January 18, 2021
An Update | Justice Work At PT
January 2021
Pacific Theatre’s ongoing work to make our space and our organization an anti-racist and equitable environment continues. Here is an update on some of our ongoing internal and community work as we move into 2021. (You can review our fall 2020 commitments and goals here).
- Since September, we have been working with Adeline Huynh of the commons consulting. Under Adeline’s guidance, Pacific Theatre has engaged in board and staff training to educate and equip stakeholders to actively participate in anti-racism work at the theatre. Our staff and executive are also engaged in ongoing individual education around anti-racism and decolonization work, supported by the theatre. Adeline’s full report and long-term plan with recommendations for the company moving forwards will be publicly available.
- We have engaged Jodi Spargur and Healing at the Wounding Place to begin work with us in February. By leveraging the work currently being undertaken at Pacific and adding the lens of the legacy of Christianity in the relationship with the First Peoples of this land and the particularities of occupying space in an Anglican Church building, this consultation will enable the organization to identify next steps in a decolonizing journey.
- The Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion working group formed in June of 2020 continues to meet weekly, working to establish new policy at the theatre. Current projects include: formalizing our complaint/harassment reporting system; building an organizational assessment tool; and distributing a broad-scale anonymous survey for Pacific Theatre artists to provide feedback and identify new working areas. (The JEDI working group consists of staff members Jennifer Milley, Kaitlin Williams, Linnea Perry, and Julia Lank, board members Chris Nash and Julia Church, and associated artist Jono Kim.)
- We are also currently engaged in individual restorative justice work with former community members, guided by Adeline and a third party community mediator. If you would like to speak to Adeline about mediated conversations with a Pacific Theatre employee, please contact her at adeline@thecommonsconsulting.com
- We have elected four new board members: Lilac Bosma, Winnie Chan, Chris Nash (also a member of PT’s Working Group), and Darcy Hagan. We are grateful to Lilac, Winnie, Chris, and Darcy for engaging with us and striving, as we are, to make Pacific Theatre a more just environment.
- The suspension of PT’s season due to the pandemic has created an opportunity to re-evaluate our apprenticeship program. In consultation with former apprentices, Pacific Theatre has temporarily suspended our apprenticeship program with the goal of launching a re-invigorated program for the 2021-2022 season that strengthens the program’s accessibility and equity. If you have feedback for Pacific Theatre related to the apprenticeship program, please contact Linnea Perry at linnea@pacifictheatre.org. If you share our commitment to supporting young and emerging artists and are interested in supporting the re-launch of the apprenticeship program for the 2021-2022 season, please reach out to brad@pacifictheatre.org.
- This fall, we implemented a new sliding scale ticketing system. All our shows are now accessible at a $10 price point, subsidized by patrons who choose to pay more. This new model has been well received and we intend to maintain it going forward.