They, Themself and Schmerm

Written and performed by Becca Blackwell
Developed with Ellie Heyman
In collaboration with Jill Pangallo and Jess Barbagallo

Part classic standup comedy special, part teen zine vomit confessional, They, Themself and Schmerm is Becca’s disturbingly hilarious personal tale of being adopted into a Midwestern religious family, trained to be a girl, molested, and plagued by the question, “How do I become a man and do I even want that?” Becca engages in loving confrontation with the audience, asking what it truly means to be authentic in these meat carcasses.

“It would have taken me two years of focus groups to make being molested that funny.” —Young Jean Lee

It takes a village. his project is presented by Rude Mechs with Dr. Paul Bonin-Rodriguez, Fusebox Festival and the University of Texas at Austin's Performance as Public Practice and LGBTQ Studies Programs

Rude Mechs is supported in part by the Cultural Arts Division of the City of Austin Economic Development Department, and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. To find out more about how National Endowment for the Arts grants impact individuals and communities, visit www.arts.gov.