Actor André Holland is taking on a personal project with his mother to bring the arts back to the South. The “Moonlight” actor will restore an old movie theater in his hometown of Bessemer, Alabama.
The mother-and-son duo will embark on reviving the Lincoln Theater through his nonprofit, The Holland Project. While also hosting screenings, the theater will become part of a greater area dedicated to the arts in Bessemer. Holland and his mother are also building a community center to host this specific programming.
“And then there’s a little community center that we’re building that’s right next door to it. [It’s] essentially a community space where we’re going to give kids and people in the community access to world-class arts programming,” explained the actor to People.
Holland also revealed that his mother is a big reason for his career and love of the arts. They aim to ensure the local youth have access to theater, just as both of his parents did for him.
“We had to drive really, really far to find any kind of arts programming at all,” he shared of his mother’s dedication to his craft. “And she was committed to doing that, she and my dad [Donald] both. So one of the passions that she has, and that I have, is to bring arts programming to my immediate community that I grew up in, in Bessemer, Alabama.”
Holland continued to gush about his “incredible” mother’s perseverance in bringing the theater back to life. He further stated that she is “spearheading” the whole effort to do so. They plan to make The Lincoln Theater a single-screen cinema. The renovations pay homage to its roots of playing films for Black audiences.
The actor is also on an entrepreneurial and spiritual journey. Not only does he own a production company, but is also obtaining his master’s degree at the Harvard Divinity School. Despite juggling multiple projects, he hopes to tie in his spiritual education with his creative goals.
“I’ve loved every second of it,” the 44-year-old remarked. “The program is called Master’s of Religion and Public Life, which is all about how to have our work, my work as an artist, have a greater impact in the world through the academic study of religion. It’s been an amazing experience.”
Moreover, Holland continues to make his mark in Hollywood. The actor recently starred in the independent drama “Exhibiting Forgiveness,” opposite Audra Day, which released to theaters on Oct. 18.
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