On August 21, 2020, an open letter was sent to the Board of Directors of Coalition Theater by the RVA BIPOC Project, a group of Coalition performers of color, outlining concerns around racial equity and inclusion that they didn’t see being addressed at the theater. The letter included a list of demands. The Board agreed with the critiques outlined in the letter, and saw the demands as the nucleus of a useful road map for the theater to improve its anti-racist efforts.
This document is the response to that initial letter and is intended to serve as a guide for the theater as it moves towards making these intentions into real, concrete policy and action. This document was directly inspired by the letter written by the RVA BIPOC Project and was written by the Action and Accountability Committee, which the Board of Directors formed on November 4, 2020, as a fulfillment of one of the demands in the original letter. This document has been approved by the RVA BIPOC Project as well as by the Board of Directors of Coalition Theater.
We are proud to share our Statement of Intent publicly, both to hold ourselves accountable, and as a step towards our larger goal of transparency as we navigate these exciting changes towards a more racially inclusive and equitable Coalition Theater.
I. Coalition Leadership and Public Representation
It is the intention of the Board that at no time should leadership positions at any given level be held solely by white persons. Leadership positions in the Coalition include both paid and volunteer roles, including but not limited to the following levels:
the Coalition’s Board of Directors and Board Committee Members;
the Education Director, the Artistic Director, the Operations Coordinator, Communications Coordinator, and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Liaison;
House Managers;
Teachers, TAs, House Team Coaches, and Show Directors;
and will include future roles that develop as the Coalition grows and changes over time.
The Board will take the following steps to achieve the goal of greater representation:
The Board will ensure that the representation of BIPOC Board members sitting at any time is reflective of the Jackson Ward community and surrounding regions.
Over time, the Board intends to grow, and new additions to the Board will actively pursue not only racial but also gender, sexuality, ability, and other representation.
Expectations of Board membership shall be made clear to potential members before they choose to join, and shall account for differing abilities, assets, and resources.
Leadership will empower BIPOC Theater members and students to apply for higher positions within the Theater and will provide training opportunities, including but not limited to mentorship, apprenticeship, and internal or external workshops.
To ensure that public communications associated with the theater are inclusive, considerate of, and relevant and accessible to the diverse audience that they reach, BIPOC creative professionals will be included in the planning and execution of messaging on social media, promotion, and marketing. In practice, this may entail the formation of a particular committee (e.g. a communications committee, a review committee, a diversity and inclusion committee), or an expansion of the design and social media teams.
II. Historical Impact of BIPOC Structural and Income Inequality.
Countering the pervasive manifestations of this racism requires the implementation of ongoing, actively anti-racist policy in education programs, including free class spots, scholarships, and internships.
Affirming that low BIPOC membership in the Coalition is due in part to this structural inequality, the Coalition will:
Reduce economic barriers for BIPOC-identifying students through scholarships, internships/ and other programs.
Improve the Coalition Scholarship program by ensuring opportunities are clearly communicated on the Coalition Theater website, including specifics about eligibility and the application process.
Restructure the Coalition Internship program to prioritize applicable skill and leadership development over operational support. The internship experience will be clearly defined in a public document.
Build promotional recruitment material to communicate all educational offerings, including but not limited to free BIPOC student slots, scholarships, and internship programs, to the audience of potential Coalition students, with a focus on BIPOC-identified groups.
III. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Training
The Board, in conjunction with the Action and Accountability Committee, will identify third-party professional Diversity, Equity and Inclusion training sources. Such training will be implemented for all levels of theater membership.
The Board, in conjunction with the Action and Accountability committee, will create an anti-racist best practices document for staff and an anti-racist code of conduct for theater students and members. This documentation will be reviewed and amended as appropriate. This documentation will be publicly accessible from the Coalition website, or a shared document repository accessible by all members of the Coalition.
The Board, in conjunction with the Action and Accountability Committee (and other committees or groups in the theater as appropriate), will draft a policy for the compliance of all Coalition theater members, which will include provision of Code Of Conduct material and regular Diversity and Inclusion training opportunities.
Consequences of violating the Code of Conduct will be developed in conjunction with the Action and Accountability Committee, and will be published along with the Code of Conduct.
This Document will outline processes for reporting incidents, repairing relationships, suspension, and expulsion.
IV. Diversification of the Theater at All Levels
The Board recognizes that the current makeup of the Coalition membership has a disproportionate underrepresentation of BIPOC performers and creators.
All new house teams will be cast with a significant representation of BIPOC members, in order to better reflect the surrounding community. New systems will be put in place to offer support to new performers during their onboarding.
All shows will be curated with a significant representation of BIPOC performers, directors, producers, and writers in order to better reflect the surrounding community. All quarters of the year will contain shows developed by BIPOC creators.
Coalition coaches and directors will be required to cultivate casts and teams that include BIPOC performers.
The Artistic Director will schedule shows that align with the mission of the A&A Committee and the theater at large, and will be required to be transparent in the rationale behind their decisions. The Artistic Director will partner with the A&A Committee, or any subcommittee developed to support show scheduling. In addition, the Artistic Director will be required to prioritize BIPOC creators in each quarter’s schedule. All showrunners will be provided support throughout the process with the intent of increasing inclusion and representation in programming.
The Board, in coordination with the Action and Accountability Committee, and other committees as appropriate, will work to develop promotional materials to reach and cultivate a more diverse and inclusive Coalition-going audience. This may entail research into what other theaters have done successfully in this area, audience and theater member surveys, bringing in touring acts, or data-driven experiments to help develop consistently successful promotional materials.
V. Third Party Mediation and Conflict Resolution
The theater will identify a neutral party whose role serves to receive and mediate conflicts, complaints, and other issues from theater members. Theater members will be provided clear procedures for contacting the mediator.
This neutral party will either have received training in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, as well as trauma-informed care, or will receive that training as part of their onboarding into the role.
In the event that the mediator leaves their role, the Coalition members will be notified via a Slack post and email distribution list within two business days, and the Board will fill the role with a qualified candidate as soon as possible.
