Today we’d like to introduce you to Charles Jackson.
Hi Charles, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
I am a Producer, Playwright, Actor, and Director residing in Fort Worth, TX. I started acting whenever I was a freshman in high school. After taking a theatre class, I fell in love with performing and knew that I wanted to do it for the rest of my life. However, when I graduated high school, I decided that I didn’t want to wait on others to give me an opportunity. I wanted to create my own opportunities while also opening the door for others. That’s when I realized I wanted to be a producer. Producing became essential to me because I wanted to help push forward stories that highlighted underrepresented communities. Since I was a sophomore in college, I have been producing plays and films emphasizing giving opportunities to women and people of color. For the last six years, I have produced plays and films. I have had my original works accepted into numerous fringe festivals nationally. My experience with producing works at fringe festivals inspired me to create Theatre Hue.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Independently producing is not easy. I have to use all of my own money and resources, so I can only produce what my personal funds can afford. Crowdfunding / Fundraising can work sometimes but not all the time because people can get fatigued with all of the projects I ask for donations for. Sometimes I’ve raised thousands of dollars, while other times, I only raised 50 dollars. And producing my shows at fringe festivals are great for exposure; however, the festivals can be very expensive if you do not live near the fringe festival. You have to pay the application fee, venue fee, technician fee, housing, traveling, etc.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about Theatre Hue and what you think sets it apart from performing arts organizations?
Theatre Hue is a nonprofit performing arts organization that fosters and cultivates local and national Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) performing artists by showcasing their new and experimental works in Fort Worth, TX at low cost and risk. Theatre Hue’s vision is to be a catalyst for reform in how the world sees and portrays the BIPOC community.
Theatre Hue provides BIPOC Performing Artists
– Free Housing
– A Performance Space
– 3 Performance Slots
– 100% Box-Office Earnings
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Many things make me happy—eating ice cream, watching Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, yoga class, etc. However, what makes me the happiest is to help give and create opportunities for people of color in the performing arts.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@theatrehue.org
- Website: www.theatrehue.org
- Instagram: @theatrehue
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheatreHue
