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We rely on the generous support of people like you to sustain our tradition of artistic excellence, and secure a bright future for our Company.
We believe that live theatre connects us all in the universal pursuit of a purposeful existence and reveals through storytelling the meaning of our humanity. This can only be achieved when theatre is genuinely inclusive and reflects the stories of all, particularly those who have been ignored, diminished, or erased.
In June 2020, we released an anti-racism statement expressing our commitment to build a fully inclusive, diverse, equitable, and accessible culture at Shakespeare & Company. Since then, we have made incremental steps towards this goal. Along our journey, and with the realization of the magnitude of the task before us, we have slowed down in order to be more accountable for the impact of our actions. We are listening, increasing our awareness, and understanding of how pervasive systemic racism and gender bias are in the power structures, practices, policies, and norms of institutions across this country, including in our predominantly white institution, Shakespeare & Company.
We have been urged by company members to be more forthcoming in the ways we plan to make our spaces and programming anti-racist, anti-oppressive, and accessible for all, in particular people of the global majority who work at Shakespeare & Company. By allowing entrenched patterns to dictate practices and interactions, we have neglected to prioritize anti-racism, gender inclusion, pay equity, and economic justice. We owe artists, staff, volunteers, and patrons, as well as the community at large our commitment to sustain this work and communicate our intention and process clearly.
To date, we have either fulfilled or begun to pursue the following:
We move forward with the understanding that becoming a fully inclusive and anti-racist organization requires continual practice and self-examination through the lens of racial and social justice. This includes rehearsal procedures, season planning, casting/hiring practices, employee compensation, leadership, governance, curriculum of our Actor Training and Education programs, and the accessibility of our programming and campus to people of all abilities. We cannot pretend that change will come quickly or easily, but we will remain vigilant and focused. We know there is no going back. We will continue to build an organization with authentic inclusion, diversity, and racial and gender equity as its foundation, a place where all of our stories are nurtured and celebrated.
- Shakespeare & Company
Shakespeare & Company is a professional live theatre company in the heart of the Berkshires, presenting a vibrant summer performance season featuring the works of Shakespeare in repertory with classic and contemporary plays. The Company offers one of the most extensive actor training programs by a regional theatre in the country, and is also home to an award-winning and nationally recognized theatre-in-education program.