Our Mission
Eclipse Theatre and Lounge in Talent, Oregon, is a queer-centered nonprofit arts organization dedicated to building a sustainable professional ecosystem and permanent gathering space for 2SLGBTQIA+ artists and rural communities in Southern Oregon.
Core Purpose
Belonging & Culture: Cultivate a permanent, welcoming space where 2SLGBTQIA+ people experience community, connection, and safety without needing to relocate to major metropolitan areas.
Professional Ecosystem: Develop local theatrical and performance artists by providing paid work, production experience, career sustainability, and economic opportunity in a rural region.
Regional Impact: Strengthen local economies and the cultural identity of Southern Oregon by treating queer art as a legitimate, thriving economic and creative force.
The Need in Southern Oregon
In Jackson County, Southern Oregon, access to queer cultural life is unequal, and rural populations facing systemic barriers due to sexual orientation or gender identity remain historically underserved by arts funding. Eclipse responds to this gap by providing a dedicated home for queer live performance, nightlife, storytelling, and the arts broadly, ensuring that local community members do not have to choose between urban authenticity and rural isolation.
For Pacific Northwest regional queer artists, the challenges are particularly significant, forcing many talented performers, designers, drag artists, and arts administrators to move to major metropolitan hubs like Portland, Seattle, or Los Angeles simply to find an audience or professional network. Eclipse is actively building a sustainable ecosystem where queer artistry is acknowledged as a legitimate cultural, professional, and economic force. Our programming allows arts workers to develop their craft, build portfolios, earn fair compensation, and secure long-term career opportunities directly where they live within Southern Oregon and surrounding areas. When queer artists are empowered to lead, they contribute to local rural economies, strengthen downtown life, and help shape the Pacific Northwest’s regional identity of diverse community arts-based programming.
What We Do
At its core, Eclipse believes that belonging is infrastructure. We operate as both an arts organization and a community-development project, using theatre, cabaret, and collaborative programming as tools for connection and true empowerment so that 2SLGBTQIA+ and BIPOC artists find a space where they are supported.
How You Can Help
With philanthropic and community support, Eclipse will expand professional opportunities for 2SLGBTQIA+ and BIPOC rural artists, strengthen our organizational infrastructure, and increase accessibility to arts programming & development in Southern Oregon.
The regional need is real, and the opportunity is extraordinary: We are building the Queer Nonprofit Theatre we wish had existed for us, ensuring the next generation of rural queer diversity does not have to search somewhere else to belong, survive, and thrive.
OUR VALUES
Radical Accessibility: Breaking down financial, physical, and social, and cultural walls so theater belongs to absolutely everyone.
Artistic Bravery: Championing original, bold, and disruptive new works that challenge the traditional theater status quo, ensuring queer and BIPOC stories are unapologetically seen, heard, and celebrated in rural Oregon.
Creative Sanctuary: Providing a safe, protected, and joyful space for marginalized folks to gather, express themselves, and heal. We are prioritizing the emotional, physical, and professional well-being of our artists, staff, and audience members.
Narrative Liberation: Reclaiming our own stories to rewrite the narrative of who gets to make and experience high-quality theater.
Intersectional Solidarity: Unifying diverse cultures, generations, and identities under one roof to build stronger community ties.