Original LGBT+ Theatre Project

Jared O'Roark is organizing this fundraiser.

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MY STORY
I remember clearly this day, 18 years ago, when I was 22-years-old. It was a rainy summer day (as Florida days tend to be) and I was walking hesitantly up to one of those blue mailboxes (remember those?) to drop a letter in it that I wrote to my parents. That letter was a long letter that let them know that I was gay. And as I got to the mailbox I remember the weight of that letter, because if I let it go into this thing there was no retreiving it. It would be done. The mouth of the mailbox won the battle, and I let the letter drop in - and suddenly two feelings swept over me - 1) Relief; because the people I care about most in the world would finally know the secret that plagued me since I was a kid; and 2) Fear; because there was no going back, and that was a moment that was going to change my life.

I realized quickly that coming out as gay wasn't THE hurdle you jump over to move on with life, but it was merely the first hurdle among a myriad of others. There were other fights to come: breaking down my own stereotypes (as I had 22 years of entertainment and media telling me what being gay was), losing "friends" (I'm old enough now to know if they were friends I would never have lost them), dealing with family emotions (their emotions, not mine), and on and on. There was also the fresh idea of needing to navigate my place in the LGBT+ community (and how I'm seen), and then to navigate my place in the world as someone who was seen only as a member of the LGBT+ community.

I was raised Jehovah's Witness in Little Rock, Arkansas - right away it's an unusually specific story. A story that I was trying to figure out how to deal with in a way that was respectful to my history, but still honest. And even though my family is more liberal (as far as Jehovah's Witness families can be), it still was not a topic that was readily discussed. So it was hard to live a life that I couldn't talk about with my parents (even though my brother is beautiful and has always asked and been involved.)

I have never been a marcher or the loudest voice in the room (though many may disagree with that one); but I have always been a person who really wanted to gather the entire story. I have always been interested in the why of a person's story - as I feel that that is where the truth is.

I have had an idea for many years of how I could show my support to the LGBT+ community in a way that was honest to me. And I have spent almost 20 years of my life in theatre, and particularly in the writing of unique and powerful pieces that focused on interviews and on social change. I learned how to use the voice I had; and how to use that to empower others to use their voice.

MY THEATRE HISTORY:
I have worked professionally in the arts in every position you can think of: actor, producer, director, writer, education, etc. For several years I was the mentee to two Broadway producers, Zev Buffman (Blithe Spirit, Joseph and the Amazing..., Little Foxes, etc) and Duffy Anderson-Rothe (A Behanding in Spokane, Fences, etc.). I also had the extreme pleasure of being a mentee to Joyce Bonomini, and even though she will be humble about it, I can tell you without any doubt that she is a game changer in the fields of arts-in-healing and arts education. My education were these three powerhouses, and I wouldn't change it for the world.

Through the guidance of these three people (primarily Joyce) I was encouraged to create Project Shattered Silence  in 2010. Through some trial and error the project was an annual original piece of theatre, that was sculpted and created based on the interviews and actual words of Florida teenagers. This project was so successful that it continued for 8 years of sold out audiences. After year four of this project, the PBS station (through director/producer Colleen Hamilton) developed a news segment about the project that won several Emmy Awards. This news segment (below) led to a full length documentary (at the end of this page; if you have time) which won 35 film festival awards, 3 humanitarian awards, and was nominated for an Emmy Award.

I have never been more proud of anything in my life; and it showed me what I knew how to do well - give the voice to others that I felt robbed of when I was a teenager because of fear of consequences.

THE IDEA
Which brings me to this project: Using the process of theatre for social change and journalism, the idea is to interview members of the LGBT+ community. This would be an extremely diverse group: race, geography, religion, thought, politics, age, and however else the diverse pie can be cut. Interviewing allies and those who have different beliefs as well .

The primary goal is to shape these interviews into an original piece of Journalism Theatre with the majority of the words pulled from actual words by the interviewed individuals.
The goal from these interviews is to shape an original piece of Journalistic Theatre that is majority words and stories from these interviewed individuals. Through this truth, I hope to empower all people (LGBT+, Straight, Black, White, Green, Old, Young, Big, Small, etc) to tell their story. The internet brings the world closer together, and yet daily it feels we are drifting farther and farther apart. The best weapon we have to combat this is to honor our lives, our stories, and how they give us strength.

I want to showcase this community and what makes our stories unique - what makes us bond as a community. Yet, I also want to focus on what makes our stories universal - and experiences that makes us human, not just members of a minority community.

THE PLAN // TIMELINE
The project's plan is as follows (this is a preliminary timeline and may be subject to change):

1) After the Money is Raised: For 6-8 months after the money is raised I will start planning and conduct interviews in various parts of the country: East Coast, West Coast, South, and Midwest.
A) The Interviews: These interviews are being coordinated in both large and small cities. The goal is to gather as wide a variety of stories as possible: from the accepted to the ones who have to fight for their truth. These interviews will be transcribed...
B) The Play: From the transcriptions a play will be formed. Currently the theme is "what it is like to be a member of the LGBT+ community in America". This topic is broad for a reason - - it will shape and mold itself based on the interviews that are gathered. This process will take another 6-8 months. This will include a preliminary read-thru (possibly two) to see what works, what needs to be edited, and what is missing. This process will help fine tuned
C) The Final Read-Thru:   My goal is that this play will have a final read-thru (before production) in all of the cities that the interviews were held in. Currently Cincinnati is secured, and I have a belief that the other cities will be secured through the "interview" process.
D) After the Read-Thrus: After the read-thrus, the final piece will be sent to various Play Festivals throughout the country. I will be working in the "final read-thru" cities to find a theater to produce the final presentation. Two cities have already expressed interest.

WHAT THE MONEY GOES TO:
The budget that I have created is not about raising money that goes to me. This is a passion project of mine, something I have always wanted to create; and I don't want to accept a dime through this platform. I look at GoFundMe as a way to help advance the writing/research/interviews of this project, and the supplies needed to achieve this goal. Instead the money raised goes to:

a) materials in audio and video to capture the stories that are shared
b) travel to get groups of LGBT+ recorded talking in a collective of voices
c) hard costs such as copies, paper, pens, etc.
d) the copywriting of the piece so that it can be shared in all communities
e) etc.

YOUR HELP:
As this is a community project, then anything will help - $5, $10, $1000, $10,000, .10. What you give is what is needed, and goes towards creating a project that allows members of the LGBT+ community to give voice to their stories. And who knows where we can go from there: veterans, immigrants, you name it - everyone's voice has a power to it - sometimes we just need to be empowered to believe our story is worth it.

I want everyone to be able to honor their life, and their journey.

As I always say: "Our differences make us interesting, but our similarities are what bring us together."

Thank you for your support.