Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Resources

Table of Contents

The South Florida Theatre launched this resource page in September 2020 as part of their ongoing commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion within our arts community.

If you wish to add a resource or article related to DEI within the performing arts, please email Andie Arthur.

Updated on 1/02/2024:

Who Designs and Directs in LORT Theatres by Pronoun, 2010 – 2020 by Porsche McGovern, HowlRound, November 2023.

Insectional Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Boards are Broken, So Let’s Break and Remake Them by Michael J. Bobbitt. American Theatre. January 2021.

Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells the Story of Your Resignation by Lauren Halvorsen, Nothing for the Group, February 2021.

Alliance Theatre’s Anti-Bias Training (available for corporations, non-profits, educators and families)

artEquity offers multiple types of training on diversity, equity and inclusion, including board training and facilitator training.

Activists and Organizations You Should Be Following, Culture Crusaders, July 2020

Aesthetic Perspectives: A framework to enhance understanding and evaluation of creative work at the intersection of arts and civic engagement, community development, and justice.

Alternate ROOTS, a service organization for artists and arts organizations in the Southeastern part of the United States focused on addressing social and economic injustice and dismantling oppression

Anti-Racism and Equity Resources from Nonprofit Learning Lab

artEquity Resources List

Confronting Prejudice: How to Protect Yourself and Help Others, Pepperdine University, July 2019.

Community Centric Fundraising

Create Forward, a consulting firm for DEI issues

Dramatists Guild’s Inclusion Rider

The Equitable Performing Arts Classroom Resource Page from Momentum Stage

Hollaback! An organization dedicated to ending harassment with extensive bystander training on multiple axes

Maven Leadership Collective, training and programs for Queer and Trans People of Color

No More 10 out of 12s, a website with data and details on why this rehearsal practice is inequitable

Theatre and Systemic Change, a list of multiple resources from Drama League

StateraArts Resource Directory

Unconscious Bias Training and Other Workshops with Verna Myers

Voices United Consulting, a Miami-Dade based consulting organization for AntiRacism in the Arts (among other consulting services)

Show the Salary, a collection of resources and data on why it is important to show salaries on non-profit job listings to improve diversity and equity within your organization

Accessibility and Ableism

ADA 30 in Color, a collection of essays by various authors about the past, present, and future of disability rights and justice by disabled BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) writers. 2020.

Anti-Abelism 101: How to Be a Better Ally by Melissa Hillman, Bitter Gertrude, July 2020.

ASL and Theatre: Here’s What Not to Do by Brian Andrew Cheslik, American Theatre, May 2021.

The Disability Scorecard: Are you doing a panel or doing something? by Ryan A. Haddad, American Theatre, August 2020.

Movement is for Every Body by Katie Butler, HowlRound, March 2023.

Naming the Trope: A Deep Dive into the Harmful Uses of Disability Stereotypes in the American Theatre by Ben Raanan, HowlRound, January 2022.

Practicing Disability Justice, Honoring Wholeness OnStage by Lydia X.Z. Brown, American Theatre, March 2021.

Ten Ableist Tropes to Jettison in 2021 by Melissa Hillman, Bitter Gertrude, January 2021.

To Be a Long Hailer; or, if We Build It We Can Thrive by Taina Richard, HowlRound, November 2021.

We Didn’t Have Any Role Models: An Interview with the Founders of Wry Crips Disabled Women’s Theatre Group by Michaela Goldhaber, HowlRound, August 2019.

Why I won’t be organizing any in-person fundraising events for the foreseeable future by Ingrid Tischer, Disability Visibility Project, May 2022.

You’re Not Okay? Glad to Hear It. by Melissa Hillman, Bitter Gertrude, May 2020.

Against Sameness in Theatre by Stephanie Barton-Farcas, HowlRound, October 2015.

Challenging Perspectives on Auditions for the Differently Abled by Aaron Sawyer and Sidney T. Smith, HowlRound, November 2016.

Our Differences are Our Strengths: Neurodiversity in Theatre by Mickey Rowe, HowlRound, May 2015.

Should disabled characters be played by disabled actors? by Chris Hewitt, Minneapolis Star Tribune/Pittsburgh Post Gazette, September 2019.

Theatre Artistis with Disabilities are Ready, Willing, and Yes, Able by Allison Considine, American Theatre, October 2015.

Anti-Racism

20 subtle ways white supremacy manifests in nonprofit and philantrophy, by Vu Le, Nonprofit AF, June 2021.

20 Years on Wilson’s “Ground”, a collection of multiple articles reflecting on August Wilson’s “The Ground on Which I Stand” by multiple authors, American Theatre Magazine, June 2016

ADA 30 in Color, a collection of essays by various authors about the past, present, and future of disability rights and justice by disabled BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) writers. 2020.

Always The Quota, Never the Norm, by Jose Solis, Token Theatre Friends, June 2020.

American Theatre’s Racial Reckoning with The Black Artist Coalition, a podcast and transcript, Daughters of Lorraine at HowlRound, October 2020.

Change in the American Theatre Begins and Ends Outside the Theatre by Sabine Decatur and Taylor Lamb, American Theatre, December 2020.

Erasing the Middle East: White Gatekeeping and the Path of Painful Progress by Ali-Reza Mirsajadi, HowlRound, September 2020.

The Failure of Arts Organizations to Move Toward Racial Equity by Quanice Floyd, Hyperallergic, November 2020.

Have nonprofit and philanthropy become the “white moderate” that Dr. King warned us about? by Vu Le, Nonprofit AF, June 2020.

Hold, Please: Addressing Urgency and Other White Supremacist Standards in Stage Management by R. Christopher Maxwell, John Meredith, Alexander Murphy, Quinn O’Connor, Phyllis Smith, and Chris Waters, HowlRound, October 2020.

How philanthropy fails to support its greatest assets, BIPOC leaders, and what it should do about it by Vu Le, Nonprofit AF, August 2020.

How to be an antiracist theatre maker, American Theatre, October 2021.

Jose Solís: The Critic as Cheerleader, and Critics’ Lab Leader by Rob Weinert-Kendt, American Theatre, October 2020.

Let’s Be Real: These Programs Won’t End Racism at Your Theatre by Michael J. Bobbitt, American Theatre, December 2020.

Not a Moment: Toward an Anti-Racist American Theatre by Jerald Raymond Pierce, American Theatre Magazine, July 2020.

Not your daddy’s theatre criticism: countering white supremacy with inclusive possibility models by Yasmin Zacaria Mikhaiel, University of Texas at Austin, July 2021.

Nonprofit Leadership at a Crossroads by Mistinguette Smith, Nonprofit Quarterly, September 2019.

Now You Will See Us — Being Black in Boston’s Theatres by Christie Guerra, WBUR, June 2020.

An Open Letter to American Regional and Community Theatres on Inclusion by MJ John, Medium, June 2020.

Parents of Color and the Need for Anti-Racist Theatre Practices by Nicole Brewer, HowlRound, December 2019.

Resigning as Renewal: Visions for Artistic Leaders of Color by Regina Victor, Rescripted, July 2022.

A Theatre Statement by Michael Smallwood, Medium, July 2020.

We Have Suffered Enough: The Cost of Performing Trauma for Women of Color by Melisa Pereyra, HowlRound, September 2019.

What are White People Risking? by Diep Tran, Token Theatre Friends, June 2020.

What does it mean to be a woman of color and in leadership? A conversation with Nicole Brewer and Sophia Skiles, HowlRound, January 2021.

What Happens to West Side Story When You Remove Race? by Diep Tran, Token Theatre Friends, September 2020.

White Privilege in the Arts: the Tip of the Iceberg? by Justin Laing, Hillombo Consulting, November 2020.

White Supremacy and Centering Donors’ Interests and Emotions by Vu Le, Nonprofit AF, March 2021.

You’ve Got to Be Taught: Cultural Competency in Theatre Training by Allison Considine, American Theatre, October 2020.

You Want Me to Balance What?: Why the Argument That Fiscal Sustainability is More Important Than Investing in Racial Justice Needs to Go Away by Ryan Ferrebee, HowlRound, December 2021.

Black Ariel: Casting Controversey Under the Sea by Melissa Hillman, Bitter Gertrude, July 2019

Casting a Wider Net by David Valdes, HowlRound, August 2020.

Getting Specific: One Playwright’s Complicated Casting Choices by Larissa Fasthorse, HowlRound, September 2016.

‘Hi, We Need a Black Actor’: What It’s Like to Be on ‘The List’ by Kira Troilo, Biracial Mom, May 2021.

How to Respond to a Casting Controversy by Lavinia Jadhwani, HowlRound, July 2018

Identity-Conscious Casting: Moving Beyond Color-Blind and Color-Conscious Casting by Lavinia Jadhwani and Victor Vazquez, HowlRound, February 2021.

Putting the POC in the Period Drama: from ‘Hamilton’ to ‘Six’ by Diep Tran, Token Theatre Friends, July 2020

You Want a Diverse Theatre: Prove It by Karena Fiorenza Ingersoll, HowlRound, August 2015

10 Contemporary Native American Playwrights You Should Know by Ashleigh Gardner, Performer Stuff, January 2017.

Black Work Broadway, a record of all the plays, musicals, and musical revues presented in a Broadway house created by Black artists

Female Playwrights, Hispanic Comedia, an essay on Hispanic female playwrights of the 17th century, by Barbara Fuchs. HowlRound. March 2020.

Native American Heritage Month: Larissa FastHorse Shares Indigenous Plays to Read by Larissa Fasthorse, Variety, November 2020.

Broadway for Racial Justice, organization provides resources and educational opportunities

D&I Bootcamp for Theatre Educators, a 10 day email training series from Black Acting Methods Studio

Dismantling Anti-Black Linguistic Racism in Shakespeare

Hair Discrimination in the Workplace by Travis Rogers and Chemical Hair Straightener Lawsuits by Michelle Llamas, Consumer Notice. General knowledge articles, but useful for costumers and directors to remember.

New Jersey Theatre Alliance AntiRacism Resources

Racial Equity Impact Assessment Toolkit from RaceForward

Resources for Anti-Racist Action from PlayCo

Stage Source Anti-Racism Resources Page

Talking About Race, from the Smithsonian

We See You White American Theatre List of Demands, June 2020.

Gender Issues (Includes Trans Issues)

A Brief History of the Gender Parity Movement in Theatre by Jenny Lyn Bader, HowlRound, March 2017.

Kicking the Can Down the Road Towards Parity by Yvette Heyliger, HowlRound, February 2015.

A Racial Reckoning is Underway in Theatre; Where is the Gender Reckoning? by Theresa Rebeck, New York Times, October 2021.

The Unsung Gender Parity Warriors by Suzy Evans, American Theatre, September 2015.

Who Designs and Directs in LORT Theatres by Pronoun, 2010 – 2020 by Porsche McGovern, HowlRound, November 2023.

Yes, All Men (Need to Listen): Making Room for Womanhood in the American Theatre by Rachael Bykowski, HowlRound, November 2016.

Gender is Performance: Why Trans* Actors Should Transcend the Character Breakdown by Will Wilhelm, HowlRound, February 2020.

Developing Trans Roles for the Theatre by Regina Victor, American Theatre, September 2020.

Gender Responsive Casting by Josh Orlando, This Stage, November 2019.

Gender Responsive Casting by Meg Greene, HowlRound, June 2016.

Unicorn at the Soup Factory by Ada Karamanyan, American Theatre, September 2020.

Why Trans Representation in the Theater Industry Lags Behind Film and TV by Kate Sosin, Them, July 2019.

Acting Unpleasantly: Why Harassment is so Common in Theatre by Dr. Karen Morash, The Conversation, November 2017.

A Call for Exciting Trans Theater by Nitsan Scharf, HowlRound, December 2018.

Confessions of a Sexist Playwright by Jerrod Bogard, HowlRound, July 2019.

The Gender Pay Gay in Professional Theatre by Susana Correa-Avila Robb, OnStage Blog, April, 2022.

Places to Go: Theatres Embrace the All-Gender Bathroom, by Diep Tran, September 2016

Queer Eye for Theatre Critics: 4 Writing Tips by Caroline Cao, Christian Lewis, Jen Gushue, and Sloth Levine, American Theatre, September 2018.

Trans Theatre is More Than a Cast List by AJ Schwartz, HowlRound, March 2020.

The Untold Dress Code in Philanthropy: How and When We Choose to Police Gender Expression by Carlos Garcia Leon, Community Centric Fundraising, Janaury 2021.

We Have Suffered Enough: The Cost of Performing Trauma for Women of Color by Melisa Pereyra, HowlRound, September 2019.

When Damage is Done by Diep Tran, American Theatre, August 2018.

The Kilroys List. A list of new unproduced plays by female, trans, and non-binary playwrights that are highly recommended by people in the field. Published annually.

More Plays & Musicals for Strong Leading Women, Breaking Character/Concord Theatricals, August 2021.

Women and Playwriting: Telling Their Stories. A collection of interviews with 19 female playwrights about their work.

The Women and TGNC Artist Database, a resource of female, trans, and gender nonconforming artists from Parity Productions

Directory of Gender Consultants in Theatre (Google Spreadsheet)

Directory of Queer/Trans Intimacy Professionals (Google Spreadsheet)

Trans and Non-Binary Resources from StateraArts

What is a Non-binary play? by Jonathan Alexandratos, American Theatre, October 2022.

Parenting Issues in Regards to Equity and Inclusion

Are you really a parent-friendly workplace? by Michelle Ramos and Ashley Walden Davis, HowlRound, September 2022

The Mother of All Emotions by Betty Shamieh, HowlRound, December 2021.

Parents of Color and the Need for Anti-Racist Theatre Practices by Nicole Brewer, HowlRound, December 2019.

Theatre or Family: We Shouldn’t Have to Choose by Caroline Macon Fleischer, American Theatre, March 2020.

Who We Harm When Parenting Isn’t Considered by Rachel Spencer Hewitt, HowlRound, November 2018.

Why Parent-Artists and Institutions Need Human Resources and Support by Iris McQuillian-Grace, HowlRound, December 2019.

Work/Life Balance is Everyone’s Urgent Business Now by Rachel Spencer Hewitt, American Theatre, March 2020.

Other Issues

All Sizes Fit All: The Case for Normalizing Fatness on Stage by Maggie Rogers, American Theatre, January 2018.

How to Combat Fatphobia in Theatre by Melody DeRogatis, September 2021.

Too Big and Not Big Enough: Body Representation on Stage by Joanna Capone, HowlRound, April 2017.

Towards a Fat Theatre by Jeff Bouthiette, HowlRound, October 2020.

Apprenticeship Shouldn’t Mean Exploitation by Amelia Merril, American Theatre, November 2020.

How financially stable people have been making life difficult for their lower-income colleagues in nonprofit by Vu Le, Nonprofit AF, March 2022.

If Internships Go Away, What’s Next for the Next Generation? by Rosie Brownlow-Calkin, American Theatre, July 2022.

Internships are Dead: Long Live Internships by Ashley Malafronte and Michael Dewhatley, HowlRound, July 2021.

Pay Equity: What’s in it for Theatre Companies? by Elsa Hiltner, HowlRound, January 2021.

Theatre as a Commodity: Saving Our Industry by Undoing Our Worst Mistake by Melissa Hillman, Bitter Gertrude, December 2020.

Theatre’s Hiring Crisis by Alice Saville, Exuent Magazine, November 2021.

We Need to Talk About Money by Diep Tran, Token Theatre Friends. August 2020.

When Paying Dues Doesn’t Pay by Jesse Green, New York Times, July 2022.

WTF is a board? from We See You, White American Theatre, December 2020.

Dear American Theatre: Don’t Forget About Immigrant Artists by Francisco Mendoza, American Theatre, October 2020.

Perchance to DREAM by Jose Solis, American Theatre, April 2016.

Arabs and Muslims OnStage: Can We Unpack Our Baggage? by Yussef El Guindi, American Theatre, September 2017.

Jewish Theatre: Every Good Question Deserves Another Question by David Winitsky, HowlRound, March 2014.

Re-Orienting How American Theatre Covers Islam by Thomas Simsarian Dolan, HowlRound, June 2017.

Sobriety is a Social Justice Issue Too by Anasofia Villanueva, American Theatre, August 2021.