Charles Manning

Ok... I was not generally a fan of the menswear at the @dior 2027 Cruise show, but I will forgive it all for the sheer audacity of Jonathan Anderson sending this twink out on the runway in glitter jeans, a knit cape (with shoulder pads!) and a hat that says "sler" (slur, but with an "e"). I mean, this is sooooo gay. And I LIVE! Yas, sler! Stop it out, gurl!

Congrats to my friend (and occassional director/scene partner) @sammyrivas.1 on your new show #Canciones now running through May 24. I arrived in the worst mood — achey and tired and annoyed at having been forced to travel so deep into Brooklyn for a show in someone's house. I knew nothing about the show except that Sammy was in it and when I arrived and realized it was immersive, part of me wanted to leave. I slept 3 hours last night and barely ate today. I can't believe I didn't bail before I left the house, but I I'm glad I didn't because the show was sweet and fun and energizing. I'm so glad I went. Congrats, Sammy!

Had so much fun last night at the @cinemasociety screening of @tdwp2 . Emily Blunt steals every scene she is and is worth the price of a ticket to the theater. She needs more bitchy comedy work STAT! Seriously, a spinoff movie or show just about her character would be fabulous.

I had such a nice time in LA. Thanks @falconeriofficial for a lovely trip and a lovely evening. And the outfit too!

In my happy place. Had so much fun working with @declanmcollins @ferd_moscat @coleburden @frostedjake @vinay.iyengar on this reading of Declan's sweet and very funny play 'Open' at @st_lydias for @writeclubnyc . Here's hoping the play has life beyond this reading. The audience was in stitches during the performance and I really think it could have broader appeal and a successful run somewhere.

Had such a great time last week playing with these lovely actors in @lholmes12 new play, Center Back, directed by @carsenjoe for @ugly_face_theatre new works series. Always fun to pull out on of my accents and at one point I was jumping between multiple characters and accents in rapid succession for a few pages straight and it was, like, the most fun I've had in a long time and a reminder of why I love acting best of all the things in this dark, f*cked up world. Thanks to everyone who came out. And to those who didn't, well... you missed out.

On Saturday, March 28 at 9:00pm, I'm acting in a reading of a really fun new play: OPEN by Declan Collins. It's gay and rowdy and sexy and fun and you should totally come. Especially if I met you recently and you were like "Gosh, is there anything I can see you in?" Well, yes, as a matter of fact, THIS! Tickets are only $10 at the link in my BIO. But what's it about? Micah and Paul have recently opened their relationship, mostly so Micah can seduce an older author (Jason) whose open marriage is tested by his husband’s (Ted - ME) desire to start a family. As professional, sexual, and romantic boundaries blur, the men question their relationships with monogamy, each other, and success. OPEN is a comedy about why we get into relationships and how we get each other to stay.  Where is it though? St. Lydia's 304 Bond St. BROOKLYN (Just a few blocks from the F, D, G, N, R, and W trains) When is it again? SATURDAY, March 28 @ 9:00PM Part of Write Club's Punching Bag Series.  Don't miss it! TICKETS ARE $10 AT THE LINK IN MY BIO!

Went to the @wearlayerzero launch party last night. Ate so many crab cakes. Got my picture took. Thank you @BFA for giving me something to put on my IG page where I look halfway decent. The necklaces were definitely a bit much, but I'll do better next time! Thanks for the invite @therealerinhawker and everyone at @agentrypr . You guys are always so sweet to me.

I had such a nice time this week at the NYFW kickoff dinner hosted by @manoloblahnik . They gave me those lovely shoes to wear and everyone was so friendly. It is slightly strange being at fashion week again, but in a good way. The whole exercise feels much more relaxed and inviting this time around. And it's so nice working with the team at @dailyfrontrow again. Now if only I could learn to lower my chin in photos!

I can't believe it is almost over. Just two more shows to go (Saturday @ 7:00 and Sunday @ 3:00 at @thetanknyc ) before we must bid adieu to @themaenadsplay . At least for now. I am so grateful and excited and also so SO sad to see this chapter drawing to a close. This is the first show I've ever produced and I could not be prouder of how it turned out. I'm just gonna say it: I'm a damn good producer. And the next show I work on is going to be even better because I have learned so damn much. I'm proud of myself as an actor, too. The role of Jacob asked a lot of me: Jacob is deeply conflicted, secretive, passionate, scared, lonely, and, at times, hypocritical. He's also kind and loving — a nurturer brimming over with longing. He, like all the characters in this amazing play by #StephenFoglia, is not necessarily a very reliable narrator. He lies and obfuscates and feels so deeply. He also sings and plays the mandolin! I sang a few bars of a Brecht song in Not About Me back in 2023, but this was different: just me on a rock, facing the audience, with a mandolin in my hands. A mandolin I did not know how to play before this show. In fact, I'd never played any instrument before this show. But I wasn't about to let that stop me! I took one lesson and then taught myself from there using YouTube. Through trial and error, I figured out how to sing Robyn's "Dancing on My Own" in a way that worked for my voice and the mandolin, and then I layered on top of that becoming more and more visibly intoxicated as my performance progressed. That kind of challenge is a gift to any actor and I am so grateful to have received it. Thank you to everyone who worked so hard to make this show what it is: the wonderful and distinctive actors, our absolutely magical designers, our hard working crew, everyone at The Tank, and, of course, my dear friends @phillipchristiansmith and Stephen Foglia who cast me in the first reading of this play almost two years ago, welcomed me as a producer, and walked with me through this whole process. I am forever grateful to both of you. This show has been a bright spot in the darkness for me. I don't know what I'll do without it. 📸 @off_the_front_media

This one goes out to our daddy-us Thaddeus (Daniels) (aka Uncle Phil) who doesn't have IG, so he will probably never see this, but even so, I wanna say what a pleasure it has been to work with him on this show. Our characters interact a lot and building that relationship with Thaddeus, who I met for the first time at a table read at @bricktheater in June, has been wonderful. He is kind and generous and playful and I feel so fortunate not just to have him performing in @themaenadsplay at @thetanknyc but to have been able to spend all that time in rehearsal experimenting with him and laughing with him and getting to know him. He's a lovely man and a lovely actor and you should all come see him perform while you can (remember, we close October 12). It's truly moving.

This one is for our magnificent costume designer @creatikt . I met KT at the @geffenyale MFA designer showcase in May and knew right away that they were the designer for me. Not only was the work they presented from their time at Yale GORGEOUS and thoughtful, it was also scrappy. They didn't just know how to design, they knew how to MAKE, which, when you are working with a limited budget, is essential. They also have this way of thinking about costumes and props and personalizing them based on the lives they envision their characters living off stage as well as on. It was KT who decided to put Devon in knee pads before our director @phillipchristiansmith even realized how much he would be putting that character on his knees throughout the show. KT said it just felt right, and it was! KT made our fawn skins out of old thrifted towels they cut up and sewed back together and then painted with white spots. They made out thyrsuses with pine cones foraged from their neighbor's yard in New Haven, each one unique and incredibly lovely. I cannot overstate how glad I am to have been able to work with KT on this project. They were an enthusiastic collaborator from the word go and brought so much beauty and sensitivity and personality to this show and these characters. Having worked for so many years in fashion and costuming before I became an actor, let me tell you, KT is a real one and they are gonna be a star. They already are. 📸 @off_the_front_media