The Actor's Den

Presented by Inside the Industry Studios

Wednesday, September 1 at 8pm (signup 7-7:45pm)

at Backbeat Cafe
300 N. Akard St.
Dallas, TX 75202
214-988-5466

$1

Oak Cliff native Khadijah Karriem graduated from Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, found some local theater and film work, and then promptly did what every other local who is serious about a film career does: She moved to Los Angeles.

In 11 years there, she had guest stints on NYPD Blue, Arli$$ and The Practice, among other TV and film projects. But during the writers strike of 2007/2008, she, like a lot of other actors, found herself hard up for work. So, she moved back to Texas.

"I fought it tooth and nail because I never thought I'd be coming back," she says. "I was scared."

But she wasn't giving up on a film career. She wrote and shot a pilot presentation, Texas Bounty, about women bounty hunters, which is currently being "shopped around." She also started teaching acting and becoming involved in the local film scene, which was growing.

She encountered a lot of people asking her how to get into the business. And that gave her an idea. The mother of two founded Inside the Industry Studios and a monthly showcase called The Actor's Den, which happens on the first Tuesday of the month at the Backbeat Café, in the Mosaic Building in downtown Dallas. (Although the September event is on the first Wednesday, Sept. 1.) Karriem hosts the open mike-styled evening.

It's an idea that was inspired by the Actors' Lounge in LA, where writers, directors and actors network. Filmmakers show their short films and clips, and actors perform monologues and scenes. The Actor's Den started in February, and has steadily grown in attendance.

At the August event, an actress performed a monologue from the film Eve's Bayou, a local comedian did a short standup routine, and actors presented a scene from a new play by Teresa Ballard, who was in attendance. There was also a showing of a short film about schizophrenia, Normal Behavior, written by Texas actor/filmmaker Sharice Henry Chasi.

At the September event, the headlining act is Liberian-born, locally based singer-songwriter Abraham Mellish, performing songs from his new album The Guitarist.

In the video interview above, Karriem talks about why she started the Actor's Den and about some of the connections that have already been made there. She also invites the theater community to come, perform and network, because the name of this game is acting.

Her future dreams include opening an "actor's gym," where local actors can train together and do peer work and physical acting exercises, and to grow the Actor's Den so much that it needs to relocate to a larger venue.

And with all of the TV shows currently being shot in the area, including The Good Guys, Lone Star and Chase, she's confident that she came back to Texas at the right time.

"I'm glad to know I'm aligning with the universe," she says.

►This month, the Actor's Den happens on Wednesday, Sept. 1. But it's normally on the first Tuesday of the month. Future dates are Oct. 5, Nov. 9 and Dec. 9. For more information, visit www.insidetheindustrystudios.com, or visit the Actor's Den on Facebook.

Cover photo of Khadijah Karriem by Tim Corey.