Theatre UNI Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Anti-Racist Practices

TheatreUNI is a community that generates and affirms imagination, ingenuity and creativity. Therefore, we encourage all students to express themselves truthfully and fully. As artists with various perspectives, we believe diversity is important to our development. TheatreUNI is an advocate for Black and Indigenous students, students of color, LGBTQ+ students, first-generation students, students with disabilities, students from all socio-economic backgrounds, international students, and students of all ethnicities, religions, and cultures. It is our goal to provide a supportive and liberated space where every student is empowered by productive  and equitable learning experiences in order to positively impact their own lives and the lives of others in their work with the  community and globally.

TheatreUNI es una comunidad que apoya y fomenta la creatividad. Por lo tanto, damos la bienvenida a todos los estudiantes a expresarse plenamente. Como artistas con diversas perspectivas, creemos que la diversidad es importante para nuestro crecimiento. TheatreUNI es un defensor de los estudiantes negros e indígenas, estudiantes de color, estudiantes LGBTQ +, estudiantes de primera generación, estudiantes con diferentes habilidades, estudiantes de todos los orígenes económicos, estudiantes internacionales, así como estudiantes de todas las etnias, religiones y culturas. Nuestro objetivo es proporcionar un espacio acogedor donde todos los estudiantes puedan desarrollar todo su potencial para transformar sus vidas y las de los demás a través de su trabajo a nivel individual, comunitario y global.

We are actively reassessing our season selection process.

TheatreUNI is already engaged in discussions and plans for how to make the season selection committee and the process of choosing productions more inclusive. One starting point in this effort was the decision to produce Dominique Morriseau’s Blood at the Root, directed by Margaret Kemp and choreographed by Destiny (Tru) Cyrus with an incredible team of guest artists to bring their experience and expertise to our exciting cast and crew of students. One of the goals of this project is to begin establishing regular outreach with BIPOC and other marginalized groups and individuals in our communities.

We are creating ways of supporting our community of students of color.

TheatreUNI is proud to be home to the Multicultural Theatrical Society, a student-led organization that engages students from all marginalized backgrounds in the quest for creating theatre for underrepresented people while holding a mirror to society. Please follow MTS on Facebook and Instagram! TheatreUNI has begun exploring a commitment to establishing regular opportunities for students of color entering our program to create and invest in building community. 

We continually analyze our curriculum for greater diversity and inclusion in our classes.

While the process of curriculum changes takes time, we have begun to identify and implement changes within individual course structures to ensure that classroom content is diverse and inclusive. We will also continue to expand our curriculum and programming to include voices of artists of color. 

We have identified a path to a diverse and inclusive guest artist program.

TheatreUNI will identify and invite outside experts to share academic research, lead workshops and/or provide other types of professional guidance or support along with the dedication of resources for guest lecturer fees aimed at educating the department on marginalized or under-represented groups. We have recently created an “Artist in Residence” program for guest artists, which we plan to continue to utilize at least once every other year. The goal of the initiative is to provide an opportunity for theatre artists from BIPOC and underrepresented groups to interact with students through a single 8-week teaching assignment, involvement on a production team, and direct mentoring of students. 

We have created an equity and anti-racism Committee (EARC) within the Department of Theatre.

The EAR Committee was recently formed in order to examine and implement equitable change to existing procedures within our classrooms, productions and organizations. The committee will make recommendations for changes in policy to align with TheatreUNI’s anti-racist mission and connect CHAS and University entities to address Diversity, Equity and Inclusion across campus (more information below).

We will hold each other and others accountable

By engaging in educational training about an anti-racist curriculum to be able to enact anti-racist approaches in the classroom. We will also identify and implement ways to educate the departmental community on diversity, equity, bias, and anti-racism. TheatreUNI will also expand its commitment to producing work from diverse creators and will work to expand our partnerships with artists locally and nationwide. 

We will make changes to our production process. 

Casting procedures, particularly regarding past policies of “colorblind casting” will now focus on casting opportunities that emphasize representation. We will provide opportunities for conversation about content and identity in the rehearsal process and will also expand our commitment to producing work from diverse creators and work to expand our partnerships with artists locally and nationwide. 

The above action items are only the beginning of  TheatreUNI’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. We look forward to continuing the dialogue and action needed to create an equitable and anti-racist environment for our every member of our community.