ShowLAB Catalyst — Application

You're Not Stuck Because You Can't Write. You're Stuck Because You're Doing It Alone.

For theatre writers with a play or musical underway who are ready to finish it, with MFA-level feedback and a real writing room instead of guessing alone.

Cohort 2 sold out at 10 writers. Cohort 3 is capped at 20 and starts October 3rd.

Apply for ShowLAB Catalyst

Takes about 3 minutes. I review every application personally.

Hi, I'm Jesse Hampsch.

I hold an MFA in Musical Theatre Collaboration from Temple University, one of only two MFA programs in the US built specifically for musical theatre writers: three years of in-depth study, workshops, professional feedback, and a full musical production process unlike any other program, even NYU's.

During my career as a writer, I've written five musicals and three straight plays. All five musicals and two of the three plays have been produced, alongside a song cycle and development work at places like Cincinnati LAB Theatre's New Works Festival and Capital Repertory Theatre's NEXT ACT Summit. So the feedback I give isn't theoretical. It's the same process I still use on my own drafts.

When I left Temple, I noticed something. Almost every theatre writer I talked to wasn't missing talent, or even ideas. They were missing exactly that room: a proven process, and serious writers around them who actually push the work forward.

So I built ShowLAB. First as a free community, now 600+ theatre writers strong. Then as Catalyst, the 16-week cohort where I bring that same MFA-level rigor to your play or musical.

Cohort 2 sold out. Cohort 3 runs October 3 through January 30, and I'm looking for the right writers to fill it.

Does any of this sound familiar?

✓ You're working alone, without a clear roadmap, and plays or musicals are hard to finish that way.
✓ You've got a draft, or half a draft, that's stalled out more than once.
✓ The feedback you get from friends and family is kind, but it isn't helping you actually fix the script.
✓ You don't have a real submission plan for when the draft is finally done.
✓ You've thought about an MFA, but not the debt, the years, or leaving your life behind to get one.

What Writers Inside ShowLAB Say

"ShowLab is everything it promises! And more! Yes, Jesse Hampsch is incredibly talented, knowledgeable, and experienced when it comes to theater writing. But he is also a kind and patient teacher. I joined as a true beginner with a lot to learn. I told him I was looking for someone who would give me honest and helpful feedback. That's exactly what I got! Group calls, one-to-one calls, master classes, recorded lessons, and resources all have contributed to me learning so much in a short period."

Virginia Russell, still a member after 6 months

"This is one of the best of the several online musical theater communities I'm part of. I've been writing musicals for 15 years, I have 2 published short musicals and am developing 3 longer projects. Showlab offers great resources, wonderful masterclasses, and a warm and welcoming community. Jesse is a terrific mentor and teacher."

Ed Levy, still a member after 9 months

"This community has been a godsend as far as making connections and changing my writing philosophy and practice for the better. Highly recommend it."

Jackie Lahr, still a member after 4 months

"Wonderful and transformative."

Michael Morris, still a member after 9 months

"ShowLAB has been an amazing resource as I work on creating my first theatrical piece. I would highly recommend membership to anyone who is serious about taking their work to the next level."

Emma Kane

Introducing ShowLAB Catalyst

Catalyst is a 16-week cohort for theatre writers who are ready to finish a submission-ready draft of their play or musical.

Cohort 3 is the Fall/Winter cohort: October 3 through January 30, with a week off for the Christmas holiday. It's not a course you watch. It's a writing room: two weekly cohort calls (times set by the cohort's own availability) with personalized feedback built in, plus asynchronous modules across four distinct phases, so you always know your next step.

For comparison: one semester of an MFA program like NYU's runs about $42,000. Catalyst gives you 16 weeks of the same structured, MFA-level development, at a fraction of that.

The 4 Phases

Phase 1 — Writing Framework (Week 1): build the process you'll use for the rest of the cohort.
Phase 2 — Structural Backbone (Weeks 2–5): lock your structure before you draft, so you're not rewriting the same scenes for the fourth time.
Phase 3 — Drafting (Weeks 6–15): write with weekly calls and personalized feedback keeping you moving.
Phase 4 — Development (Week 16+): revise toward a submission-ready draft.

The outcome is a submission-ready draft that holds up in competitive award and development pools. What that looks like depends on your discipline: a full play, a musical book, or a substantial score of songs. If you write across disciplines, you can choose a hybrid goal. Specific goals for your project are set together, in week one.

You also don't just finish the draft and wonder what to do with it. You leave with a submission database of 100+ verified opportunities, an outreach tracker, and the scripts to work through them, plus a group of writers who watched you build the show and know it almost as well as you do.

My guarantee: if you show up to the calls, do the work, and you still aren't finished at week 16, you keep working with me until you are.

Here's what you walk away with:

🧭 Your Writer's Framework

• The MFA-style process I trained under at Temple, adapted for you and your show

🗺️ A Reliable Outlining Process

• Structure your story before you draft, so you stop rewriting the same scenes for the fourth time

✍️ Support While You Draft

• Weekly cohort calls with personalized feedback, so you're never stuck without an answer

📤 Your Submission Plan

• A finished draft is only useful if it goes somewhere. You leave with a plan for where it goes next

🎭 A Real Writing Room

• Table reads, craft calls, and serious writers who are working just as hard as you are

Who This Is For

Catalyst is only for serious writers who know there's a gap between their current skill and the show they can see in their head. It's called Catalyst because that's what a catalyst does: it speeds up a reaction. At 16 weeks, this is a sprint, and you should expect to make bigger leaps in your writing than you ever have before.

✓ You're actively writing a play or musical, and you already have a draft (or a serious start on one).
✓ You've tried to finish it alone and keep stalling out.
✓ You want structured, MFA-level feedback, not just a supportive Facebook group.
✓ You're ready to invest in your craft and show up for the writing room, two calls a week, for 16 weeks.
✓ You want a real submission plan when you're done, not a finished draft that sits in a drawer.

Who This Is NOT For

✕ You're brand new to theatre writing and haven't started a project yet. Start in the free community first.
✕ You don't feel the need or desire to finish your show. If writing isn't a serious pursuit for you right now, there are better options.
✕ You're only looking for free resources right now, not ready to invest in the work.
✕ You can't commit to the weekly calls. Recordings help, but there's no substitute for working the room live.

Cohort 3 runs October 3 through January 30, and I'm only taking the writers who are the right fit.

What Happens Next

Submit the short application below. It takes about 3 minutes.
I personally review every application.
If it's a fit, I'll reach out directly by phone or DM to talk about your show and lock in your spot for Cohort 3.

About Jesse Hampsch

I'm Jesse Hampsch, founder of ShowLAB and the ShowLAB Catalyst Cohort. I hold an MFA in Musical Theatre Collaboration from Temple University, one of only two MFA programs in the US built specifically for musical theatre writers, and an M.Mus. in Choral Conducting from the University of Idaho. I've written five musicals, three straight plays, and a song cycle. All five musicals and two of the three plays have been produced, including Goblin Market and J Ripper, with additional development work at festivals like Cincinnati LAB Theatre's New Works Festival and Capital Repertory Theatre's NEXT ACT Summit. I've also taught for over 15 years, six of them at the college level.

I built Catalyst to bring that same MFA-level process and developmental rigor to theatre writers who want to finish their own work, without going back to school for it.

Today ShowLAB is a 600+ member community of theatre writers, and Catalyst is the flagship 16-week cohort inside it, now filling its 3rd round.

Apply for ShowLAB Catalyst — Cohort 3

All fields are required. I review every application personally, so please answer carefully and accurately.

FAQ

Catalyst is $4,800, structured as $1,200/month over 4 months so you're not paying it all at once. For comparison, one semester at NYU costs about $42,000 in tuition alone, just over ten times the total cost of Catalyst. On your call, we'll talk about your show and confirm it's the right fit before anything is decided.
A full MFA runs over $165,000 in tuition, takes two-plus years as a full-time student, and usually means moving to a city like New York. Catalyst gives you the same kind of structured, MFA-level training in 16 weeks, without quitting your job, moving, or the six-figure price tag.
Yes. The free community is the entry point, but Catalyst is a separate, closed cohort. Applying here is how you get considered for Cohort 3.
16 weeks. Cohort 3 is the Fall/Winter cohort, running October 3 through January 30. Two weekly cohort calls, timed around the cohort's own availability, with personalized feedback built in and all recorded if you have to miss one, plus asynchronous modules across four phases that you work through between calls.
Catalyst assumes you already have a play or musical underway. If you haven't started a project yet, the free ShowLAB community is the better place to begin, then come back and apply once you've got a draft going.
Every call is recorded, so you won't miss the content. That said, Catalyst works best when you're actually in the room, live, getting feedback in real time, so it's built for writers who can make most of the calls most weeks.
Catalyst only works if the room is full of serious writers pushing each other forward. The application makes sure everyone who joins is actually ready to do the work, not just curious.