Ashley Rose Wellman’s KILL SHELTER manages to be both intimate and expansive—a fitting contradiction for a play that insists on nuance and moral ambiguity. Colleen and Ellie’s well-drawn mother-daughter relationship anchors a story that tackles generational curses, abortion rights, euthanasia, teen parenthood and poverty. The real miracle of the play is how naturally these heavy issues are woven into the narrative, and how light a touch Wellman manages to have with them.

The heartbreaking puppet sequences are uniquely theatrical and unflinchingly humane. Uncertainty is at the heart of KILL SHELTER—and that’s it’s greatest strength.

I go to the theatre because, somehow, that communal space always manages to give me permission to express my most repressed emotions. Considering I wept while reading this alone in my bedroom, I cannot imagine what it would have done to me if I'd seen it on stage. It's such an efficient, well-structured little narrative with so many challenging questions at the center, but it all comes down to love and doing the right thing. It's both difficult and hopeful, with an elegant simplicity. The open ending really works. I'm so glad I got to know these characters.

I had the pleasure of reading for Nolan in the play's reading at the Valdez theatre conference. This piece beautifully navigates heavy topics, darkness, and comedy. As a performer, I had a hard time keeping myself from breaking as the comedy in this script is so wonderfully crafted!