Citizens of the Universe (COTU) is building a real-world launch pad for our professional theatre, touring series, original works, and story IP.

This fundraiser covers the 'unsexy-but-essential' startup costs:

our website, admin systems, base supplies, and core operations.

All so we can launch our first major run for our show campaign while making theatre more fun and accessible for everyone!

Normally, I wouldn’t do this here. But public arts funding is getting less reliable and can disappear with the swipe of a pen. We saw this in Florida in 2024, when $32 million in state arts and culture grants were vetoed. In times like these, it’s time to take matters into our own hands. If we want the work to exist, we have to build the engine ourselves.

I’ve put in my own financial support, and I’m asking you to come aboard.

Your donation gets us off the ground: paying the people who help build and maintain the site, run communications, and keep the engine running while we build.

So space cadets, let’s light the fuse and get the rockets moving!

P.S.-

If you can’t give, sharing this helps more than you think.

Cartee here, and I run Citizens of the Universe (COTU), an arts project built to create original theatre and story worlds (shows, books, comics) with a long-term goal: a touring network that makes bold, weird, heartfelt work sustainable again.

Right now, we’re in the “launch pad” phase. That means building the infrastructure that lets the art actually happen: a working website, basic office/admin setup, and the initial costs that unlock fundraising and production logistics.

This GoFundMe is intentionally timeboxed. It’s not “fund our dreams forever.” It’s:

Build the launch pad → show weekly progress → then launch the first show.

What your donation pays for (Launch Pad Budget):

Website + hosting + domain + build tools

Office/admin setup: basic equipment, supplies, storage, printing

Production infrastructure: insurance, registration/admin costs, initial deposits & prep

Communication tools: email platform, project management, file systems

Marketing basics: initial promo assets (graphics, small print runs)

Transparency promise-

I’ll post weekly updates with screenshots, photos, and clear “what happened this week / what’s next” so you can see your support turning into visible progress.

If you believe art should feel like a mission, not a gamble — help us build the launch pad.

Thank you for being part of the crew.

— James

“How much should I donate?”

Well, we will take any donations, but if you want here's a quick idea...

$10 — fuels the weekly progress updates (yes, seriously)

$25 — website/hosting + comms tools

$50 — office/admin supplies that keep production moving

$100 — printing + promo foundations

$250 — meaningful production infrastructure (insurance/admin/deposits)

$500+ — “Founding Crew” support

All donations get a Citizen Code which goes onto our webpage.