CAL SHAKES

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI)

At Cal Shakes, we believe that equity is a practice. Our actions—both onstage and off—can have a positive social impact by exposing oppression, addressing historic injustices, and showing how power can be transformed  and shared in different ways. We endeavor to dismantle systemic bias by actively including, reflecting, and creating opportunities for our diverse Bay Area communities. We recognize that this work is ongoing and often imperfect, but we are committed to facilitating respect for the many facets of the human experience.

Our ongoing work includes:

• An EDI Workgroup that meets weekly to discuss issues, organize trainings, and create better practices within Cal Shakes and the greater theater community. This workgroup includes subcommittees that focus on specific actions such as increasing accessibility in our spaces, supporting affinity groups, and changing culture around consent & microaggressions.
• Supporting Affinity Groups, which are opt-in groups for people with shared identities. They offer a flexible space for whatever people in that group need – a space to build community, to talk about recent news, to discuss microaggressions or other things that come up in the workplace, etc.
• Working with Mia Mingus of the Bay Area Transformative Justice Collective (BATJC) and a cohort of about 25 Bay Area theatre workers over eight day-long intensives to build up a transformative justice resource within the local theatre community, so we can address the harm happening in our rehearsal rooms and organizations, and thoroughly support accountability processes.
• Participating in Theatres Advancing Social Change (TASC), a cohort of Bay Area Theaters dedicated to cultivating organizational and institutional development to advance EDI, creating collective impact on a regional level and within the broader field.

CURRENT EDI WORKGROUP MEMBERS (May - November 2019)

Andrew Page (Director of Grants, Strategies and Evaluations | he/him)*
April Ballesteros (Artistic Learning Associate & Development Assistant | she/her)
Derik Cowan (Associate Director of Marketing and Sales | use name)
Issere Christopher (Operations Coordinator | she/her)
Kyle Fischer (General Manager | he/him)
LeeAnn Dowd (Artistic Associate & Casting Manager | she/her)
Louis Fisher (Assistant Facilities Manager | they/them)
Micaela Sinclair (Carpenter | she/her)
Neaco Fox (Carpenter | she/her)
Ray Stubblefield-Tave (Artistic Engagement Associate | they/she)
Sarah Williams (Managing Director | she/her)
SK Kerastas (Artistic Producer | they/them)
Sofia Alvarez (Props Artisan | she/her)
Tenaya Raives (Staff Carpenter | they/them)*

*co-facilitators

Information about current initiatives and a list of resources coming soon.

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