including The Green Room 42. In addition, my debut full-length play, GIRLTHING is looking for its home.
My modus operandi is to write as many roles for women & non-binary people as possible in my favorite art form: live theatre.
Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?
The Dramatists Guild Foundation! It provides amazing resources for theatre writers, including emergency financial assistance.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
Despite our best efforts, theatre is still a white, cis-male dominated industry. I’m motivated to create opportunities for women and non-binary people to be at the center of the story.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://samiweathersby.com
- Instagram: @samiweathersby
Image Credits
Ted Ely, Brooke Banister