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National Diversity Forum
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Mission
| History | Current Initiatives | |
by Timothy McCuen Piggee
When asked to reflect upon the topic of diversity in the theatre my mind
travels not to the thorny issues of color-blind casting and cultural bias, I
happen to think that those issues are and will always inherently American, but
I focus on the lack of diversity within the institutions themselves, particularly
in the fields of arts management and development.
When it comes to
diversity, I’ve rarely seen the business management area of a theater
match or surpass the artistic departments.
I often wonder how our organizations will continue to survive if they do
not reflect the very communities they serve.
Perhaps the more difficult question is how to get young persons of color
interested in the field arts management?
Could this be done with
stronger recruitment programs or institutional mentorship programs? I don’t really know the answers to
those questions, but I think they are questions worth asking. I think we can all agree that the face of
this country is swiftly changing and the programming of our organizations must
change along with it. As traditional
funding sources drift away and more and more corporate sources replace them, we
need strong advocates to help ensure that the art we produce is both forward
thinking and reflective of the communities we serve.