You Matter Nashville

Backlight Productions with Melissa Smith

• Jason and Mindy Hoover • Episode 7

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In this episode of the You Matter Nashville podcast, we had the pleasure of interviewing Melissa Smith, the founder and executive director of Backlight Productions. Melissa shared the inspiring story of how Backlight Productions began in the upstairs of a thrift store in Franklin, Tennessee. What started as a small show for a group of friends has blossomed into a full arts program that serves individuals with intellectual and developmental challenges, offering classes in theater, music, and dance for students of all ages.

Melissa talked about her unexpected journey into this work, explaining how she merged her love for the arts with a passion for creating opportunities for people with disabilities. She shared how Backlight Productions has grown into a thriving organization, with productions that allow every performer, regardless of ability, to take the spotlight. One of their most memorable productions was Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, which featured 86 performers, including guest appearances from Broadway star Laura Osnes.

Throughout our conversation, Melissa emphasized the power of theater to change lives, create strong bonds, and bring a sense of purpose to everyone involved. She also introduced her children's book series, Friends of Franklin County, which aims to teach kids about disabilities and encourage inclusivity through relatable stories.

Listening to Melissa, we were deeply moved by the incredible impact Backlight Productions has on the lives of its students, volunteers, and the wider community. The way it fosters acceptance, creativity, and personal growth is truly remarkable. We're so grateful for Melissa's dedication and the positive ripple effect she's creating in our community, reinforcing what we believe—everyone matters.

Takeaways

  • Backlight Productions started in the upstairs of a thrift store and has grown into a full arts program serving individuals with intellectual and developmental challenges.
  • The program offers classes in theater, music, dance, and playwriting, providing a space for individuals to explore their passions and talents.
  • Backlight Productions has had a powerful impact on the community, creating a sense of belonging and acceptance for its students.
  • The program relies on donations and volunteers to support its productions and continue making a difference in the lives of its participants.



Backlight Productions
https://backlightproductions.org/

You Matter Nashville YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/@YouMatterNashville

The Hoover Team
https://www.thehooverteam.com/

Jason & Mindy Hoover (00:00.098)
Hey, Nashvilleans, welcome to the You Matter Nashville podcast, the place where every story we share is a celebration of you, the heartbeat of our community. I'm Jason Hoover, delighted to be one half of your hosting duo. And I'm Mindy Hoover, joining you alongside Jason to bring the stories of inspiring individuals and unsung heroes making a positive impact right here in our hometown. Every episode is about passions, dreams and actions that stitch together the Middle Tennessee community. So if you're looking to get inspired by the good happening around us,

Or if you want to hear from the change makers who believe, just like us, that you matter, then hit that follow button on your favorite podcast platform. And if you are looking to make a move in the middle Tennessee area, and Dan and I are real estate professionals and would be honored to serve you with excellence. Now let's dive into another episode of You Matter Nashville.

Welcome to You Matter Nashville, where we love interviewing people that are making a positive impact on our community. We call them community heroes. Hi, I'm Jason Hoover. And I'm Mindy Hoover. And we are so excited to have another amazing guest on our show. Today we are talking to Melissa Smith with Backlight Productions. She is the founder and the executive director of the program. Hey, Melissa. Hi there. So honored to be here. Well, we're honored that you're here. you know,

going over your story, it's just, I can't wait to dive into that. think people are just going to resonate with what you're going to share with us. And so thank you for, for taking time to be on here and share with other people. Yeah, that's my hope. I mean, what do we go through things for if we can't share people what you've learned and help them gain a little something from it, you know? Amen. Well, thank you so much for being on here and

I have been acquainted with some of the same people here in Middle Tennessee. The theater world is not a huge place, so we kind of know some of the same people. And it's been amazing to watch Backlight Productions just grow into what it has been. Now you guys, serve the, you know, just individuals with intellectual and developmental challenges. And you also have a ton of volunteers that come on board and help you.

Jason & Mindy Hoover (02:14.541)
put all this together. So I can't wait to hear how this all got started. Well, backlight productions, you know, so we, we started actually in the upstairs of a thrift store, and just putting on a show with a group of friends that, you know, it was a little show for about 40 people, but quickly realized it was something a lot more than that. And then everybody started inviting their friends and it became a snow wall into what it is today, which is now

a full arts program. have classes every single day of the week. We've got upwards of 70 students in the program of all ages, and they're learning all sorts of performing arts, whether it's theater, music, dance, playwriting. If pretty much we listen to the community and if they want to do it, we say, that sounds good, let's go. So we've got quite an array of experiences that everybody gets to have. And yeah, it's just making a powerful difference in the community.

So it just started with an idea and you found a space above a thrift store. I was working there. Yeah. So when, when I first moved here, I was teaching private, you know, private music lessons. My background was in, music and I was helping to direct musicals at local high schools. And I took a bunch of side jobs on the side to make some actual money.

And one of them just happened to be, knew someone who worked at this thrift store in downtown Franklin. It was called Our Thrift Store. And the mission of the store was to create a positive work environment for individuals with disabilities of all sorts. So I had never worked with anyone with disabilities. I had never had anybody in my family or close to me that had them. It was just this side job that came after, you know, just years of trying to figure out, you know.

what do want to do with my life? just, you know, asking God like, where do you want me to be? What does this look like? And suddenly I get this side job and I came into this environment where everyone just immediately was your best friend. And everyone just loved you so much, not because you were somebody special or important, but just because you were you. And I think after, you know, a lifetime of performing, you know, as a performer, you're constantly being

Jason & Mindy Hoover (04:37.815)
put under the microscope all the time and feeling like you're not good enough and, you know, dealing with a lot of rejection and pain from that rejection. A lot of judging. Yeah. And so I think when you step into an environment like that, where you can just be who you are at the core without any expectations beyond that and be completely accepted and loved for that, you just feel this sense of freedom. And that was what I needed at that time. That was the season I was in. And so just fell in love with

to this whole community of people. But at the same time, I'm an artist. I want to create. I want to do art. want to be in a theater. And so one day my boss just said to me, have you ever thought of doing both? And so I said no. So I went home and I wrote a script based on Cinderella. And I plucked out a little score on my piano and recorded it and asked my boss if we could rehearse after work, which we did.

And we pulled props and costumes from around the store and put on this little play of Cinderella in the youth room at a local church for about 40 people. Cinderella was pulled in a little red wagon and the music was played, the speakers from my laptop. And by the end of it, everybody was in tears. So we just kind of knew like, it seemed like it was so small and insignificant, but it was it was meaning so much more than we ever thought it could. And, know, I had heard

So many of my friends at the store talk about how much they wanted to be in theater and how much they loved theater and they wanted to go and be on Broadway someday and whatnot. But all the roles that they could ever hope to have were just small ensemble roles naturally, where someone might let them be in the show, but it's not like they're gonna get to be a leading part. And so I just wanted to create, I wanted to make their dreams come true. You just, see them and you love them and you're like, why can't you be the lead role? Like who says that theater has to...

look perfect or, you know, look a certain way like this, like artists art, like, like, let's make sure that everybody's getting a chance to experience that. And so that's what that's what the whole show was about was just giving them the chance to be Cinderella, be that role that they always wanted to do. And so after we did that first show, I said, okay, well, let's let's rehearse when the stores close. We'll push all the furniture aside, invite your friends and we'll try this again. And a lot of it started just with

Jason & Mindy Hoover (06:59.755)
writing fairy tales, taking fairy tales and turning them into plays. I didn't know how to license anything to start. I didn't go to school for this. I was just kind of winging it. But eventually we learned that we could do full -scale Broadway musicals through a thing called multicasting, that's what we call it, where we have more than one individual play the same part. And so we'll have multiples of our students play.

play the leading role and they play just as much as they're able to and then they pass it on to the next person. And so in this way, we're able to do full licensed musicals and all sorts of experiences that we never thought were even possible. That's great. Now, how many students or performers did you have that very first show? geez, 10, I think. 10. Yeah, I think we had 10. Anyways, just our employees at the story. You know what I like? What you

you said earlier, you said art is art. And I think so many times, whenever you get to be professional, people get away from that. They lose that perspective, you know, that art can be anything. Art can be what you make it. Yeah, it's not always about this perfect, this perfection in, you know, and that's may not even be the best word to use that you have this ideal.

that people are trying to strive for and they're kind of losing the whole artistry like Jason was saying of the whole thing. Like it's about creating, it's about expressing yourself, not always for other people to sit down and even watch. Like you said, you guys are in classrooms creating, you're in classrooms like writing scripts and doing all these different things that are even offstage, which is really incredible. Yeah, I think that there's just, it's, there's

been created kind of this recipe for success, you know, in the arts world. And, you know, a lot of times we have to think of what is going to sell. So we're going to, we're going to do what the public likes because we need to sustain our organization, which totally makes sense. but then you kind of lose, you know, that, creativity where people start thinking outside of the box. And so what was beautiful about what we got to do was to, we didn't have.

Jason & Mindy Hoover (09:15.917)
any agenda. I never intended for this to be my full -time job. I was just trying to do something for my friends. And so, you know, there was not that pressure. And so it gave us the freedom to just try something completely out of the ordinary. And now as a result, you know, 12 years later, I think it's been 12 years later. mean, we're packing out teapack. And so you it's like, I didn't follow the recipe, but it's working. So

That's amazing. Yeah, that was our 10 year anniversary show was we actually did Cinderella again, but this time we did Rodgers and Hammerstein Cinderella. And we did it at Johnson Theater in at TPAC. We had 86 performers in that show. Wow. Now at that performance, did you have any guest performers that was there with you? Yes, we did. We had very special guest performers. had about probably about 10 pros who were involved.

we, they were performing some of the musical numbers with our students. And so, you know, the, the curtain would open, it was a very unique style and they, the curtain would open and they would sing along with the, the cast. And, but we did have one very special performer, Laura Osnes, who actually lives in the Franklin area now. She was the original Broadway Cinderella and she, I was connected with her through someone else. And I thought, you know, maybe I'll just see if she's gonna.

if she would be interested in singing a song, maybe she'll just sing a song with us. I sat on Zoom with her and she's like, actually, would you mind if I played the fairy godmother? I was like, mind? Of course not. So it was just like this beautiful moment where, you know, you just see good people wanting to use their gifts to put someone else in the spotlight. And, know, in her words, you know, she's like, I'm just so excited.

to pass off my slippers to the next Ellis, you know? so, you know, they she and her husband, Nate, they they've become huge backlight supporters. And they actually created a documentary of the whole experience of Laura coming in. And he was her 10 year anniversary from being on Broadway. It was our 10 year anniversary. And now there's going to be a documentary about the whole experience of her now passing off her slipper to our girls and they

Jason & Mindy Hoover (11:35.669)
Yeah, that was a truly special experience. just want to say, so I watched the video about you and the organization on your website, which is your website is backlightproductions .org. And I encourage anybody, please go watch that video. That literally made my eyes water. That was just the sweetest thing.

I sent it to Mindy and of course she probably already watched it, but I was like, wow, I can't believe it. I'm excited about this podcast coming up. But yeah, so I encourage those of you that are listening, go watch that video. Yeah, it does a beautiful job of just capturing the heart of the organization. we love, our students have actually gotten

very good at being on camera and they're much more eloquent than I am. So, you know, their interviews are so powerful and their testimonies are so powerful. And I love in that video, we were doing the musical Shrek and that was one of my favorite musicals we've ever done because everything we try to do, you know, I want to, you know, I want to do content that the students want. I want to do content that is positive and uplifting.

And I want to, I try to do shows that have a message that we can connect to. And so seeing our students play Shrek and you know, I'm like Pinocchio saying, Lali, I'm wood, I'm good, get used to it. And just, you know, we were as many emotional points in that show. They have them just recognizing like, I'm different.

But you know, that's okay and we can be proud of who we are. And so yeah, there's we do that. We're going to be doing SpongeBob the musical this this coming year. And likewise, that that show, the message is all about I'm not a simple sponge. I can do hard things. And so I just every year we have like a theme, something that we really want to drill in and and, you know, let that resonate. We're doing the SpongeBob musical. I'm so excited. We're there.

Jason & Mindy Hoover (13:52.213)
Yes. We are there. I know a lot of people didn't even know that that was a musical. It was one of my favorites on Broadway. It is hilarious. The costumes are incredible. The music, the whole thing. So I am looking forward to going and seeing that. big time musicians contributed to the music in that show. So the music is spectacular and there's a lot of it.

But yes, it's very colorful, it's very fun. And this year we're launching our kids program. And so we were really excited to do a show that would relate to everybody would be excited about both the kids and the adults. And golly, that show filled up within a week with a waiting list. So we're going to have a big cast this year. bet so. Now, I want to know.

I want to come back to the backlight, but I want to know about your background because I'd like to know a little bit more about you. What was your journey to get to this place? Well, I mean, it's like I mentioned before, my background is in music. I started playing piano at the age of five. I always was in bands and show choirs and theater and all this stuff.

I went to school, college and got a music theory and composition degree, which if then I quickly found out I didn't want to write music. It wasn't much I could do about that at that point. And so I just, you know, I went through after college, kind of just a season of feeling a little lost. Like I had a plan and now the plan just wasn't working out and it was a job recession. It was back in.

2008. And so it was I got out thinking I was going to get my dream job, and couldn't find work anywhere, you know, and I was just, you know, prayed, praying that God would just make his heart my heart and his desires, my desires. And I didn't know what that looked like. But I'm like, if nothing else, like, I think I just need to start right there. And so what's funny is, I kept on getting jobs at like preschools and stuff and

Jason & Mindy Hoover (16:06.041)
I had right before I got to the thrift store, my job was at a preschool and my job was literally to make sure kids wiped their butts enough before they left the bathroom. And I remember thinking like, I can do so much more than this. Like, if I'm like, literally gone to shit, you might have to that out. But it just, it did not make any sense to me. And so, but I know that God put me in that position.

because he needed to get me to a place where I was humble enough to be willing to do what was coming next. And the very next job that I got after that was the thrift store. And that's kind of where it all began. it's been, think humbling is really a key word just because I wasn't trained to do this. didn't.

I didn't go to school to be a theater director. I wasn't in education. I didn't work, you know, I didn't learn about how to work with individuals with disabilities. I was just put into it. And I learned through my bosses and my mentors at the store and through just hands -on experience. You know, I started doing that in 2010 and now 14 years later, I still feel like I'm not, you know, not qualified per se, even though technically now I am.

but I think just walking with that openness of, might not be the best person for this job, but I'm here and I'm willing and do what, do with this, what you want. I don't know what that is. And, but for today, you know, tell me, tell me what to do today. I'll do it. And if, know, tomorrow you tell me to do something else or torch gets passed on, like that's fine. I just want to do something. that's.

that matters and makes a difference, you know? it's, imposter syndrome is a real thing. Yeah. and which is what you're, you're experiencing is we think we're, you know, we shouldn't be here. We're, we're not the knowledgeable ones. And so many of us go through that. We don't talk about it, but we go through that, that we're not good enough. You know, fortunately God sees that we're good enough and, and the few of us that listen, it's amazing what he does.

Jason & Mindy Hoover (18:26.933)
Yeah, and it's exciting too, because it's like the kind of miracles that we see at Backlight just blow my mind. things that just should not happen somehow happen. The right people come at exactly the right time. It's like a bread and like the fish and bread loaves, it is. Situation with the bank account, we're all like, this does not make sense, but it's happening.

it's yeah, it's just a real faith builder. And I love to that backlight is it's the mission of, of, you know, coming behind these folks and giving them an opportunity and, know, loving on them and whatnot. It's something that everybody can get behind. So it doesn't matter if you're a believer, it doesn't matter what your background is, it's just kind of like, we, we invite everyone into our doors. And everybody just feels that same kind of love that I felt when I went to the store. And

it's it just feeds people's souls in such a beautiful way. And so that's a lot of where my heart is to is like, these professional artists that get to come in and get to be loved on and get to experience that same freedom of it doesn't matter if I'm the best, it just matters that I give whatever I've been given, that's enough. And I'll give my best of whatever that is. And it can be used for something wonderful. And I just love the way that that's for everybody.

And it's, can cross lots of divisive borders these days and I love it. Yeah. I agree. And you know, it, and you go into it thinking, I'm going to volunteer. I'm going to help out with this thing. And then you show up and you find out that you're the one being loved on. You're the one being spiritually fed and it's a beautiful thing. Yeah. Yeah. So, how, how could somebody enroll in backlight?

So the way you enroll in Backlight is through our website, backlightproductions .org. we will, our seasons run September through August. And so right now we're getting ready to launch our 2024, 2025 season. And so we still have a couple of classes that are open on our website if people wanted to go in and register. And they would just go in and select theater, music, dance, and then they can see the list under there of what it is. You create an account.

Jason & Mindy Hoover (20:50.279)
see what's available and sign up. Yeah, it's that easy. And they can see, well, for people like us that want to buy tickets, is that the same place that we would go? Yeah. So we'll post our shows on our website, but you'll hear more about it if you follow us on social media, which is backlightproductions .tn on Facebook and Instagram.

And then we also have a newsletter that you can sign up on the homepage of our website. And usually the newsletter is the first to hear when tickets are announced. so between all those, can figure out what a show is. But yeah, we have shows throughout the year. have we just performed an original musical that our students wrote, our songwriters and our playwriters wrote it. It's fantastic. We had all sorts of musicians around town come in and take the songs and arrange them. they're

It's a legitimately good show. That was just performed recently. And then our improv comedy troupe is partnering with Audity Improv here in Franklin. And they're performing at Williamson County Performing Arts Center on September 20th. And so those tickets are already up for sale both on the Williamson County Performing Arts Center website as well as our own. And then we're just going to have our whole season up there, but you can follow us and get in your phone.

I love that you guys are always evolving. Yes, we are. You know, things fresh and everything. So now if somebody wanted to help, is there room for that? you, do you accept volunteers per season or how does that work? Yeah, we accept volunteers all the time. And what I love about this is you don't have to have a theater background. You know, a lot of people might be hesitant thinking, well, I'm not a theater person, but

There's a lot of different ways that you can help. I I have some volunteers who, you I can send them over a list of props that I need and maybe they're a little crafty and they can craft something together. Or maybe you're a seamstress and you can do some hemming for us or you're in, you know, construction and you would be able to help with our set team and our set team needs tons of help for anybody who knows how to do that. But then there's people who want to work with the students.

Jason & Mindy Hoover (23:04.249)
And we have individuals of all ages who can come in and be a buddy, maybe to somebody who needs one -on -one assistance. Not everybody has one -on -one assistance that they can bring to class, but they need it. And so if you know, if you're comfortable working with our students, that's a great way. So just kind of be their buddy, help them to, you know, be following along and paying attention, help them run lines. And also we've had, like, we've had businesses in town to use this as like team building projects where like Health Connect America.

we did Beauty and the Beast, I needed four carts in town, like little market carts in the village. And so they split up their employees into four teams and they had a day where they all competed and designed a cart and then there was like a winner at the end. It was fun. then they all came to the show together and watched it. And so there's just so many fun ways to get involved. mean, we need

you know, production team help. Maybe you could help be a stagehand or, you be a runner backstage. It's just, there's all sorts of ways. So I would encourage everyone to always inquire info at backlightproductions .org. Go directly to me and we can place you. can fill out a little questionnaire and we can place you where it would be best. And is that something like, if they sign up to volunteer, is that per show or, know, is there a certain length of time that they're volunteering for or is it just,

Whatever they want to do. do they want to do? Okay. Perfect. This is what I can do. Then we'll take it. Yeah. Well, also I want to share, cause you you sent us some, information and I want to share something with everybody that you wrote that really touched me and resonated so much. And, if you don't mind, I didn't even ask, but I'm sure you don't, but you said this, you said, maybe we have extreme differences.

beliefs or backgrounds, but none of that matters when we are working together for this beautiful mission. just, I read that multiple times. It's like, wow, that, that sums up everything. Cause we are different. We have different opinions. We have different thoughts. We have different lives background. mean, and that's what makes us beautiful. And the world is so divided and

Jason & Mindy Hoover (25:25.281)
which is kind of the reason we even started this podcast is, you know, because many now we were seeing, we'd sit there and watch TV or read a news. And it's like, there's so much negativity in this world, so much division, so much anger and hate. It's like, man, I, I just can't take the hate anymore. It's like God made us all. know, and that's why the name it's like, we is no matter how different we are, we all still matter.

So thank you. mean, thank you for saying that. I'm actually going to keep that. that's that makes me so happy. Yes. I am. I am very proud of how backlight does that. And I hope that it will always be an open door for everyone because, that's there's there's never a reason not to love and invite somebody in. So, yeah, that's our passion. That's our heart.

Now, if we could just extend that into all aspects, you know, in this world, you know, just that loving and acceptance and tolerance. But that's cool thing about Backlight too. It's like, you know, we might not meet, you know, physical needs, know, like we're not like theater in itself is not an essential thing.

but the kind of change that it's making on the world is a heart change for people. And so even somebody just coming to a show and using that time to support the people on stage, our audiences are the best audiences in the whole world. It's like you are an active part of the whole experience and they are.

loud and crazy. And there are times when like a student might be a little bit nervous. And everybody is just rallies for them. It's like being at a sporting event. It's so beautiful. And, you know, you might not see the physical change in people through what we do at backlight, but the heart change that happens in our community is so so deep. And it's a tight community is like we're there for each other, people can be part of it for the rest of their lives. And so

Jason & Mindy Hoover (27:36.001)
Families are getting together and supporting each other. Students are going out as friends. They finally have friend groups and birthday parties where parents say, I never used to be invited to a birthday party before. And now my son or daughter has friends to invite to their party. it's just, yeah, it just, goes so deep. And I think that's just that mental health that is so essential for everyone, a sense of purpose, a sense of community, a sense of.

giving back, feeling like I have something to contribute to this world. And that's building everybody up and making their lives a little bit better.

Jason & Mindy Hoover (28:14.923)
I'm sure you see a lot of that and you see a lot of stories that are created. And I would imagine knowing that you played a part in that is very soul enriching for yourself. And you don't do it for yourself, but you definitely benefit from it. And I think that's what God had intentioned.

for all of us is that we benefit from giving of ourselves. Yes. Yes, I agree. Everybody always says when you give, it feels better than to get, and you feel a little bad feeling so good about giving. But yeah, it's extremely rewarding, and I'm blessed to be able to do it. Now, you're not only among many things,

the founder of Backlight Productions. You are also an author, right? I'm now an author. Yes, I say that. Share with us more about being an author. Yeah. So I have two kids, Dominic, who's nine, and Aria, who's seven. And they have been with me. We don't have family in town. And so they have come with me to Backlight ever since it was formed. I was nursing babies while I was starting this thing.

And so they've been around our backlight community for as long as they can remember. And for the early parts of their lives, our backlight friends are just our backlight friends. You don't see any differences. It's just, we're just going to backlight. We're having friends. But then when my son turned about six or seven years old, I started to see his little wheels turning. And I was noticing that suddenly he was telling the difference between somebody with a disability and somebody without it.

And luckily, because I work in this field, I caught the signal. And I was able to kind of sit down and talk to him and know some of the words to say and how to phrase things or whatnot. But I was thinking later, it's like, what would somebody do if they didn't have my background? That's a hard area to navigate. And I think a lot of parents, when you're out in public and your child encounters somebody who looks or is acting differently,

Jason & Mindy Hoover (30:41.719)
they're automatically going to call it out and point a finger because they don't know any better. And your automatic reaction is to hurry them away or to shut it down. So I wanted to create a resource where families could familiarize their kids with various types of disabilities and have those conversations early on so that when they do go out in public and they inevitably see someone who looks or acts differently than they do, they're not as

caught off guard by it. so, you know, the book, I have a copy here. It's called, the series is called Friends of Franklin County, the name Franklin, hence being where we're from. And each book follows a group of four friends.

And these four friends through everyday activities in town end up meeting a specific character with a specific disability. And there is, you know, a lesson that gets learned. There's stuff that happens. And then at the end though, it always resolves in how can I be a friend to this person? You know, and how can we work together in a sense? And so the first book that I have is The Great Change -Up, My Friend with Autism.

And this story, the main character, he's a baseball player and there is a boy on his team who has autism and he gets to learn a little bit about his friends. you know, the main character, he has this obstacle that he's trying to overcome. He cannot figure out for the life of him how to beat this one kid in the other league.

And it isn't until he stops and gets to know his friend with autism and learn a little bit about him that he suddenly realizes the key to his success. so his friend ends up saving the day and the team wins all this good stuff. each book, you know, I said, we'll feature a different character with a different disability. And then there are these pullout pages on the Tri's show where you can expand if you want to or not.

Jason & Mindy Hoover (32:52.001)
And so if you see it says like, your friend with autism might do the following things, know? He might be sensitive to loud noises and bright lights. He might prefer to move around rather than sit still. He might make spontaneous noises or movements or he might not respond to you right away. So that's going to give me an idea where if my kid, meets somebody who's doing that, he might think, that person might have autism. And then the next page is always going to be, how can I be a friend?

And so things like including them and talking about things they like to do or be considerate of their sensitivities and needs and help guiding them and being patient and giving them time to respond. And so, you we just want to equip our kids because, you know, the differences are beautiful things. Yeah. mean, and just creating that sensitivity and, not just the sensitivity, but the understanding and of who they are working with or who they're trying to.

know, bridge friendships with, how to meet them where they are, just having that resource for kids and helping them understand their peers, all of their peers, helping them to build bridges to new friendships. I think that's just incredible. And to have that resource, you know, I've seen lots of resources in the school system where it may be like dealing with anger or different kinds of feelings, but there's really not anything out there where you're really bridging other children.

you know, that are different from you. And I think that's perfect. Yeah. read the story aloud and it just touched my heart. But I was like, this is just ingenious. Why isn't this resource already out there? So kudos to you for seeing the need. Thank you. It does. It helps our kids a lot. know even with my kids, I love how the schools nowadays in the public school system, you know, the special education students are integrated into the typical classrooms.

And it's wonderful, but it's helpful for my kids though to understand when a friend does have a disability so they can have a little more patience and a little more grace for that person. And so if when we talk about their friends, it's kind of like, well, you know what, if they have autism, maybe you can just be a little patient. It's okay if they can't sit still or it's okay if they're gonna be a little noisy. And it just helps them to be a little bit more understanding and they want concrete reasons. And so it's good for them to have.

Jason & Mindy Hoover (35:14.145)
Because they will ask the questions. They do. Yes. Let's answer them. There's nothing to be ashamed of. yeah, the hope is to get it out there as much as possible. Book two is already written. We're working on getting enough funding to be able to publish it. And so the more we can get book one out there, the faster book two will come. Perfect. Okay. And that's how you're doing the funding. How can people purchase the book? You can go to friendsoffranklincounty .com.

and you can order it there. It's also on Amazon. And so all of the purchases will go through there. And what do your kids think about it? they love it. They love it because their names are in it too. They're like, that character is just like me. Book two is going to be The Perfect Night, My Friend with Dwarfism. And so that'll be coming out hopefully soon. That is so cool. That is very cool.

So, you know, going back to, you know, backlight productions, I know it's made a major impact in a lot of people and even in your family. I love the fact that your kids have grown up with that and, you know, not in the same context, but I grew up with my mom. You know, my dad would travel and work, but I grew it with her as, cause she was an artist.

And it has left this fantastic impact on me and appreciation. And to every time I smell turpentine, I'm like, that smells like home. Like homes classroom. Yeah. But it does because, know, from day one, she threw me in a car seat and we were going to art shows all over the place. So I grew up with that. And so, you know,

thinking about your kids, how do you think that's impacted them? Because I know it's positive, but have you seen that occurrence within them? definitely. Yeah. You know, I always say that the power of art is to be able to see what something could be. You can look at something as it is, or you could see the potential of what it could be.

Jason & Mindy Hoover (37:39.301)
My hope is that that's going to resonate with them with both, whether it's their art, whether it's themselves or whether it's other people is to always think, look at something and say, Ooh, what could that be? That's even more and pushing themselves and you know what not. And so I definitely hope that that resonates with them. You know, they've they're kind of finding their roles as they get older. My daughter likes to help.

more, she loves to be on stage as much as possible. She'll come and aid some of the students on stage. She's trying to convince me to help, you know, stage managing and whatnot, but we're not quite there. She's only seven. She's already like, Hey, it's me. me do it. And my son, you couldn't pay him enough to get on the stage. And so he's more like his had the same two kids. Yeah. So my kids were, you know, were stage brats as well, you know, being a high school director and

So yeah, they kind of just grew up there and they kind of just get very comfortable. But the oldest, she was in all the shows and did all the things and loved performing and singing. And our son is the baseball kid, but is very happy just playing his cello and going home. I love that. Yeah. It's, fun to see how your kids end up being, know, and my husband, he's, he's a, a video producer, a tech guy. And so he's been my, you know,

calling cues in the tech booths from every show I've ever done. And so I feel like now Dom is learning from him. He ran subtitles at the last show and he just he's gonna everyone's gonna find their little bit of a niche. But you know, it's like they're never too early to volunteer, you know, and I think the earlier that we can start teaching our kids how to look outside of themselves and see others the better off

that they're going to be because it's so easy for anyone to just grow up focusing on the me. And so I think as much as I can put them in the situation where they can be a little more selfless, it's going to benefit We do live in a world now. It's a me -centered world. it makes me think, you know, people are looking at volunteers.

Jason & Mindy Hoover (39:57.815)
they could essentially bring their kids to volunteer as well with them. That's fantastic. Yeah. Even in our children's program, my hope is to have one -on -one buddies for every backlight students with a typical kid who's around the same age. I think that would be really special. And we do try to involve youth performers in everything we do. Christian Youth Theatre in town, we've had several of their actors, their youth actors participate in our shows.

And last year and this coming year, Christ Presbyterian Academy has been our partner and our host for our shows and their students will come and their roles in the productions is to be on stage support as ensemble. So they're singing along, they're dancing along, but they're not getting microphones, they're not getting solos. Their job is to just be there to to buddy with someone and make sure that they remember where to go, what their lines are, help them out off stage.

And so it's, you know, as much as we can involve our youth in these productions, I think it's going to be beneficial for the whole community. I do have a question about your company. I'm very interested in how people come up with the names. do you mind sharing how you came up with the name? Yeah, I would love to. You know, when I was first thinking of names,

I think most theaters you go for kind of like center stage or spotlight or whatnot. So I was just looking up different theater terms and I came across the word backlight. And I read that a backlight is a light that shines behind a subject to keep it from blending into the background. And I thought, wow, what a beautiful picture of what we're called to do. I feel like the name Backlight Productions

It's not about the students, it's more about the rest of us in that constant reminder of, I trying to be in the spotlight or am I going to be a backlight for these others so that they can have their time? so this symbol of us taking our spotlight and turning it around and shining it on these others so that they're not in the background anymore.

Jason & Mindy Hoover (42:18.195)
is the idea. And actually I'm wearing my, our sweatshirt or backlight sweatshirt has the definition of a backlight underneath it. and it's just, yeah, I think that it just keeps us, keeps us centered, keeps us remembering what we're here for. I love that. That's beautiful. Melissa. is. Well, I mean, I, do, I've still got chills, so I'm glad I asked a question. That was great. Well, this has been fantastic, Melissa.

Before we wrap up, do want to go back over of how people can support you in Backlight Productions. So as far as checking out for volunteering, show availabilities, what's coming up, that's all on backlightproductions .org. Yes. And they can do that. Also, I do encourage everybody to sign up for your newsletter that way that you can stay in touch.

We don't we don't email them out frequently so you won't get it in box full But you will get it when it matters That that's good. That's the way we do we send out, you know once a month at max for our newsletters But is there also do you take donations?

We're a 501c3, we, you I'd say our monthly expenses are all covered by tuition that our students pay to participate. But our productions and any kind of growth that we need, it all comes from our donor support. And so the best, you know, the most consistent way that people can support Backlight is to just fill a seat in the audience. I mean, every single one of our shows is a fundraiser in itself. And if we sold out every single show,

then we'd be doing pretty well. If you feel led to give even on top of that, you can donate at productions. You could also donate online at backlightproductions .org slash give. you know, there's, there's so much that we could do with the right resources. You know, we have lots of visions and lots of dreams. We want to see backlight spread. We want to see it grow. We want to see it in other states.

Jason & Mindy Hoover (44:37.911)
but it's just gonna take the right people who hear this and say, how do I get involved? And really, mean, like every contribution, whether it's a monetary contribution or a volunteer contribution or just being in the audience, like it all matters so much and it's a way to give back. And so everyone's called to give in different ways. And if yours is giving of your finances, then let's go. That's what we do. And you know what? I think it's,

It would be a big experience for the people attending the shows. Yes, definitely. That's amazing. Well, Melissa, thank you so much for joining us today. Thank you for sharing. Very inspiring. And you're definitely, you know, the people that we love talking to, you're making such an impact in this community and it, the waves that you're making will far outreach your life span.

100 % believe that. So thank you for what you do. Thank you for being who you are. All right. Well, that's all for today's episode. I enjoyed this one. enjoyed all of them. I so appreciate you coming on. was an honor to have you here, honestly, and just to hear your story. your heart is just so true. Thank you. Thank you for sharing. Yeah. And thank you to everybody that is listening. We appreciate you tuning in.

And just remember that there are so many people out there making a difference. I know it's a negative world, but there is light out there. And that's what we are focused on doing here with this podcast. thank you for our, thank you, Melissa, for joining us. Thank you to everybody for tuning in and thank you, Nashville, for all that you do. And just remember that you matter more than you know.

And that brings us to the end of another episode of You Matter Nashville. We hope today's show has left you feeling as uplifted and inspired as we are. Remember, the spirit of Nashville lives in all of us, and every small act of kindness echoes throughout the community. A huge thank you for listening and even being a part of our You Matter community. If you love this episode, please share with friends and leave us a five -star review. It helps us reach more listeners and spread the love. And if you know anyone that is looking to make a move to Middle Tennessee area,

Jason & Mindy Hoover (47:00.929)
We are real estate professionals known as the Hoover Team, and we would be honored to serve them with excellence. Until next time, keep making a difference, Nashville. You matter more than you know.