Off Stage Conversations

Hey Everyone! I'm Andie Arthur, executive director of the South Florida Theatre League and I'm back with Off Stage Conversations, where I take a look at what's being talked about in the national and international theatre communities.

Diversity

Sometimes I feel that I share so many stories about diversity and gender parity that I'm becoming a crank. But it is one of the biggest topics that needs to be addressed both in our local theatre community and within our national theatre community and I feel that South Florida ought to be a major participant the conversation, particularly given our greater local community. And we're not really participating in the discussion at all. Either internally or with the national community. So I'm going to keep posting these articles.

The LA Times reports on a diversity discussion within the Los Angeles theatre community, noting that the majority of the panel was white artistic directors and specifically talking about how money relates to these conversations.

Holly Derr writes about the same panel for HowlRound, noting that a lot of the problem stems from assuming that white straight men are the default. One thing that Derr points out that I appreciated is how to address that not everyone comes to the discussion from an intersectional space.

Fundraising

"Stop apologizing for needing money." On rethinking how non-profits ask for money.

Or perhaps, stop asking for money all together.

Need for Leaders in DC

The Washington Post has a piece on how many of DC's major cultural institutions are going through a transition period or are looking for new top level leadership. I think the situation is something for South Florida to watch as we approach our own time of transition as many of our founding artistic and managing directors reach retirement age.

Buzzword Kill

The Guardian writes on arts buzzwords and how we can transform them in 2014.