The Inspiration:

After attending the 2011 Theatre Communication Group conference this summer in Los Angeles, Teatro Luna and Urban Theatre Company were inspired to bring together the theatre companies in Chicago that are dedicated in mission to serving our various diverse audiences and artists for a series of meetings with an end goal of seeing if the development of a Theatre of Color Leadership Council is of interest or need here in Chicago. It is our personal sentiment that there is a need, but we want to hear if others share our feelings. Before we get ahead of ourselves though, we wanted to have one initial meeting to gauge the interest.

What:

Teatro Luna (TL)  and Urban Theatre Company (UTC) are uniting in hopes of  bringing a community-building process to Chicago Theatres of Color since we feel that although each of us have done great work in cultivating our individual audiences and communities–  we have not all had the chance to build community amongst each other as a collective group of non-profit organizations dedicated to creating social change in our communities in Chicago and beyond through our art. Our goal in seeing if a council is of interest is not to create separation or more divisions between us and other members of the League of Chicago theatres (or those not at all associated with the league), but rather about creating a space for sharing knowledge, mentor-ship– as many of us have new leadership in the ranks, past experiences, resources, problems, and solutions.

We want to create a space for a deeper exploration of activism, diversity, and community outreach among theatres of color, or theatres dedicated to audiences of color. During the multi-generational leaders of color meeting, I was personally shocked when many of us from Chicago only barely recognized each other– and couldn’t comment on the recent work or future work of our organizations.  There is opportunity here to strengthen our relationships and in turn leverage our resources. The first step of this endeavor is to try to get as many of us as possible in the same room. And so, TL and UTC are contacting theatre companies who have demonstrated a committed initiative to producing quality diverse work by and for voices and bodies that have historically been ignored and humbly requesting your participation in at least this one meeting. This meeting will be moderated by Richard Perez, a local director, actor, and long-time advocate of theatre as a tool for community-building. We specifically chose someone who is not on staff of any of the theatres attending as to prevent single agenda’s from overtaking the space. This is not about any one theatre company, but rather, it is about building a community

It is our hope that The Theatre of Color Leadership Council would be an outlet for different theatres to share what struggles they have faced and what tactics were used as a solution.  More importantly were we to have a council it would be a place to come together and create solutions that might not be possible singularly in our own individual organizations.  It is important to state that our goal in this initial meeting is to first and foremost: a) confirm whether or not the need is shared by organizations other than ours and b) to discuss what kind of model would be an appropriate one for this council. We are not tied to any one model, title, or plan. We want to build that together. What we are prepared to do is provide the space and some funding for this to kick-off, if we all agree there is a shared desire to do so.

WHEN:

We know that this collaboration has the potential to strengthen the representation of multiculturalism in theatre in Chicago. We are proposing that the meeting with all Chicago theatres who’s mission is to empower these voices December 10th at 3 pm. We are looking for all leadership staff that is available, to attend at a location TBA.

WHO:

Thank you in advance for your time, we look forward to speaking about this exciting opportunity. Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions, thoughts, advice, or concerns. Richard Perez will be following up with each of you to discuss your thoughts and help us shape the agenda. Below is a list of the companies we are initially contacting. We are sure that some people who should be in attendance are not on this list, (be assured this is an oversight and not intentional) and we ask you to share this information with us so we can invite them with enough time they will be able to attend! If you believe you should have been sent an invitation, please contact our Executive Director Immediately at: alexmeda(at)teatroluna(dot)org

Please mark your calendar…

The Theatre of Color Leadership Council

First Meeting

Saturday, December 10th, 3:00 PM

Location: TBA

Teatro Luna and Urban Theatre Company have so far invited the following theatres:

Aguijon Theater

Albany Park Theatre Project

Black Ensemble Theatre

Congo Square

ETA Creative Arts Foundation

Free Street Theater

Harlem Theatre Company

MPAACT

Rasaka Theatre Company

Salsation

Silk Road

Teatro Americano

Teatro Vista

Voice in the City