HowlRound defines commons-based approaches as practices that promote relationality, cooperation, horizontal and decentralized decision-making and networks, bottom-up activity, and peer-to-peer sharing of infrastructure, material goods, knowledge, and ideas. Content in this section directly addresses practices of commoning from around the field. Dive in with essays on the promise of the commons, the birth of a climate commons, and how a commons becomes a selection committee.
The Latest
Essay
Facilitative Directing Centers the Art
by Kimberly Senior
1 June 2026
Essay
Artists Lead the Way at the 2026 Under the Radar Symposium
Barbara Fuchs and Elena Araoz share information about their new projects that attempt to make sense of the transformations to the theatre field and put a call out for artists to help chart these transformations.
A meeting of art practitioners actively rethinking and reshaping organisational models for the arts sector in the EuroMed region
Monday 9 March - Wednesday 11 March 2020
Zagreb, Croatia
Event Canceled: RESHAPE presents the Intensive Zagreb meeting livestreaming from Zagreb, Croatia on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv Monday 9 March to Wednesday 11 March 2020.
Robert Duffley, Una Chaudhuri, Georgina Escobar, Eli Nixon, Adilson Siqueira, and Brontë Velez reflect on the Hemispheric Institute for Performance and Politics convening that took place in Mexico City in June 2019.
Encouraging alternative economies and a fresh social contract for artists and cultural anchors
Wednesday 23 October 2019
Oakland, California
Center for Cultural Innovation (CCI) presented the inaugural AmbitioUS convening encouraging the development of burgeoning alternative economies and a fresh social contract in ways that artists and cultural anchors can achieve financial freedom. Livestreamed from Oakland, California on the commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Wednesday 23 October 2019 at 8:30 a.m. PDT (Oakland, UTC -7) / 10:30 a.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC -5) / 11:30 a.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4) / 15:30 UTC +0 / 4:30 p.m. BST (London, UTC +1) / 17:30 CEST (Berlin, UTC +2).
Rethinking the Commoditized Theatre and the Public Space
22 October 2019
Charles M Pepiton discusses professional theatre’s commercial roots, how mission statements of non-profits today focus on social engagement, community-based development, and more.
In honor of World Commons Week 2019, a working group of eleven US-based arts and cultural makers share their vision on how adopting a commons-based approach can help transform the arts into a more equitable and just field.
HowlRound Theatre Commons and Emerson College's Engagement Lab presented The Power of the Commons with author David Bollier livestreaming on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network on Monday 30 September at 4 p.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC-5) / 6 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC-5) / 7 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC-4).
Addressing Sexual Harassment in our Theatre Communities
17 July 2019
Dawn M. Simmons, John Meredith, and Jen Lewis, from New England’s StageSource, discuss where progress needs to happen to address harassment in the theatre industry.
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.
Alexis Frasz and Holly Sidford of Helicon Collaborative share the case study they wrote on HowlRound. Alexis and Holly believe HowlRound’s story is particularly resonant for this moment in time, and has potential to influence thinking and shift practice in the theatre sector and beyond. This essay shares a few thoughts on why they think HowlRound’s story matters in today’s political and economic context.
Latinx Theatre Commons (LTC) Producer Abigail Vega reflects on the last six years of programming, and encourages the community to submit ideas for future LTC programming.
Dramaturg Sierra Carlson describes her process for hosting a Women in Theatre Wikipedia Edit-a-Thon at her university, and encourages others engage in digital dramaturgical activism.
Sara Brookner interviews the steering committee of the Berkshire Leadership Summit, which brought together a hundred present and future US and Canadian women leaders to discuss equity and advancement in the theatre field.
Gab Cody reflects on the birth of The Monologue Project, an initiative that started in Pittsburgh, USA and Dallas, USA to increase the canon of audition-length monologues for women of African Descent.
