Theatre major granted fellowship for emerging students of colors

Senior theatre major Erik Robles was granted the first annual Gamm Fellowship Program by the Sandra Feinstein-Gamm Theatre. PHOTO CREDIT: Contributed by Erik Robles

The Sandra Feinstein-Gamm Theatre, located in Warwick, granted University of Rhode Island senior theatre major Erik Robles with its first annual Gamm Fellowship Program for emerging artists of color.

The Gamm Theatre took three fellows, Robles, Maria Cabral from Rhode Island College and Dan Garcia from the Community College of Rhode Island, under its wing for the 10-month program, which provides them with opportunities in all aspects of theatre, according to Kate Hanson, the theatre’s associate education director.

Hanson said each fellow has opportunities to work in production, acting, resume writing, networking, marketing and teaching through The Gamm Theatre, working alongside professionals and mentors.

“I am their overall advisor, however they have their own individual mentors who are all established members of the theatre community,” Hanson said. “The fellowship program is a great opportunity for them to build professional skills and relationships that will help them in their future careers.”

Robles said that he was honored to be chosen by the theatre department at the University for this fellowship and that he’s learned so much in the short time at The Gamm Theatre, having started in September.

“I’m a production assistant, a part of the crew, as well as an actor in the current production,” Robles said. “In addition, I’m going to different middle and elementary schools and learning how to teach.”

Robles continued by saying how flexible the program is and how it caters to the fellows interests and needs.

“If you want to learn how to do makeup and costuming, you can,” Robles said. “If you want to learn the business and marketing side of it, you can. You can even learn about graphic design and the process of making posters and flyers. They really do a good job at allowing us to dip our toes in anything we’re interested in.”

Robles admitted that, at first, he felt intimidated by the professionals at The Gamm Theatre, saying he felt underprepared and less experienced. However, he said that all the people he’s worked with have been extremely helpful and respective.

Robles applauded The Gamm Theatre for creating this program for emerging artists of color in a time of political turmoil surrounding human rights. He said that the program makes him feel “seen and heard” as a person of color.

In addition to being a full-time student and fellow, Robles is the co-owner of his own production company, called Complex Ambition. The company is based out of Providence, and in the five years since its founding, their YouTube channel of the same name has gained almost 400,000 subscribers.

“We’ve developed relationships with labels and artists to the point where now we work with labels for commission,” Robles said. 

He, alongside his friends from high school, Victor Baez and Marlon Vargas, film videos reacting and critiquing different hip-hop releases. Their channel also features videos of them singing in the car to popular artists such as Drake, Migos and Trippie Redd.

Recently, the trio started a podcast called the “CA Podcast,” where they continue their music critiques and banter as friends. Their first episode, released on Oct. 19, was titled “Will You Cancel Us?”

In addition to their successful podcast and YouTube endeavors, Complex Ambition is pairing with a clothing company to create their own merchandise, which should be dropping in the next few months, according to Robles.

As busy as he may be, Robles said that he is thankful for all of the opportunities he has, both inside the classroom, at The Gamm Theatre and through Complex Ambition.