Charles Manning is an actor, writer, and producer based in New York City. He has appeared in productions of Bad Jews by Joshua Harmon, Mr. Marmalade by Noah Haidle, Les Blancs by Lorraine Hansberry, and Murder on the Nile by Agatha Christie, as well as numerous TV shows and independent films.

In 2023, he appeared in Not About Me by Eduardo Machado in a part that was written specifically for him. The play received a wonderful review in the New York Times and his performance in particular was praised by numerous reviewers for its tenderness and strength. “Manning endows [Tommy] with a saintly glow,” wrote Theater Mania’s Zachary Stewart. “And in one of the play's more dramatic scenes, he stands between a gunman and his intended victim, diffusing the situation like a real Marvel superhero.”

Charles is passionate about new works and emerging playwrights and has appeared in workshops of Zeus 4 by Lauren Holmes, directed by Kip Fagan, Narrowsburg by Chad Kaydo, directed by Knud Adams, Dogsblood by Guelan Varela-Luarca, directed by Chay Yew, and more.

After acting in a reading of The Maenads by Stephen Foglia, Charles stepped into the role of producer, determined to bring the show to the stage. A year and a half later, The Maenads opened at The Tank as part of their Core Production Series in one of the most lush productions the theater had ever seen. Thinking Theater called The Maenads “extremely funny, often surprising, and even, finally, idiosyncratically beautiful.” The cast, they said, was “fabulous” and the production design was “truly impressive.” Charles learned to play the mandolin for the show and they called his rendition of Robyn’s Dancing On My Own “lovely” and “plaintive.”

When Charles in not acting, he works as a freelance writer specializing in fashion and lifestyle content. He has written for Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar, Elle, Seventeen, Nylon, Marie Claire, Michael Kors, Shiseido, Electragram, Neiman Marcus, and more. He also writes his own narrative projects and has done live event scripting for the Met Gala.