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Diversity, Inclusion, Visibility

The Latest

Essay
Our Theatres Are Facing Backlash. Here Are Ten Ways to Respond.
by Mariló Núñez, Marlis Schweitzer
27 April 2026
Video
8th Annual Inclusive Theatre Festival (ITF)
A Weekend-long Conference Celebrating the Strides Being Made in Inclusive and Accessible Theatre
Saturday 11 November 2023
Evanston, Illinois
Video
SWANA and Queer in the Global Story
Doing It for Ourselves
Sunday 26 March 2023
Chicago, Illinois
Inclusive theatre festival event poster.
Video

A Weekend-long Conference Celebrating the Strides Being Made in Inclusive and Accessible Theatre

Saturday 11 November 2023
Evanston, Illinois

Seesaw Theatre Presents: the 8th Annual Inclusive Theatre Festival (ITF)! This event is a weekend-long conference celebrating the strides being made in inclusive and accessible theatre. ITF aims to bring together theatre artists and practitioners from across the country, giving us all the chance to learn about the amazing work being done and how we can also improve our own work while supporting marginalized communities. The conference is intended not only for theatre artists (students and professionals alike), but also for the disability community and their families, educators working with autistic and otherwise disabled individuals, and truly anyone interested in this ever-expanding and heartwarming field of inclusive theatre.

event poster for doing it for ourselves with speaker headshots.
Video

Doing It for Ourselves

Sunday 26 March 2023
Chicago, Illinois

Join playwright Martin Yousif Zebari and director Sivan Battat for an online conversation moderated by co–executive artistic director of Silk Road Rising Jamil Khoury about the intersections of SWANA and queer identities. This event will have live, human-written captions.

two actors with their hands on their hips performing on stage.
Video

Seeking to Build a Better Understanding of the Challenges and Triumphs of Theatremaking in New England

Wednesday 9 November and Wednesday 16 November
New England

The National Theater Project of the New England Foundation for the Arts presented the 2022 National Theater Project Regional Convening in New England livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Wednesday 9 November and Wednesday 16 November 2022.

event poster for  The Living Presence of Our History, Part VII.
Video

A Panel Focusing on Native Playwrights

Sunday 13 November 2022
Massachusetts, US

Ohketeau Cultural Center and Double Edge Theatre presented the conversation The Living Presence of Our History, Part VII livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Sunday 13 November 2022 at 10 a.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC -7) / 12 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC -5) / 1 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4).

event poster for no summary Critiquing the Critics: The Reception of MENA Productions .
Video

The Reception of MENA Productions

Friday 11 November 2022
United States

Golden Thread presented the conversation NO SUMMARY: Critiquing the Critics: The Reception of MENA Productions  livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network on Friday 11 November 2022 at 11 a.m. PST (San Francisco, UTC -8) / 1 p.m. CST (Chicago, UTC -6) / 2 p.m. EST (New York, UTC -5).

event poster for freedom talk in the name of freedom.
Video

Art That Unites, Makes Us Stand Up, and Makes Us Human

Friday 16 September 2022
Oslo, Norway

Safe Havens Freedom Talks (SH|FT), together with Safemuse, presented a Freedom Talk at In the Name of Freedom, livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Friday 16 September at 8:30 a.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4) / 12:30 UTC / 2:30 p.m. CEST (Oslo, UTC +2).

2022 Comedy Carnaval Banner
Essay
24 March 2022

The Latinx Theatre Commons (LTC) announces the 2022 LTC Comedy Carnaval, June 9-11, 2022 in Denver, Colorado. The convening is hosted by Su Teatro Cultural & Performing Arts Center. …because the past two years have been so rough that we gotta ducking laugh 🦆

From the Ground Up Podcast image featuring David Catlin.
Podcast
12 January 2022

Founder, Ensemble Member, and Former Artistic Director of Lookingglass Theatre Company, David Catlin, shares how their limitless aesthetic showcases their Chicago-based artists across the country. In addition we dive into their unique shared leadership model, their growth and goals for the future, and how tension with your board members can be a good thing.

event poster for deaf woke with sarah young bear brown.
Video

#DeafWoke is a Virtual Consciousness-Raising, Engaging Online Talk Show, Led by Black and Native American Deaf host Mr. Antoine Hunter PurpleFireCrow.

Thursday 16 September 2021
United States

Antoine Hunter presents #DeafWoke with Sarah Young Bear-Brown/tti-ka-mi-ge-a livestreaming on the commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv Thursday 16 September 2021 at 4 p.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC -7) / 6 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC -5) / 7 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4).

The author, Chris Mayers (left), and Rachel Nicks (right) in a hospital scene for the play WAR.
Essay

Class Consciousness and the Transformation of the World

20 April 2021

Chris Myers talks about the importance of class politics and makes a case for why artists ought to reckon with it, both as creative people and just plain workers.

Two people with speech bubbles, one saying "Can we talk about elitism in American theater" and the other responding "Um, yes please."
Video

Why Elitism doesn't work for BIPOC Theatremakers

Monday 11 January 2020
United States

Ambiance Theatre Company presented the conversation Get Off Your High Horse livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Monday 11 January 2021 at 4 p.m. PST (San Francisco, UTC -8) / 6 p.m. CST (Chicago, UTC -6) / 7 p.m. EST (New York, UTC -5).

Spectrum Theatre Ensemble logo.
Video

Premiering capstones for four new 10-minute plays, four public readings of works by playwrights on the spectrum, and panels on neurodiversity in the arts

Friday 31 July to Sunday 2 August 2020
United States

Spectrum Theatre Ensemble presented their Neurodiversity New Play Festival livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv from Friday 31 July to Sunday 2 August 2020.

Spectrum Theatre Ensemble logo.
Video

Topics include Opportunities & Challenges with Neurodiverse Inclusion, Sensory Friendly Awareness, and much much more!

Wednesday 29 and Thursday 30 April 2020
United States

Spectrum Theatre Ensemble presented Neurodiversity Matters Conference livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Wednesday 29 and Thursday 30 April 2020 at 10 a.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC-7) / 12 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC-5) / 1 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC-4) / 18:00 BST (London, UTC+1) / 19:00 CEST (Berlin, UTC+2)

A group of theatre artists sitting around a conference table with a projector screen in the background.
Essay
10 October 2019

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.

two actors onstage
Essay
23 April 2019

Playwright and performer Rhiannon Collett examines the queer theatre landscape in Toronto.

Essay
20 December 2018

Are you interested in working for HowlRound? We’re hiring a full-time Communications Manager—details about applying within.

Essay
19 December 2018

Lucas Garcia talks about creating the first-ever Alliance of Latinx Theater Artists of Chicago awards ceremony.

seven panelists
Essay
13 November 2018

Parent Artist Advocacy League for the Performing Arts (PAAL) founder Rachel Spencer Hewitt discusses three crucial ways theatres can improve their support for parent artists.

Old print depicting a marriage
Podcast

Theatre History Podcast #69

22 October 2018

In this week's Theatre History Podcast, Matt DiCintio on the origins of the freak show and its lasting influence on our perceptions of disability, race, and physical difference. 

A set of sheets with projections onstage.
Essay
27 April 2026

Facing Backlash: Performance in the Age of Reactionary Politics gathered Canadian artists and academics to contend with the backlash against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Mariló Núñez and Marlis Schweitzer distill the two-day symposium into ten actions theatremakers can take into their own work.  

black and white poster of historical figures' faces
Series

LA Writers Center's "Breathe"

An online play reading series designed to advance BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ stories

The LA Writers Center is proud to be a diverse organization. We have developed new work that has amplified BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ stories for almost two decades. But we can do better. We think instead of speaking, it would be better to listen. Instead of making promises, it would be best to take action. With that in mind, LAWC is partnering with HowlRound to present “Breathe” an online play reading series designed to advance these stories.

daytime rooftop view of the city of cluj, romania
Series

Exploring the Multiple Identities of Cluj

This city series explores the strong history, diversity, and theatrical heritage of Cluj-Napoca, Romania.

four strollers
Series

Parent-Artist Advocacy

This series covers challenges faced by parent artists and builds on the work of the Parent Artist Advocacy League for the Performing Arts (PAAL), a national resource hub and all-parent, all-discipline league advocating for a national standard of best practices for parents in the performing arts.

Series

#BLKARTS Presents: Black Womyn Going Dark!

Erin Washington and Deanna Downes explore the history and legacy of Black women in the performing arts.

Series

#IdentityWeek

Exploring the role of different gender, racial, sexual, and ethnic identities in theatre.

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