James is a member of BMI, The Dramatist Guild of America, The American Composers Forum, The Playwrights Center, The National Association of Negro Musicians, Inc., Composers Diversity Collective, Theatre West, The Society of Composers & Lyricist, and the American Society of Music Arrangers and Composers. He is the Executive Director of the Laity Institute of the Arts, a Private Arts Foundation which teaches the visual and performing arts to children and adults. He is also an accomplished playwright and composer. He learned to hone his skills in musical theatre through New Musicals Inc.
He has written a TV Sci-Fi pilot (The Guardian) and a TV Drama pilot which he adapted into a feature-length screenplay called "2 Much 4 Words" for VEL Films his indie film company. He has released four CDs and a long-awaited concept recording of "This Time and Age" A New Rock Musical. (Think Jesus Christ Superstar meets LOTR) which in his words is his "artistic love letter to Andrew Lloyd Weber and Tim Rice's seminal work."
James has a BA in Theatre from California State University Dominguez Hills. He later attended UCLA where he received his Teaching Credential and completed his training in Film Scoring from UCLA's Film Scoring program. He also holds an Executive MBA from Grand Canyon University. He has been directly or indirectly involved in the entertainment industry for over 30 years.
Currently seeking representation.
Plays
War has broken out over the death of a patriarch. One brother, taking his lead from the biblical story of Esau and Jacob, steals his brother’s birthright and the kingdom is split in two. Thus begins Way Back When (The tale of the Clown from Pollis Minor.)
At the start we meet Clown a court jester from the old kingdom of Pollis before it was split in two. He now rides back and forth between the two opposing kingdoms trying to mend what was once whole. Only cunning, skill and outright manipulation of men, their hearts and God can make that happen and Clown is the person for it.
With the end of the war his catalyst, and the love of two young lovers as his guide, he forges forth to uncover a most incredible secret, that if revealed would have dire consequence for both kingdoms!
Toward the end of the global pandemic, the world's financial markets began destabilizing. Global currencies were overinflated and over-leveraged. In addition, new digital currencies began to emerge and challenge fiat currencies worldwide. To stop the financial bleeding of the markets, the west created its own Central Bank Digital Currency to compete with the new digital currency markets. But the world would continue to destabilize.
War soon broke out in eastern Europe, treaties in the Middle East were again breached, conflicts began anew, and a new leader rose up in the region with a small army of people and put down those rebellions with a vengeance. Unchallenged, he became powerful. The EU appointed him the new Chancellor of Peace and tasked him with maintaining peace in the region. Treaties were negotiated among all tribal factions, countries, and certain religious sects. Protections were given to Israel for a seven-year period of peace, and The Third Temple of Solomon was finally rebuilt as a concession to brokering both land and peace in the region. There was peace for a time. However, this peace was not to remain. But this was the plan.
With geopolitical tensions and panic rising globally, sightings of UAPs (Unidentified Aerial Phenomenons) increased at a staggering rate until the central governments of the world were finally forced to disclose the existence of, and in some cases, involvement with, extraterrestrial life in the mid-2010s. Then it happened, in the early-2030s, the "Creators" (in truth, the בני האלהים, Benei HaʼElōhīm, the fallen angels and their hybrid offspring, נְפִילִים, the Nephilim*) made their return and physical appearance on earth. This revelation brought further destabilization, and religious institutions were rocked to their core as the culture wars increased. A new World Religious Council headed by "The Prophet" arose from this. A new system of worship began from a loose confederation between all significant religions, essentially making them one unified body. But this was the plan.
The "Creators" executed the plan with cold precision. This Chancellor of Peace would be controlled by them and embraced by the World Religious Council headed by "The Prophet," who would hail him as the world's savior. He would be supported by both the EU and the Middle East Union, with his power stabilized by the Nephilim, the hybrid offspring of the creators, which in turn would be controlled by them, and they would all give their allegiance to the Chancellor. But this was the Fallen One's plan.
Once in power, he took control of all Central Bank Digital Currency which gave him global control over the money supply of all governments linked to that system. He then broke the treaty with Israel in the middle of the seven years and set up his headquarters within the new Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem. Global unrest ensued, and religious fanaticism and persecution arose. The world was in flux again, and a new form of global government raised its head to enslave mankind and maintain control. The plan was working. With this pretext in place, our story begins.
Cyrus and Trina Peters have long longed for his father since his disappearance. One day a package arrives at his home containing a small metallic book. He suddenly realizes that this is the object mentioned in his father's journal, along with clues, names, and locations of where his father had been, along with a cryptic message concerning the book with pleadings to: "Return to God before the Fallen One finds."
After he and his sister listen to a hidden message from their father explaining the importance of the small book, Cyrus believes his father may still be alive and sets out to find him by using the journal as a guide and somehow returning the book to God. But little does he know that his quest will bring him face-to-face with the ancient enemy, the Fallen One himself, Lucifer. Lucifer has been searching for this little book, this Codex, that has the power to alter God's grand scheme to complete the redemption of His creation, remove evil from the earth, and restore man's place in the eternal kingdom.
With time ticking down and a world in flux, an imminent showdown between the forces of good and evil will throw us headlong into an adventure that will leave you on the edge of your seat as our hero’s quest moves him toward the ultimate truth in This Time and Age.
"Winner - Best Musical" Chameleon Theatre Circle's Tenth Annual New Play Contest
Bridget is trying to get started on her sculpture. A skylight illuminates a wire structure roughly the size of a very tall female with arms reaching up standing in the middle of her studio, but every time she begins to work, something interferes.
A memory pops into her head; something one of her parents said makes her lose confidence; she gets a call about her daughter, Annie, ditching school again, or Richard, her husband, interrupts her to express his frustration with work. Then there’s the sexy painter down the hall, Jimmy, suggesting new possibilities and causing even more distraction.
In the past, Bridget got caught up in using her art to express her feelings about the whole gender thing. There were the giant household appliances, the reptiles with human faces, the Medusa-like figure devouring the ram, but none of that work was taken seriously. Her plan now is to make a sculpture in the Classical style, of the wood nymph, Daphne, transformed into a tree by her father to protect her from the advances of Apollo. Annie still thinks this one is about being angry at men and wonders how her mother can make something beautiful when she’s angry.
Chris and June, an African American couple return to the burnt-out shell of their business in the minority business sector of St. Paul, Minnesota 3 days after the riots brought on by the murder of George Floyd.
A series of scenes and one acts complied into one volume.
Successes
Bridget's Girl "2008 Winner - Best Musical" Chameleon Theatre Circle's Tenth Annual New Play Contest!