Stage A
Change

Building an audience of allies

Darlinghurst Theatre Company is proud to welcome Stage A Change in 2022 as our Access, Equity and Inclusion Partner. Throughout the year, Stage A Change will work closely with Darlo to implement our Access, Equity and Inclusion Statement, and to support the artists, audiences and allies in our community. They will deliver a series of industry-focused workshops throughout the year, which are open for our community to attend, to help us collectively work towards our Access, Equity and Inclusion goals.

We are further proud to announce our placement in the first cohort of The ChangeMakers - a new program developed by Stage A Change to support organisations working to make their arts practice more anti-racist, accessible, equitable and inclusive.

We acknowledge that as a PWI (primarily white institution) we have a responsibility to create brave and emboldened spaces for those who have historically been excluded or under-represented in arts organisations. Further, we are committed to an anti-racist, inclusive and sustainable arts practice. We acknowledge that we have work to do, and are committed to taking action (as outlined in our Access, Equity and Inclusion Statement). Stage A Change will work with us to onboard all staff, lead artists, and employees who are responsible for company care, offer internal workshops and upskilling sessions in cultural dexterity and safety, and remain on retainer for any internal or external grievances as they may arise.

We also invite allies to join us in our mission by attending our bi-monthly workshops hosted and curated by Stage A Change Founder, Cessalee Stovall. This will include Foundational Workshops throughout the year, as well as a Focus Series including specialist workshops and forums.

More details on each workshop and how you can participate will be made available on our website throughout the year as they are programmed. See more below.

About Stage A Change

Founded in 2017, Stage A Change is an organisation working to create more professional theatre opportunities for aspiring artists of colour throughout Australia. New in 2021, Stage A Change has developed an industry-focused consultancy program, specifically created for arts practitioners and theatre companies. This program enables independent artists, producers, creatives and organisations to initiate, develop, build and take action on best practices with regards to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, based on their project, vision, budget and goals.

For more information about Stage A Change and The ChangeMakers, please contact hello@stageachange.org.

Stage a Change has a 3 Spoke Plan to bring about this change. Artist Training, Community Engagement and Industry Standards. Our belief is that it is necessary to invest and make change in all three areas for the figurative wheel to start turning in the direction of inclusivity and equity in the theatre.

Training Stage A Change has and will continue to produce a training program to help artists discover and develop skills necessary for a career in the arts. Our first training program was in 2018 in partnership with University of Melbourne / VCA. A rotating roster of directors, acting coaches, music directors, choreographers, agents etc. facilitate these workshop style classes and professional actors supplement training by engaging with students as mentors. Through this elite training program, aspiring artists can begin to learn the skills necessary to be competitive in the industry at a professional standard.

Community Engagement By organically engaging culturally diverse communities, over time we can develop a new audience who are excited to see their stories told onstage. The first steps are to create ongoing discussions and experiences that welcome a new audience into live theatre and the accessibility of the arts as a career.

Industry Standards We will continue to facilitate discussion and action with industry stakeholders to implement ground and glass breaking industry standards with regard to sourcing and casting actists of colour. Through open, candid discussion, forums, and support to build a plan for change, we hope to help casting directors, artistic directors, producers, and creatives find solutions that result in truly authentic representations on stage, behind the curtain and in the audience.

About Cessalee Stovall

Cessalee Stovall is an artist, educator, and advocate who connects her theatre and performance practice, expertise as an educator, lived experience as a Black artist, and passion for arts outreach to deliver programming that serves artists and our industry on a global scale. With a degree in theatre from Florida State University, certificates in Diversity and Inclusion from Purdue University and Cornell University, and a Mental Health First Aid certification, she is uniquely qualified to support diversity, equity, inclusion and mental health in the performing arts sector.

Known for her open-minded perspective and knack for understanding the larger picture, Cessalee has earned the respect and support of theatre industry professionals globally. In addition to providing access to training, Cessalee believes that by discussing and implementing both ground- and glass-breaking best practices, we will continue to diversify our industry, both onstage, offstage, and in the audiences, making space to hear more voices, understand more stories, and engage more authentically.

 
 

When

Monday 21 November

Upcoming Workshops

Learning Lab: Building an Inclusive Arts Practice
2-5pm

For all general enquiries, please email theatre@darlinghursttheatre.com

For Box Office please call 02 8356 9987. Box Office hours are Monday-Friday 10am-5:30pm.

Read our Covid-19 Safety Plan here.

Learn more about getting to our venue and parking here.

UPCOMING FOUNDATIONAL WORKSHOPS

Monday 21 November
2-5pm

$25

Free for independent artists

Learning Lab
Building an Inclusive Arts Practice

Learning Labs are interactive, arts-based workshops designed to support arts workers as they imagine, build, and take action toward an industry powered by equity, access and inclusion for all humans. Each workshop ends with a clear action-item for participants to use in their arts practice immediately. This workshop is designed for people who work in and around the live performance sector.

Workshop facilitated by Marissa Saroca

 

PAST FOCUS SERIES

Mon 28 Mar
6pm-7pm

Free

Panel Discussion
Intersectionality in the Arts: Stay Woke

How is intersectionality represented in the performing arts? In casting? In direction? In marketing? In the audience? 

Malthouse Theatre's production of Stay Woke is presented by Darlinghurst Theatre Company from 26 March to 17 April. Stay Woke is a play about brothers. It’s also a play about first generation Australians. And it’s a play about non-binary humans and the societal constructs that bind them. Race, gender identity, nationality, favour and privilege come together in this story, and that intersection guides our storytelling and the way we engage with the communities who are represented within.

Join Cessalee Stovall and a panel of professionals to discuss how intersectionality and identity inform their theatre making practice.