Boady

Genre: Speculative Fiction, Horror, Drama

Eddy Taylor first began writing the play Boady in September of 2024, intending to explore a modern reimagining of Mary Shelly’s classic Frankenstein. Between the plays original inception to completion in May of 2025 the piece transformed into a modern tragedy examining motherhood and gender identity.

Recognised for its complex characters and philosophical themes Boady presents a distorted vision of our own world.

Preview

A mass writhes on the floor. It twists and turns. The mass begins to pulsate. The mass rises. A scream. The mass collapses. A pale hand stretches out from beneath the mass. Then another, putrid black goo alongside it. The hands twitch. Arms next. The hands touch the ground for the first time. They claw at the ground. They start to pull and from the mass emerges a naked body covered in the black goo. It appears to be human and is feminine in structure. The body creeps along the ground, moaning and screaming. A cord is connected to its belly. The body turns itself onto its back and traces its hands along its torso. It finds the cord and examines it. A long painful breath. The body takes the cord in both hands, pauses, then yanks the cord out of its belly. More black goo pours from the cord and covers the bodies face and arms. Another breath, fuller this time. The body turns back onto its front and attempts to crawl, but is unable to, the effort of escaping the mass has exhausted it. The body collapses on the ground, breathing heavily.

Enter Maria with a bowl of pale grey liquid. She places the bowl beside the body. It doesn’t react. She moves the bowl closer. No reaction. She places a hand on the body’s chest. The body sits up suddenly. Maria gestures to the bowl. No reaction. She picks up some of the liquid in her hands and sips it, disguising her discomfort. She nods towards the body. It leans over and drinks from her hands. Maria gathers more liquid and gives it to the body which continues to drink from her hand. This continues until the bowl is empty.

Maria turns to exit. The body looks at her, pauses, then lunges at Maria.

The body throws her to the ground. The body climbs on top of her. Screaming and moaning.

Maria retrieves a taser from her coat and places it against the body’s neck. The body screams in pain and runs back towards the mass. The body attempts to climb back inside but cannot. The mass is sealed.

Maria stands up slowly. She stares at the body.

The body turns and rushes towards Maria. She holds the taser in front of her and the body stops short of reaching her. She shepherds the body back towards the mass. She pulls another device from her pocket and presses a button. She steps back. Glass descends from the ceiling. The body screams. The glass reaches the ground. Cutting the body off from Maria. The body touches the glass.

Maria: Cute. Bedtime, I think.

The body watches as Maria exits.

The Body: B-bu-bed t-time…

They are submerged in darkness.