I, Swift Shuker, a real human person, have a real physical body. It sleeps and sweats and shits and bleeds. It is visible; other people can see it and smell it and notice it. After I die, people will look at my corpse and say, "That's Swift." They will be incorrect.
I, this human person, have the WRONG BODY. It is strange and hairy and breastless and I am not at home in it, and when people look at me, they see something which is not me.
In the absence of God, I take myself into my own hands. If I am to be seen, I will be seen on my own terms.
I, Swift Shuker, am becoming an androgyne. By medicine and by art and by sacrifice, I will make myself a body with an aesthetic, a gender, and a voice that I can live with. Because I do not wish to die.
I, Swift Shuker, will be making my body and transition available to you, the Stranger. Because I am going to be seen, and I will make it my choice. You may see me whenever you wish, and interact with me when I wish.
I am doing all this to keep myself alive. Art will keep us alive.
This will take two years. We will begin now.
I am not alone in this journey, though it is soleley mine. My foundation includes [redacted] Theater Company, friends, strangers, and organizations that provide support, like the Philadelphia Cultural Fund and Swarthmore Project In Theater.
If you are new to the project, our Best Of is a good place to get started.
