The Curtain Rises ….
Grown Up Theatre Kid online store and marketplace is an initiative founded by the writers of Olivia O, The Musical - Diane Currie Sam and Jessica Carmona.
We love the theatre. We love storytelling, art, music, drama - the whoosh of the curtains rising, the first note of the overture, the sadness of saying goodbye when the run’s over, the agonizing over lyrics - all of it.
But you know what? After the applause fades, and the house lights come up, the truth really sinks it - producing theatre isn’t just about the art—it’s about funding the art.
That’s a wall that’s tough to climb. While both of us love writing and have other creative projects on the go, getting a show produced and funded is a full-time job (finding and writing grant applications, cold-emailing investors, online meetings across time zones, etc.).
This is how it is, we get it, but it is starting to feel like we are spending more time proving the show’s worth than actually bringing it to life.
Theatre was supposed to be about storytelling, about connection. But what do you do when you’re an emerging playwright/lyricist/writer who isn’t ‘connected to money’ and doesn’t know the ins and outs of ‘big money’ fundraising in the dog-eat-dog world of corporate theatre?
What do you do when you’re telling a story about the ‘hot topic’ of immigration in a super-charged political climate? With a diverse Latinx cast at a time when funding for anything with a whiff of “DEI” mission is getting cut?
And as we talked about it, it hit us.
We can’t keep waiting for someone else to fund Olivia O. We are going to keep looking for partners and investors, but if that’s all we do, especially given this climate, we may be waiting too long. This is a story that needs to be told now.
So, in addition to fundraising and awareness building events (and as we keep meeting with potential producing partners) we are going to be selling Olivia O merch and other products through this website as part of our fundraising for productions.
“A Rising Tide Lifts All Boats!”
But, we also want to take it a step further. Throughout the years we’ve met lots of
theatre artists and writers who are in the same fundraising treadmill that we’re in. So, as we grow, we want to open the platform for other artists to sell their merchandise. All boats rise! (Contact us if you’re interested).
Theatre has always been about community—a gathering of people who believe in something bigger than themselves.
So as we build our online gift shop, we’re wondering if we can build a space where theatre artists could support each other? Where other theatre writers (and actors, and creatives) could sell their own merchandise and bring in some income as they develop and produce early versions of their shows?
We’re not trying to sell you on some grand idea or revolution in theatre, but we do believe that we can level the playing field and give emerging shows and independent artists a way to easily get their own merchandise created and available to be sold, as well as earn affiliate commissions on some fun theatre-themed merchandise.
It’s our hope that as we build this store/marketplace, we can find a way for theatre makers to keep the lights on—not just for one show, but for a lifetime of storytelling.
Theatre belongs to all of us.
You don’t have to wait for permission to create.
We are just getting started.
🔥🎭 Welcome to Grown Up Theatre Kid 🎭🔥
