Diversity News

President Biden has released a proclamation declaring October National Arts and Humanities Month for 2022. Additionally, President Biden has issued an executive order to promote the arts, humanities, museum and library services by reestablishing the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities and directing cooperation among Federal agencies and offices.

Pool: A Social History of Segregation (POOL) Exhibition has been met with  overwhelming support, and as it has touched so many people, management for the Fairmount Water Works Interpretive Center (FWWIC) has extended the exhibition for an additional week.

Metro Theater Company (MTC), St. Louis' premier professional theater for youth and families and St. Louis' third-oldest professional theater company, continues its 22/23 50th Anniversary Season with SEEDFOLKS, adapted from the favorite middle school book by Newbery Medal-winning author Paul Fleischman.

World Music Institute takes international music to the clubs with the debut of the LET'S DANCE series, as part of WMI's new Fall-Winter 2022-23 Season.

The Dramatists Guild, Theater Communications Group and the Shakespeare Theatre Association have released a statement condemning threats made against Nataki Garrett,  Artistic Director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. 

VARIATIONS ON CHANGE, the 2022 iteration of the longtime Baltimore VARIATIONS project, demonstrates diversity and inclusion in subject matter, participation, cast and production folx at Motor House in Baltimore's Station North Arts District. Audiences choose by vote the 2023 theme of VARIATIONS.

Bristol Old Vic is partnering with Black South West Network to host a free screening of The Meaning of Zong and Panel discussion, as the first event in their series on cultural heritage.

TDF, the not-for-profit organization for the performing arts formerly known as Theatre Development Fund, has welcomed a new Chair of the Board of Trustees: H. Gwen Marcus. The announcement was made by TDF’s current Chair, Earl D. Weiner, who has held the position since November 2008.

Settlement was the word of the week on Broadway, with both the Rudin/SpotCo suit and JPP/Wagner Johnson lawsuits finding resolution through settlement - the latter is the subject of a new regular feature for this newsletter from our Industry Editor Cara Joy David.

Fly The Flag launched in 2018 on the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), with artist and activist Ai Weiwei commissioned to design a flag as a symbol for Human Rights. 

Chance Theater, Anaheim’s official resident theater company, will host a new stand-up comedy series presented by Prayer Dudz – Stand-Up Tuesdays. This new stand-up comedy series, hosted by Mark Christopher Lawrence (best known for playing Big Mike from the NBC hit series “Chuck”), will have its next performance on Tuesday, October 18th with an exciting comedy line-up that includes headliner Frances Dilorenzo, featured performer Kimbles Hume, and opener Annie Wiebe.

Seattle Center Festál will host Turkfest, Saturday, Oct. 8, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 9, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Seattle Center Armory Food & Event Hall.

Wilmington Concert Opera will present the world premiere of “Girondines,” a two-act ensemble chamber opera for six women, and scored for piano, violin, cello, and electronics. Composer Sarah Van Sciver set the libretto by WCO's co-founder and artistic director, Kirsten C. Kunkle.

Omnium Circus, which has made it its mission to be the world's most inclusive circus, has been named a 2022 Leading Disability Employer by the National Organization on Disability (NOD).  This highly selective award, presented on the eve of National Disability Employment Awareness Month (October), is bestowed upon a very limited number of companies based on strict standards they are required to meet. The award was presented at NOD's Annual Forum on September 29 in Washington, D.C.

Diversionary Theatre celebrates the first birthday of their newest space, the Clark Cabaret & Bar, with a special birthday event on October 30, culminating a month of special engagements and returning artists nightly. HalloQUEEN on October 30 at 7:00 PM celebrates the Clark Cabaret & Bar's one-year birthday with Halloween-themed activities and a full night of artists who have helped pioneer the queer-themed entertainment hosted by the cabaret six nights a week since October 2021.

Nearly 40 independent Chicago-area media outlets, members of the Chicago Independent Media Alliance (CIMA), are joining forces for their third annual fundraising campaign kicking off  next week.

The Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, now in its 30th Anniversary Season, also celebrates 10 years of its cutting-edge PEAK series with BélO the Haitian singing sensation.  BélO, the artist who launched the series in 2012 is returning for two performances on October 8.   

Denver Arts & Venues has announced the 20th Five Points Jazz Festival on June 3, 2023, and is now accepting applications for 2023 performers and proposals for a festival producer.

What do Morgan James, Shoshana Bean, Cynthia Erivo, Orfeh, Bridget Everett, Ledisi, Ann Harada and Debbie Gravitte have in common? They're All Super on the new JCSS studio recording.

The New York Pops will open their 2022–2023 Carnegie Hall season on Friday, October 21 at 8:00 p.m. in Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage with the music of Star Wars—a comprehensive program that includes John Williams’ music from all nine films in the Skywalker saga as well as the two anthology films.