California Shakespeare Theater (CAL SHAKES) redefines the classical theater for the 21st Century on and off stage. During the 2022 Season, our company has cultivated and curated its inaugural Anti Racism Seed Team who are completing their first term and are ready for a second batch of facilitators to engage our community.
The Seed Team helps hold the container for the ongoing anti-racism work of Cal Shakes. This is not a workgroup; it is a facilitation team that will support the broader anti-racism work of Cal Shakes in a more sustainable and effective way.
Our first Seed Team is composed of 6 Cal Shakes staff members that require an average of two to three hours a week that include a one hour weekly meeting. A four month term limit was initiated to allow each Seed Team to prioritize unique wants as well as to accommodate the capacities of production staff both on-and off-season.
Initial Seed Team Members include: Derik Cowan (Associate Director of Marketing & Sales), LeeAnn Dowd (Artistic Producer), Jesse Guzman (Marketing & Communications Manager), Miranda Lopez (Production Associate), Haley Miller (Production Manager), Maddie Rostami (Shah Squad Line Producer), and Sarah Williams (Managing Director)
Our Seed Team would like to highlight some of the work we’ve collaborated on for the past couple of months.
- On the Cal Shakes Slack Workspace, the Antiracism Seed Team has set up 3 affinity spaces, anyone who identifies with either space is welcome to join. Each space has an antiracism seed team facilitator. If you would like a tutorial on joining slack channels, please reach out to Haley directly and Haley would be happy to assist:
- #affinity_bipoc
- #affinity_lgbtqiaplus
- #affinity_blackfolx
- The Anti Racism Seed Team has prioritized De Escalation and Anti Biased training for on boarding members to the Cal Shakes team. Currently we are exploring a possible partnership with Shotgun Players Anti- Harassment and Bias training.
- As for transparency, the Seed Team is currently planning to publish a blog post on our website featuring snapshots of our work. This practice will continue with each Seed Team term.
- The Seed Team will also continue to publish public statements on our Website and Social Media Platforms, continue community highlighting other Anti-Racism organizations and BIPOC organization partners for observed holidays and events, and will hold spaces to speak on current events and other priorities.
If you are interested in joining the Anti-Racism Seed Team, contact us at seedteam@calshakes.org.
