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Artistic Direction

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The Virtuosity of Black Storytelling with Tarell Alvin McCraney
Podcast
The Virtuosity of Black Storytelling with Tarell Alvin McCraney
by Jordan Ealey, Leticia Ridley, Tarell Alvin McCraney
6 March 2024
How LUNG Is Breathing Radical Joy into Theatre in the United Kingdom
Essay
How LUNG Is Breathing Radical Joy into Theatre in the United Kingdom
by verity healey, Matt Woodhead, Helen Monks
5 March 2024
Perspectives from Two Teatros Doing the Work
Essay
Perspectives from Two Teatros Doing the Work
by Milta Ortiz, Alberto Justiniano
3 January 2024
two people sitting onstage
Getting Out of the Way So That You Can Listen to the Challenge
Essay

Getting Out of the Way So That You Can Listen to the Challenge

Nataki Garrett and Bill Rauch in Conversation, Part I

27 June 2019

Part I of the conversation between Bill Rauch and Nataki Garrett—the outgoing and incoming artistic directors of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival—touches on personal values, gratitude, and how the joy lives in the struggle.

joe haj and rob melrose
“Who are you when scared?”
Essay

“Who are you when scared?”

Confidence, Fearlessness, and Artistic Direction

23 June 2019

Artistic directors Joe Haj of Minneapolis’s Guthrie Theater and Rob Melrose of Houston’s Alley Theatre talk about confidence and fearlessness, a company of actors, fighting for the classics, and more.

two Black actresses sit on a couch
The Gift
Essay

The Gift

The Importance of Difficult Conversations Between Collaborators

12 May 2019

Playwright Pearl Cleage reflects on the power of truth-telling to find common ground and discusses how Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, GA is working to confront the legacy of Southern racism.

three people sit at a table reading
Listening and Finding Common Ground
Essay

Listening and Finding Common Ground

Chris Coleman and Marya Sea Kaminski in Conversation

28 April 2019

Artistic directors Marya Sea Kaminski, of the Pittsburgh Public Theater, and Chris Coleman, of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, talk about board relationships, connecting with new audiences, budgets as moral documents, and more.

an actor in a mask
Talking Sustainability with Leda Hoffman of Strawdog Theatre Company
Podcast

Talking Sustainability with Leda Hoffman of Strawdog Theatre Company

From the Ground Up Episode #7

15 April 2019

In episode seven of the From the Ground Up Podcast, Jeffrey Mosser talks to Leda Hoffman about her recent appointment of artistic director of Strawdog Theatre Company. This is a two-part interview with Strawdog Theatre Company—you can listen to Part One here.

three concentric circles with the text "why" "how" and "what"
Now What?
Essay

Now What?

Finding the "Why" in a Leadership Transition

14 April 2019

David Dower, artistic director of ArtsEmerson, reflects on the many recent leadership changes in North American theatre and asks, “What now?”

The Women in Theatre Leadership: Agency, Challenges, and Changes
Video

The Women in Theatre Leadership: Agency, Challenges, and Changes

at Princeton University

Tuesday 26 March 2019
Princeton, New Jersey
Melia and Michael hug each other.
From Guest to Host
Essay

From Guest to Host

Melia Bensussen and Michael Wilson in Conversation

24 February 2019

Melia Bensussen, incoming artistic director at Hartford Stage, talks with Michael Wilson, who previously ran the theatre for thirteen years. 

three actors onstage, one looks surprised
Taking Leaps in Leadership
Essay

Taking Leaps in Leadership

Sarah Rasmussen and Joanie Schultz in Conversation, Part Two

10 February 2019

In Part Two of this conversation, Sarah Rasmussen, artistic director at Minneapolis’s Jungle Theater, and Joanie Schultz, former artistic director at Addison’s WaterTower Theatre, talk about their biggest successes over the past couple of years, the difference in a board’s relationship to a founding artistic director and to a new leader, and more.

Two professional women
Following the "Knowing"
Essay

Following the "Knowing"

Joanie Schultz and Sarah Rasmussen in Conversation

3 February 2019

In Part I of this conversation, Sarah Rasmussen, artistic director at Minneapolis’s Jungle Theater, and Joanie Schultz, former artistic director at Addison’s WaterTower Theatre, talk about the importance of working with a third party during leadership transitions, trusting your gut in decision-making, and more.

Kinan Valdez and Jacob G. Padrón
Founding, Leading, and Carrying the Torch
Essay

Founding, Leading, and Carrying the Torch

Kinan Valdez and Jacob G. Padrón in Conversation

27 January 2019

Kinan Valdez and Jacob G. Padrón talk about growing up in a theatre family, leadership in the Latinx community, the skills needed to be the artistic leader of a company, and more.

naomi and emma
We Can't Work in Isolation
Essay

We Can't Work in Isolation

Naomi Campbell and Emma Stenning in Conversation

13 January 2019

Naomi Campbell, Luminato’s new artistic director, sits down with Emma Stenning, Soulpepper’s new executive director, about theatre in Toronto, reaching communities outside of the downtown core, cross-collaboration, and more.

three actors on stage
Taking Risks and Minimizing Failure
Essay

Taking Risks and Minimizing Failure

Johanna Pfaelzer and Lisa Steindler in Conversation

23 December 2018

Johanna Pfaelzer, incoming artistic director at Berkeley Rep Theatre, and Lisa Steindler, executive artistic director of Z Space, talk about creating partnerships with organizations across the Bay Area, the younger generation of leaders, and more.

Two men talking
Standing in Our Grandfathers' Shoes
Essay

Standing in Our Grandfathers' Shoes

Sarah Bellamy and Jamil Jude in Conversation

9 December 2018

Sarah Bellamy, artistic director of Saint Paul’s Penumbra Theatre, talks to Jamil Jude, incoming artistic director of Kenny Leon’s True Colors Theatre Company in Atlanta, about learning from the founders, the funding disparity between predominantly white institutions and theatres of color, and more.

How To Prep A Staff For An Organizational Pivot
Essay

How To Prep A Staff For An Organizational Pivot

Rob Orchard and Susan Medak in Conversation, Part 2

2 December 2018

Susie Medak, managing director of Berkeley Rep Theatre, talks to Rob Orchard about how to best prep staff for a major leadership change, how an outgoing artistic director can work with the incoming one, and more.

Two people smiling in front of a theatre
How To Prep A Board For An Organizational Pivot
Essay

How To Prep A Board For An Organizational Pivot

Rob Orchard and Susan Medak in Conversation, Part 1

25 November 2018

Susan Medak, managing director of Berkeley Rep Theatre, speaks with Rob Orchard about a board’s involvement with changing leadership, reevaluating a company’s artistic mission in the lead up to hiring someone new, and more.

Following Curiosity and Keeping the Apocalypse at Bay
Essay

Following Curiosity and Keeping the Apocalypse at Bay

Tony Taccone and Pam MacKinnon in Conversation

18 November 2018

Berkeley Rep’s outgoing artistic director Tony Taccone talks with new artistic director of A.C.T. Pam MacKinnon about moving from freelancing to running an institution and vice versa, the language used to talk about a company’s vision, subscriptions as economic foundation of theatre, and more.

director in a rehearsal room talking to two actors
Aligning Values with Actions
Essay

Aligning Values with Actions

Bill Rauch and Diane Ragsdale in Conversation

28 October 2018

Bill Rauch, the inaugural artistic director of the Perelman Performing Arts Center, and Diane Ragsdale, assistant professor at the New School, sit down to discuss long overlaps between outgoing and incoming leaders; equity, diversity, and inclusion initiatives; the responsibility of an artistic leader is the time of #MeToo and #TimesUp; and more.

What If
Essay

What If

The JUBILEE’s Vision of Unity and Action

24 October 2018

Rachel Grossman and Kirk Lynn announce the JUBILEE, a year-long nationwide festival in 2020/20201 that asks companies to commit to producing a season of work by artists who have been traditionally excluded from the American theatre.

woman, smiling and holding a mic, addresses audience
Walking Narrative-Subverters
Essay

Walking Narrative-Subverters

Joyce Rosario and Meiyin Wang in Conversation

21 October 2018

Joyce Rosario, interim artistic director of the PuSh Festival, and producer and curator Meiyin Wang sit down to talk about whether the next crop of leaders is being set up for success, working across differences with colleagues, their respective transitions, and more.

actors hugging onstage
Shifting Institutions, Shifting Audiences
Essay

Shifting Institutions, Shifting Audiences

Brendan Healy and May Antaki in Conversation

17 October 2018

May Antaki speaks with Brendan Healy, the new artistic director of Toronto’s Canadian Stage, about leadership changeovers happening across Canada, how his approach to being an AD has shifted over the years, his desire to cultivate curiosity inside audiences, and more.

Punching Up
Essay

Punching Up

Stephanie Ybarra and Maria Goyanes in Conversation

16 October 2018

Stephanie Ybarra and Maria Goyanes discuss their similar artistic journies and their goals for the future.

Redefining What Tomorrow Looks Like
Essay

Redefining What Tomorrow Looks Like

Hana Sharif and Kwame Kwei-Armah in Conversation

15 October 2018

Artistic directors Hana Sharif and Kwame Kwei-Armah discuss transitions in leadership in the US and UK and how they've helped define success in their respective institutions.

David Dower and David Howse stand next to each other.
A User’s Guide to Leadership Transition in the North American Theatre
Essay

A User’s Guide to Leadership Transition in the North American Theatre

14 October 2018

David Dower, artistic director of ArtsEmerson, introduces the leadership series with thoughts and advice from his past experiences with major leadership transitions over his thirty-year career.

Diversity for Dummies Part Two
Essay

Diversity for Dummies Part Two

Why The Best Intentions Sometimes Fail

9 October 2018

Director Ralph Peña writes about the importance of beginning every project from a place of inclusion, rather than relying on retroactive "diversity initiatives."