Hit The Ground Running Theatre, Inc.

President, HTGRT Sheila K. Middlebrook
Email: smiddleb@columbus.rr.com
65 South 4th Street
Room 701
Columbus OH 43215-4314
Home: (614)221-6258
Office: (614)221-6258
Fax: (614)221-6257

Hit The Ground Running Theatre, Inc.

HIT THE GROUND RUNNING THEATRE,I

Welcome to the website for Hit The Ground Running Theatre, Inc. A non-profit organization, we are an Afri-Centric, Semi-Professional troupe of actors who believe there is a need for a theatre which is steeped in the traditions and concerns of the Central Ohio African-American communiy.

Our intent is to offer a forum for local talents who have/have not received formal training as actors and need a place to gain confidence in and continuously hone their abilities; while receiving financial appreciation for the necessary sacrifices and time spent to present live theatre to,from, and by the Black Community.

This forum will give us the medium to ''say it our way''. We know that members of the African-American Community will see themselves. This will make it easier to pursue success in the business of show business.

WHEN WE WERE BORN:

Hit The Ground Running Theatre, Inc. (from now on - HTGRT)was born in the conference room of the Annex to St. Paul AME Church on June 12, 1999. The funding for the initiation of HTGRT came from a Greater Columbus Arts Council Grant that had been awarded to Sheila K. Middlebrook for her original play ''FREEDOM, SWEET AS SUGUH IN M'TEE''.

We adopted a mission statement which reads:

MISSION STATEMENT

HIT THE GROUND RUNNING THEATRE, INC. is an Africentric, semi-professional theatre company whose mission is to encourage and promote African-American, Native, Asian, Latino, European, female, aged, and handicapped artistic endeavors of those talents from within the Central Ohio Area through live staged performances; to assist in developing their talents in a supportive atmosphere; and to provide the experience and seasoning necessary to allow them - should they choose - to aspire to attain professional status.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS -- GOALS:

The original play, ''FREEDOM, SWEET AS SUGUH IN M'TEE'', was successfully presented to the public November 11-12, 1999, in the Mt. Carmel West Hospital Auditorium, and November 19-20,1999, in the Columbus Athenaeum (32 N. 4th St.)

Excerpts from the play have since been performed at The Ohio Historical Society, (March and May 2000),and The YWCA (April 27-28, 2000).

The full production was presented again January 15, 2001, and the first three weekends of February 2001, at the YWCA, 65 South 4th Street, Huntington Hall, Columbus, Ohio 43215; the last weekend of February (Feb. 24-26) at The Ohio Historical Society. The final presentation of this play was at the Mansfield, Ohio, Public Library, 3 March 2001.

Presently, there are 18 actors involved with HTGRT who will be cast in our upcoming productions for the 2001-2002 season that will feature two or three productions to be announced on this site at a later date.