Hello! I’m Jada Hampton, the founder of Embrace Arts Coaching and Hampton Services.

Jada (she/her) is an arts administrator, artist, and activist who recently relocated to Louisville during the pandemic. She has primarily worked alongside arts entrepreneurs of color (and consulting firms) as an Executive Assistant since 2021, including Ann James, Tiffany Vega-Gibson, Marjuan Canady, Lauren Tuner Hines, and Al Heartley. Valuing anti-racism and inclusivity, Jada is a 2020 KCACTF ASPIRE Alumni as well as a John Cauble Emerging Producer/Leader and Charlene Gordon Arts Impact Award recipient. Also a writer, she was an author and editor for the Uncle Junior Project and a featured playwright at the American College Theatre Festival for her play, Hip Hop Heaven.

Jada graduated from the University of Southern Indiana with a Bachelor’s degree in Theatre Performance.

She is currently a Line Producer for Actors Theatre of Louisville.

About Me

Acting

I have been trained in acting for 15+ years. I attended one of the top two performing arts magnet schools in Georgia, Davidson Fine Arts, and then received my Bachelor’s degree in Performance Arts from the University of Southern Indiana and am currently seeking my Master of Fine Arts.

To be an actor is to be human. My philosophy on acting is humanist, introspective, and deeply explorative-the most important tool to the new and experienced actor is the imagination.

I have been fortunate to have performed in various venues including the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, The Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center, University of Southern Indiana, Arts in the Heart Festival, University of Indy, Fort Gordon Theatre, Georgia Theatre Conference, and the Beverly J. Barnhart Theatre.

Roles include:

  • The Girl, Eclipsed

  • Hermia, A Midsummer Night’s Dream

  • Olivia, Olivia and Pop Westley (Puppetry)

  • Sarah, Angel’s Playground

  • Marcela, Dog in the Manger

  • Naja, Anon(ymous)

  • Ermina, Crumbs from the Table of Joy

  • Flanders, Mr. Burns: A Post-Apocalyptic Play (Musical)

  • Sylvestre, Scapin

  • Cobweb, A Midsummer Night’s Dream

  • Maid, One Man, Two Guvnors

Additionally, I’ve had years of experience in Improv, physical comedy, and movement.

I am an avid and skilled writer with high test marks and demonstrated ability. Writing is a visual expression of our own brilliance and capabilities. Everyone deserves to know the love and excitement of language which is why I strive to help people master their own style and written ability through command of language rules and concepts.

As a writer I have authored five full length plays, dozens of poems, essays, articles, and short stories. I am honored to have an essay mounted on the walls of the Lucy C. Laney Museum via my essay concerning the legacy of civil rights leaders.

As a playwright, I have been a finalist for the Campfire Theatre Festival for my full-length play B**** Girl on Fire concerning the struggles of mental health and relationships. In 2020, I was chosen as one of six playwrights from across the region to be a featured playwright for the Kennedy Center Regional Festival with my short play, Hip Hop Heaven (a hip-hop choreopoem concerning gun violence).

As an enthusiastic researcher, I was an author for the Uncle Junior Project-a virtual exhibit for honoring forgotten black sideshow performers by documenting their lives and legacies. I’ve also had experience in dramaturgy and children’s writing.

I was honored to be selected for the Poetry Out Loud Competition, sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts. P.O.L is a multi-level competition, with a local, regional, state, and national tier. I was a local, regional, and state finalist for two consecutive years and hold a deep appreciation for the poets of the past and present. I’ve performed slam poetry for events as well as spoken word.

Writing

Management

The ability to manage private and public sectors of the arts will be important in determining who may participate in its future. Being so, I’ve dedicated the last five years of my life to growing as an arts administrator and manager.

Most recently I was selected as one of the national candidates for the Kennedy Center National Festival’s ASPIRE/LORT Arts Leadership Program. ASPIRE works to identify and cultivate the next generation of arts leaders and is headed by Victoria Nolan and Kelvin Dinkins Jr. of the Yale School of Drama (and Management), Curt Columbus from Brown University/Trinity Rep, and Khady Kamara from Arena Stage and Second Stage theatre. At the conclusion of the fellowship I was selected for the John Cauble Emerging Leader Award as well as the Charlene Gordon Arts Impact Award and will have the opportunity to complete a residency at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. The lessons I learned were invaluable and the 20-21 cohorts are a strong and dedicated group of leaders willing to dismantle and reform the American Theatre.

Other administrative experience includes four years of Box Office and Theatre Management training at the University of Southern Indiana, working at New Harmony Theatre as an Assistant Box Office Manager, and with the Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center as a Management/Box Office Intern.

Performance/ Speech

I have 10+ years training in dance and have studied under Sharon Mayfield in Modern Dance, West African dance, Ballet, and Horton Technique. I’ve most recently studied under Heather Himes, a certified Dunham Technique instructor-in memory of Katherine Dunham. I had the privilege of training under the late Kwame Azalius Ross at Cutno Dance Center and have performed as a soloist, in liturgical style, and in theatres as well.

A gifted speaker, I’ve spoken at dozens of events (including literary competitions, as a public relations chair, and community engagements) and was chosen as the recent Commencement Reflection Speaker for the University of Southern Indiana graduating class of 2020.

Post-Secondary Involvement/ Volunteering

In my collegiate career, I sought to gain the full experience of my institution by becoming an active member of my campus community. I’ve had involvement as/in:

  • College Mentor for Kids (Assistant General Manager)

  • Dean’s Student Advisory Board for the College of Liberal Arts

  • Indiana Statehouse Student Representative

  • New Student Orientation Leader

  • Career Services Ambassador (Public Relations)

  • Student Government

  • Emerging Leaders

  • Riley’s Hospital Dance Marathon

During my college career, I’m grateful to have received honors such as:

  • Dr. Rosamond and Mirabella Achievement Award (2020)

  • USI Administrative Assistants and Associates Scholarship (2020)

  • Alpha Omega Psi Alumni Memorial Scholarship (2020)

  • Harpole Theatre Scholarship (2019/2020)

  • Outstanding Theatre Student Award (2020)

  • Financial Scholarships (x3)

  • Dean’s List (consecutive)-Cum Laude

With my experience in higher education, college communities, and leadership, I hope to be an engaging and relevant mentor for my mentees. This includes audition training, college prep, and leader building.

TODAY

Current Employment:

Line Producer, Actors Theatre of Louisville

Administrative Assistant, La Vega Management LLC

Business Operations Associate, Evolution Management Consultants, LLC

Executive/Personal Assistant, Lauren Turner Hines Consulting/No Dream Deferred

Creative Assistant, Marjuan Canady

Executive Assistant, Ann James

“The impact of art is lost if we think of it as a self-fulfilling apparatus of social change. Arts institutions must stand in the gap and bridge their communities with the relevance of American theatre today.”

Arts Advocacy Speech, 2021