director | developer.
Shelby R. Seeley (she/her) is a Yale-certified director and new work developer in "Downriver" Michigan. Collaborators call Shelby nuanced, honest, passionate, and creative.
Director: "Funny, Like HAHA (Or, a Play About a Rape Joke)" (Flint Repertory Theatre, Staged Reading), “Man of La Mancha” (The Penny Seats Theatre Company), “Pizza Slut” (Boxfest Detroit), “Twelfth Night” (Phoenix Theatre Productions), "Imposter!" (Renaissance City Repertory Theatre, Staged Reading), “The Gulf” (Eastern Michigan University Lab Theatre).
Assistant Director: "Happy Days” “Wrong River” “Death of a Salesman” (Flint Repertory Theatre). Awards: 2019 BoxFest Detroit Mentorship Award, 2016 Michigan Liberator Award.
She is currently serving as Associate Artistic Director and Literary Manager at Theatre Nova in Ann Arbor, MI.
Shelby attended Yale University's summer session and received a Certificate in Directing (2021) and the Kennedy Center Directing Intensive (2021). She earned her BS in Theatre Arts from Eastern Michigan University (2020).
Shelby has professional producing ("Sassafras and the Captain", Fresh Fruit Festival), playwright assisting ("The Future Is Female", Flint Repertory Theatre), acting (University of Michigan's CRLT Players; Michigan Shakespeare Festival Interstate Touring Company; The Call of the Void Podcast), and teaching experience (Patrick Henry Middle School Director of Theatre; freelance teaching artist).
Contact by email at shelbyrseeley@gmail.com.
"Excellent preparation of the text, clear precise notes, praise without fawning, attention to goals during rehearsal with an eye on the clock to stay on course, and a joyful demeanor to make the whole experience fun."
-Connie Cowper, actor.
"Her superpower is attention to detail. She continues to find nuances... it keeps the work honest. She makes projects collaborative and fun."
- Kasey Donelly, actor.
"She is resourceful, unflappable and undaunted by tasks I would consider to be Herculean, and through it all she is always kind, encouraging and positive."
- Phil Simmons, co-director & mentor.
"Shelby has never ceased to amaze me with her unmatched drive and passion for what she creates and accomplishes her kindness, imagination, and willingness to experiment inspire me."
- Parker Stephen Nolan, stage manager.
"It's such a treat, as a playwright, to show up to a production of your play done by artists you don't know and watch them knock it out of the park."
- Sarah Elisabeth Brown, playwright
"I always trust Shelby's vision: the end result always blows me away."
- Lindsey Brown, actor.