Up Close with Charles Moore

Writing by Oscar Andy Hammerstein

Charles Moore is the director of programs and operations at Rehabilitation Through the Arts (RTA). RTA a non-profit organization founded by a Katonah resident in 1996; it provides art-related programs to eight correctional facilities in New York State. Their theater workshops help inmates build communication skills, set goals, solve problems and work collaboratively. 

Moore joined RTA in 2004 while serving a 17-year sentence at Sing Sing Correctional Facility for a violent felony offense. After his release in 2017, he continued to work with the organization. Moore says RTA gave him a sense of self-worth, purpose and a love for the theater.

“RTA saved my life.”

How did you become involved with RTA?

I was 34 years old when I went to prison. I was never a street guy, a thug or anything like that. I just made a poor decision. And it resulted in my being incarcerated for 17 years. When I entered, I didn’t have a high school diploma or GED. When I left, I had a master’s degree. I took advantage of every available programming opportunity. 

I became involved with RTA in 2004 after I recognized a fellow inmate in a play produced by RTA. I signed the waiting list, and when a spot opened up a year later, I joined. This is my 20th year with the program—inside and outside.

How did RTA begin?

Okay, that’s a great question. RTA was started back in 1996 by a wonderful woman from Katonah named Katherine Vockins. Her husband, Hans Hallundbaek, was a professor at Sing Sing’s college program, and he brought Katherine to a graduation ceremony. But he had work to do, getting things ready, so Katherine found herself sitting amongst the residents on the inside. 

She happened to ask one of the men, and she doesn’t even know to this day why she asked, “Is there any theater here in Sing Sing?” And the guy responded, “No, but we would surely like some.” They were writing plays about the violence in prison and plays about HIV and AIDS during that time. 

Katherine took great interest in what the guy said, and she put in a proposal to work with seven men who were incarcerated. It all began with one random question. And lo and behold, here we are, 28 years later.

What does RTA look like today?

RTA serves men and women who are incarcerated in New York State. We are in eight correctional facilities: Bedford Hills, Collins, Taconic, Green Haven, Fishkill, Sing Sing, Wallkill and Woodbourne. Our goal is to be in every facility in New York. We work with maximum- and medium-security prisons, and the program can be implemented for anywhere between 200 and 300 residents in those eight facilities

What makes RTA so successful?

We would never advertise or promote [the idea] that RTA is a one-pill-fits-all remedy. We teach simple, helpful life skills like team building, improving communication skills, working with others and getting along with authority. 

And like everything, you get out of the program what you put into it. So if you come to the workshops and participate in the productions, you’re actually going to see a change in yourself over time. It’s similar to an A.A. model: all we tell people is to keep coming back. Just keep coming back.

Do others notice the change?

The administrators say they truly appreciate RTA because our theater productions and our smaller, in-class performances boost the overall morale of the facility. The staff, too, recognizes that we create a positive vibe in the school building and in the spaces where we perform. So, it’s a win-win for everybody. 

We also help build ties between the incarcerated individuals and their families who come to see the plays. They’re so proud of their participants at the end. Sometimes the little sons and daughters will shout out, “That’s my daddy up there!” right during the play. It’s teary-eyed, priceless and breathtaking. We’re very proud of that.

How long can inmates be in RTA?

Because of our success, RTA does not have a high turnover rate. Men and women stay in the program; we don’t kick them out. The only way they usually leave is if they get transferred to another facility or go home. 

But it may take as long as a year for a space to become available. I, myself, applied three years into my incarceration and had to wait an additional year for an opening. We would love to serve more participants, but, you know, due to fire safety rules, we can only have so many people in a classroom, and we can only get so many classrooms per night. So we take what we get, and we serve who we can. 

We are trying to expand to other states, and we have a re-entry program that we’re launching this year that some other departments of corrections may be interested in.

What sort of plays do you produce?

RTA has produced well-known plays like “12 Angry Men,” “Macbeth,” “The Wizard of Oz,” “Of Mice and Men,” “West Side Story,” “A Few Good Men” and “Oedipus Rex.” At the Green Haven Correctional Facility, we are currently producing “Thoughts of a Colored Man,” written by Keenan Scott II, which was on Broadway a few years ago.

When RTA began, some of the first plays we performed were written by incarcerated individuals. At first, our model was to alternate between a well-known play and an original play, but that proved difficult for a number of reasons. Writing is hard, and harder still in prison. But we try to do original plays by our participants when they write them.

How is it funded?

RTA is funded by a number of different sources. But we’re mostly funded by individuals who really care about the work we do. We get a very small portion of our funding for things like transportation and materials from the Department of Corrections, and we apply for every foundation grant that has to do with incarceration and the creative arts.

How many people are incarcerated in New York?

When I was incarcerated, there were 72,000 inmates in New York State. Since then, that population has been cut in half to between 34,000 and 35,000. 

Why do you think so many people are incarcerated?

Well, there are a number of different reasons. I always say that people make poor decisions. Every decision has consequences, and people know these consequences. It’s no secret. 

But I also think there’s a lack of opportunity, a lack of a level playing field. Everyone really wants to provide for their family, to be able to do what they want to do, and to find a way to make that possible. I think mental health and drug addiction also play a huge factor in the large incarceration rate, and I think a lack of education for some of the brown- and black-skinned people in New York plays a factor as well. 

What would you like readers to know? 

We’re all human beings; no one’s perfect. People make bad choices, bad decisions in their lives, and they suffer the consequences of those decisions. Some people go to prison. We need programs like RTA to help people while they’re in prison so they come home a more responsible and compassionate, tax-paying citizen. 

We have very successful alumni that have been released from the program. While the recidivism rate for the general prison population can run as high as 50 percent, the recidivism rate for RTA participants is now down to less than three percent. And our participants are doing great things in the community. 

We even have one of our alumni that just passed the bar exam, and, of all things, he’s a prosecutor; he said he wants to use his own experience with incarceration to make a difference in the judicial system.

This article was published in the July/August 2024 edition of Connect to Northern Westchester