MICHAEL's profile
In 1972 Michael Leroy Harding graduated from Baltimore’s Mervo High School, where he took the music of Isaac Hayes' SHAFT and recruited Students and Teachers to help create the school's first Black History assembly to a 60% all White school. There Michael watched 100% of the student-body give a standing-ovations to the entire show. It was that day a Producer, Writer, Director, Film-Maker and Actor was born.
By 2002, Michael was writing plays about his parents and siblings in Sixties, then writing about his marriage and life in the Eighties. One of his first public productions was on the 21st floor of the Baltimore World Trade Center. (In honor of Congressman Parren J. Mitchell because of his earlier support.) From that very first stage-play called the "Six of Us".
Michael then took these six of his family-members, and created spin-off plays. Family-stories about(1) Alcoholism (2) Misogyny (3) Witchcraft (4) Bigotry (5) Depression (6) Sexuality.
With the help of friends and Michael's electrical business, he was able to self-produce every play. He found people to volunteer to become Actors, and monies to build an 'on the road' lightning & stage-set. Where we visited Senior Centers and Venues having no stage. We would bring the stage to anyone who would Book-Us.
By 2005, our volunteer Actors & Stage-crew came up with our company name. On The Road Theater Company/ OTR Entertainment was founded to create a platform for the unknown artist. Particularly aspiring Actors and unknown Playwrights in the city of Baltimore. Within several years, Actors would contact us from out-of-state when we began to offer cash stipends.
Outside Playwrights would offer there scripts at no fee, just to get exposure. Some of these scripts required Singers and Dancers that can also be Actors. We were doing something right, because our Patrons and Donors were giving us money. Michael became an Active-member of the Baltimore Theatre Alliance, while with the Baltimore Dramatist Guild.
By 2007, Michael leased the company's first brick & mortar location. Located near Howard St. on North Avenue. This theater building is now known to us all today as the: Motor House Theater, 120 W. North Ave. Donors gave OTR Theater the ability to organize one complete Cast for the travel. Plus one complete Cast for our shows at the building.
When the lease expired, Michael moved the company to the Forest Park Senior Center. There we continued to be a platform for new Playwrights and aspiring Actors.
By 2015, Grant Awards began coming in from BOPA, the Rotary Club, MSAC and other Grant-organizations. Michael with other professional Artist & Instructors began teaching professional-dance, singing, music, and acting lessons. Michael now bringing his work to Social-events, Public-schools, Churches and any other Theater-venues that book us. The pandemic cost us an audience-drop in 2020, but the Performers wanted work. He was given a stage play that required many, many pre-teens, we advertised for auditions. The auditions were overwhelming because there were so many pre-teens with the desire, but lacked the skills.
The stage-play evolved into a screen-play, Michael decided to add Studio-film productions to the OTR platform. He joined-hands with a local church and created an After School Program for pre-teens to learn the Performing-Arts. At no-charge, these children learn Live-stage production and Studio film-production. This stage-play became a sold-out success at the Forrest Park Senior Center and is now being organized to be a filmed miniseries. Have a peak at YouTube clips over many years Michael has produced & performed: www.youtube.com/@OTR111/videos From 1972 Mervo High School to 2024 OTR Entertainment... Michael is the Performing-Arts.
