Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachel Adams.
Hi Rachel, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I had an unstable upbringing, growing up in a low-income home with a single mom and then spending most of my young adulthood in residential and group home facilities. I didn’t receive a formal education and creative enrichment, which then sent me into adulthood with very few resources to find my place in the world.
Throughout my adulthood, I had a lot of different jobs before eventually starting Horror Escapes LA, an immersive escape room company with live performers. This is when I truly discovered my love of creativity, from creating the puzzles to writing the plot to building the sets to working with actors. I knew then that I wanted to spend my life in the creative world, and was wondering why it took me so long to find what I was passionate about. Because I was so deprived of exposure to the arts while growing up, I established the Immersive Art Collective to fill a need for my younger self and ensure that other at-risk youth, underserved communities, and creatives without formal training had access to training and resources that they need.
The creative process has been extremely healing in my life. It’s given me purpose, community, and has empowered me to grow as a person. Now, as the founder of the Immersive Art Collective, my mission is to impart this same experience to everyone, regardless of their background. I want to make sure no one slips through the cracks.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Running a nonprofit organization is not easy. We’re always struggling to bring in money, it’s challenging finding dedicated volunteers and staff willing to work for smaller rates, and retaining the team you do have is a pain because you don’t always have consistent money coming. The stability just isn’t as present as it is in the for-profit sector. Also, it requires a die-hard passion for your mission to put the amount of time and dedication towards it. That’s one fire in me that no one can put out.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Immersive Art Collective is a 501(c)(3) arts and entertainment organization fostering creativity through unique works, empowering diverse creatives, and providing resources and support. We believe that immersing oneself in the creative process can elicit a stronger emotional response, fostering empathy and understanding for different perspectives, which is crucial for social change. We aim to break down traditional barriers between the performer and the audience, as well as among audience members themselves. This can challenge preconceptions and stereotypes, promoting inclusivity and diversity. Our approach often involves collaborative works, which fosters community building and encourages dialogue and critical thinking. The IAC provides a safe space for expression and healing through theatrical performances, interactive events, engaging workshops, and educational arts programs for creatives of all walks of life, emphasizing outreach to underserved communities and youth.
An upcoming youth development program at the Immersive Art Collective is “Creative Bend,” a unique summer camp for youth focused on nurturing creative talents like painting, storytelling, and dance, yet bending these traditional art forms for an immersive learning experience through LARP (live-action role-playing), World-building, and Interactive STEM learning with lighting/audio programming. We are offering scholarships to 15 low-income kids between the ages 8-12 years old to attend cost-free. The summer camp is running in downtown Los Angeles between June 17th – 28th.
Additionally, Immersive Art Collective hosts acting workshops, entrepreneurial courses, original theatrical productions, as well as production of other Creatives’ works on a regular basis. To learn more, visit immersiveartcollective.org
Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the COVID-19 crisis?
It was because of the COVID-19 crisis that IAC was born!
Without the opportunity to perform our events at The Count’s Den in person during the crisis, this challenged us as a small theatre troupe to figure out a creative way to still entertain and bring performances to an audience remotely. Throughout the pandemic, we hosted Alternate Reality Games and Experiences (ARGs / ARXs), used online forums to interact with the audience, as well as live-streaming of films to bring storylines. This was a learning curve to move away from traditional live-person events, which we still are doing after the pandemic.
Due to my businesses being shut down and not knowing when they would resume, I had the opportunity to think about my life’s goal. Not being preoccupied with the day-to-day distractions of work, I was able to look inward and figure out how I wanted to move forward, whether my businesses opened back up or not. Through self-reflection and wanting to make a change in the world by helping others overcome some of the issues I encountered heading into my adulthood, I was able to shift my focus on long-term goals- which is now the Immersive Art Collective and its mission.
When life throws you obstacles, there is always a creative way to pivot away from traditional tactics and discover new avenues to move forward.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.immersiveartcollective.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/immersiveartcollective/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/immersiveartcollective/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/immersive-art-collective
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/IAC_DTLA
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@immersiveartcollective3070/videos
