BLACK THEATRE COALITION PARTNERS WITH COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY’S MFA THEATRE MANAGEMENT & PRODUCING PROGRAM
Press Contact:
Rick Miramontez / Marie Bshara
rick@omdkc.com / marie@omdkc.com
212 695 7400
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, PLEASE
BLACK THEATRE COALITION
PARTNERS WITH
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY’S MFA THEATRE MANAGEMENT & PRODUCING PROGRAM
FOR WEEKLY WEBINAR SERIES FOR BLACK MANAGEMENT PROFESSIONALS
IN THEATER
New York, NY (November 24, 2020) – Co-founders T. Oliver Reid, Warren Adams, and Reginald “Reggie” Van Lee, along with Executive Strategist Afton Battle and Marketing Strategist Tamica Clanton, announced today a partnership between Black Theatre Coalition (BTC), the organization aiming “to build a sustainable, ethical roadmap to increase employment opportunities for Black theatre professionals,” and Professors Steven Chaikelson (Head of Theatre Management & Producing) and Michael J. Passaro (Head of Stage Management) at Columbia University’s School of the Arts to provide a weekly webinar series exclusively for potential BTC fellows.
The Columbia University School of the Arts MFA Programs in Theatre Management & Producing and Stage Management are proud to be working with the Black Theatre Coalition to establish an Introduction to the Business of Theatre workshop series exclusively for potential BTC fellows. The weekly workshop sessions, which is being led by Professors Steven Chaikelson and Michael J. Passaro includes lectures on management, production, legal, marketing and financial aspects of the theatre industry; group discussions regarding major industry issues; and panel discussions with industry professionals who will share information about their jobs and how they built their careers. Guest lecturers include members of the theatre program’s adjunct faculty and alumni.
There are ten black professionals who are taking part in the eleven-week management series.
In a joint statement, Mr. Reid, Mr. Adams, and Mr. Van Lee said, “Once we identified just how vast the disparity is between the perceived inclusivity on stage and the utter dearth of black professionals off stage, we began outlining ways in which we could address and ultimately eradicate this invisible disparity. This outline provided a clear path forward for our organization and our entire industry. It’s high time to end this ‘illusion of inclusion’ by reshaping the theatrical ecosystem for those who have been marginalized by systematically racist and biased power structures that have endured since the dawn of the American theater.”
Over the 154 years since the very first Broadway musical (The Black Crook) premiered in 1866, the “Great White Way” has seen 3,002 musicals and 8,326 plays. Across all of these productions, there have been only Ten Black directors of a musical (0.3%), Eleven Black directors of a Play (0.13%) and Seventeen Black choreographers of a Musical (0.56%). All of this directly correlates to the fact that there have only ever been Two Black lead producers of a musical (representing 0.06% of all Broadway musicals). Furthermore, the numbers for Writers, Composers, Scenic, Lighting, Costume, Sound, Video, Music Contractors, Musical Directors, Arrangers, Orchestrators, Hair/Wigs/Makeup, Casting, General Management, Stage Management, Company Management, PR and Marketing/Advertising range from 0 to 5 in each category.
BTC encourages Black Theatre Professionals to add their information for the upcoming database by visiting their website.
For partnership inquiries email – Partnership@blacktheatrecoalition.org
For submissions – Submissions@blacktheatrecoaliton.org
For more information about the Black Theatre Coalition, visit their website www.BlackTheatreCoalition.org
ABOUT THE THEATRE PROGRAM AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF THE ARTS
The MFA Theatre Program at Columbia University School of the Arts is international, collaborative and interdisciplinary. Named in honor of Oscar Hammerstein II, it is defined by its location in New York City, a global capital of theatre, and by the extensive network of Columbia alumni and faculty who run prestigious Broadway, Off‐Broadway and regional theatres; direct and perform in Tony‐ and other award‐winning productions; work in every level of the professional theatre world; and teach, mentor and engage with students on an ongoing basis. The Theatre MFA programs in acting, directing, playwriting, dramaturgy, stage management, and theatre management & producing seek students who have the talent, vision, and commitment to become exceptional artists. At the School of the Arts, students acquire disciplines rooted deeply in the classics while branching out into new forms and exploring the cutting edge of theatrical art. The best theatre in every culture and in all eras has not only reflected its time but also shaped its society and often helped point it toward the future. The Theatre Program aims to train theatre artists to fulfill that important role in today’s society. Among the program’s leading faculty are Anne Bogart, James Calleri, Steven Chaikelson, David Henry Hwang, Brian Kulick, Chuck Mee, Lynn Nottage, Christian Parker, Michael Passaro, and Ron Van Lieu. Visit arts.columbia.edu/theatre for more information.
ABOUT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF THE ARTS
Columbia University School of the Arts awards the Master of Fine Arts degree in Film, Theatre, Visual Arts and Writing and the Master of Arts degree in Film and Media Studies; it also offers an interdisciplinary program in Sound Art. The School is a thriving, diverse community of talented, visionary and committed artists from around the world and a faculty comprised of acclaimed and internationally renowned artists, film and theatre directors, writers of poetry, fiction and nonfiction, playwrights, producers, critics and scholars. In 2015, the School marked the 50th Anniversary of its founding. In 2017, the School opened the Lenfest Center for the Arts, a multi-arts venue designed as a hub for the presentation and creation of art across disciplines on the University’s new Manhattanville campus. The Lenfest hosts exhibitions, performances, screenings, symposia, readings, and lectures that present new, global voices and perspectives, as well as an exciting, publicly accessible home for Columbia’s Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Art Gallery. For more information, visit arts.columbia.edu.
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