How a former HOME turned THEATER is Transforming the Black Arts Scene in Camden

One woman is on a mission to help break the cycle of poverty in the City of Camden, New Jersey, and she is doing it through performing arts and creative playwriting.

- Jenise Rolle

Desi P. Shelton, a Camden, New Jersey native, is the founder and artistic director of the Camden Repertory Theater, which sits in the heart of Camden’s Downtown neighborhood. Shelton, who received her Masters of Fine Arts in Acting (MFA) from Sarah Lawrence College, launched Camden Rep in 2006 after seeing a void for urban female voices within live theater. She then transformed her former home into a live performing arts theater for the public.

Camden Rep is a community-focused theater company that educates, inspires, and provides local artists with a space to create and produce new work that speaks to the real-life experiences of those living within the inner city. For Shelton, the driving force behind the theater company is her desire to create a safe space where Black women can have real conversations. “When you come to Camden Rep, you should feel like you’re going to your girlfriend’s house to hang out,” says Shelton, “as women, we need spaces to laugh, cry, and simply know that somebody gets us and understands what we’re going through.”