Theatre Communications Group Launches New THEATRE FOR ACTIVISM Series

Theatre Communications Group is launching the Theatre for Activism series with Rest Up, a virtual gathering to share practices of self and collective care. On April 27-28, Rest Up participants will connect with the resources and relationships they need to strengthen their own care practices. Over the two-day virtual gathering, participants will engage with plenary speakers, organizational strategies, and healing practices.

The deep-rooted connection between theatre and activism has recently intensified both within and beyond the theatre sector. Movements like #MeToo, We See You White American Theater, and No More 10 Out of 12s have reshaped the theatre field, while theatre artists are increasingly on the front lines of labor organizing, racial justice, climate action, and more. Theatre for Activism (T4A) will build on this momentum through a three-part series of gatherings that will strengthen care, share practices, and forge connections between current theatre activists as well as those just beginning that work. Building on TCG's strategic priorities, T4A will center BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and disabled theatre people who are so often leading these movements.

"We're thrilled to launch the Theatre for Activism series with Rest Up, which will provide a much-needed focus on care practices for the theatre field," said Teresa Eyring, executive director and CEO, TCG. "In our research and fieldwide gatherings, we hear again and again of the toll that burnout is taking on our theatre ecology. Rest Up will not only help address this critical issue in the short term, but also contribute to the longer-term cultural shifts we'll need to have a truly just and thriving theatre ecology."

"The decision to prioritize Rest Up as the first part of T4A is grounded in the recognition that we can't address our current challenges without prioritizing self-care and mutual support," said Elena Chang, managing director of EDI Initiatives, TCG. "Knowing that rest means different things to different people, we'll work to center the care networks of artists and activists who have developed powerful practices of care out of necessity."

The programming of Rest Up includes:

• Care as a Creative Act, moderated by Jewel Cadet featuring Sarah Bellamy, B. Hawk Snipes, and Harold Steward.

• Fighting the Flames: How to Break the Cycle of Burnout, facilitated by Hope Chavez and Meena Malik.

• Sound Healing: Self-Care for Collective Liberation with Rebecca KellyG

• What Does Care Mean for Care-Givers?, facilitated by Khanisha Foster and Corinna Schulenburg

• Shifting Organizational Policy & Practice, co-facilitated by Alex Meda and Rad Pereria, featuring Ken-Matt Martin, Deadria Harrington, and Anyania Muse.

• Cultivate & Carve: Developing Healing and Rest Practices as a Freelance Artist, facilitated by Noelle Johnson of Artists Heal.

Theatre for Activism is part of Accountability for Abundance (A4A) a national initiative of theatre activists committed to developing and sharing new practices that prioritize Accountability and Abundance for a more equitable theatre ecology. TCG is developing this initiative with the A4A Advisory Council, which includes: Hope Chávez, associate producer, Oregon Shakespeare Festival; Alex Meda, stage director, culture-producer, disrupter for social justice, digital media creator, and artistic director, Teatro Luna + Teatro Luna West; Meena Malik, arts consultant, facilitator, mediator, and musician; Rad Pereira, performer, educator, social sculptor, community organizer, and director of engagement and impact with New York Stage & Film; and Nijeul X, producer, cultural organizer, and director of communications and strategy, WACO Theater Center.

Accountability for Abundance

(A4A) is a national collective of theatre activists committed to developing and sharing new practices that prioritize Abundance and Accountability towards a more equitable theatre ecology. This collective will work together, grounded by shared values of Accountability and Abundance, through three tracks: (1) archiving, which will allow work that has already been completed to be documented, as well as future work; (2) a peer-learning community, which allows members to be a part of a national network sharing unique methodologies on transformative healing, transformative justice, grassroots organizing models; and (3) field-wide learning opportunities and dissemination of both the archives and the peer-learnings through national gatherings and an online platform.

Theatre Communications Group

(TCG), the national organization for theatre, leads for a just and thriving theatre ecology. Since its founding in 1961, TCG's constituency has grown from a handful of groundbreaking theatres to over 700 Member Theatres and affiliate organizations and over 7,000 Individual Members. Through its programs and services, TCG reaches over one million students, audience members, and theatre professionals each year. TCG offers networking and knowledge-building opportunities through research, communications, and events, including the annual TCG National Conference, one of the largest nationwide gatherings of theatre people; awards grants and scholarships to theatre companies and individual artists; advocates on the federal level; and through the Global Theater Initiative, TCG's partnership with the Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics, serves as the U.S. Center of the International Theatre Institute. TCG is North America's largest independent trade publisher of dramatic literature, with 19 Pulitzer Prizes for Drama on the TCG booklist. It also publishes the award-winning American Theatre magazine and ARTSEARCH®, the essential source for a career in the arts. TCG believes its vision of "a better world for theatre, and a better world because of theatre" can be achieved through individual and collective action, adaptive and responsive leadership, and equitable representation in all areas of practice. TCG is led by executive director and CEO Teresa Eyring. tcg.org

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