Starting Monday, March 8, DG's Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee will be hosting Town Halls in our six regions during the month of March. Our goal is to create a space where we can navigate the expanding conversations around representation, access and inclusion, harm reduction, and the power of storytelling to help repair the damage that injustice and exclusion have perpetuated. Please join our regional reps, industry guests, and DEI Chair Christine Toy Johnson in conversation, followed by an open forum.
"I believe we’re in the middle of the beginning of cracking open the kinds of conversations about inclusion and anti-racism that have come to the forefront in the past year. It’s my hope that in community with one another we can brainstorm proactive and sustainable ways to further amplify our diverse voices as we continue to expand the landscape of American storytelling." -Christine Toy Johnson
Past Town Halls
Monday, March 8 at 11am PDT (2pm EDT)
WESTERN REGION
Featuring: Elaine Romero, Southwestern Regional Rep
Dr. Jasmine Mahmoud, Board President for the Intiman Theatre
Hosted by Christine Toy Johnson, DEI Committee Chair
Wednesday, March 10 at 1pm CDT (2pm EDT)
MID-ATLANTIC/MID-WESTERN REGION
Featuring: Anita Gonzalez, DG Regional Affairs Committee
Lily Tung Crystal, Artistic Director of Theater Mu
Hosted by Christine Toy Johnson, DEI Committee Chair
Monday, March 15 at 2pm EDT
SOUTHERN REGION
Featuring: Tere Martinez, Puerto Rico Regional Rep
Robert Barry Fleming, Artistic Director of Actor’s Theater of Louisville
Hosted by Christine Toy Johnson, DEI Committee Chair
Monday, March 22 at 12pm PDT (3pm EDT)
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGION
Featuring: Diana Burbano, Southern California Regional Rep
Freedome Bradley Ballantine, Associate Artistic Director and Director of Arts Engagement The Old Globe
Hosted by Christine Toy Johnson, DEI Committee Chair
Wednesday, March 24 at 2pm EDT
NORTHEASTERN REGION
Featuring: Andrea Lepcio, Maine Regional Ambassador
Michael Bobbitt, Mass Cultural Council
Pirronne Yousefzadeh, Associate Artistic Director and Director of Engagement at Geva Theatre Center
Hosted by Christine Toy Johnson, DEI Committee Chair
Monday, March 29 at 2pm EDT
NYC REGION (National)
Featuring: Amanda Green, Ty Defoe, Rona Siddiqui, DG Council Members
Jay Alan Zimmerman, composer
Hosted by Christine Toy Johnson, DEI Committee Chair
Please note that if you are unable to make it to your own region's town hall, you are welcome to join any of the other regional town hall events. You are also welcome to attend multiple sessions.
The Dramatists Guild is committed to exposing and eliminating the systemic biases that exist in all aspects of our field. We commit to doing this both within our own organization and with advocacy throughout our field. We take on this commitment on behalf of the plurality of our membership whose career paths are made demonstrably steeper by an unequal distribution of resources, mentorships, recognition, and productions. The Dramatists Guild invites all members of the theatre community to join us in taking concrete steps to challenge stereotypes of otherness and to address conscious and unconscious bias in our decision-making processes.