Theatre and its Community

I was recently asked what a theatre's responsibility to its community was...here is an excerpt of my response:

Every theatre has the responsibility to create a world where individuals can come together for a shared experience where stories are told, ideas are explored, and conversations are inspired.

The written word has long been an important outlet for the creative exploration of the human emotional and social experience. Theatre—like no other medium—has the unique ability to create a dialogue between writer and audience that also bridges the gap between the individual and shared group experience.

Theatre evolved as a social convention to teach people morals and; spur people to action through learning from the action on stage. Throughout the decades it has served as as a way to “communally experience" a situation-- family drama, war, disease, loss, or triumph -- providing an opportunity for connection or catharsis.

Although the physical structure in which theatre occurs is important what is most critical is the feeling -- the atmosphere -- that the building exudes. I believe all theatres should emulate the comfort and welcome of a living room or an old fashioned drawing room – an intimate space where friends gather for good conversation or a lively debate.

A theatre organization should strive to do the following in its own community:

• Identify and explore relevant social issues happening at a global, national and local level.
• Provide a safe forum for discussion and learning for people of all ages.
• Make the theatrical experience as accessible to as many people possible through price, location, customer service, and other forms of outreach and support that remove barriers to attending.
• Inspire audience members and participants to take action towards changing the world.

It should be noted that leading a theatre means that you must also accept certain community responsibilities. You must personally get to know your local community and be an active participant in that community. You are taking the position of an educator –the most influential person in any community. Being an educator means that you can inspire minds, both young and old, to seek their personal best and demand the community be at its best. You must accept the mission to make sure that there is a future audience, a future generation of artists, and future funders. You must help create experiences similar to the one that sparked the fire of passion inside you, that led you to pursue a life in the theatre.

You also have the responsibility to bring the national and global community to your home and to explore how the broader issues relate to us and why they are so important. Remaining relevant and current is the key to artistry. Theatre cannot be meaningful if it doesn't grow organically from your community (local) needs and yet rise to meet the national and global challenges facing us all. It cannot be forced, it must be studied, learned and lived.

What should we ask theatre artists to do for our community?

• Create a world on stage where the artists often teeter on the brink of destruction or utter happiness and we, as the audience experience living on the edge through them, without having to actually do so to understand it and learn from it.
• Bare their souls in telling a story
• State the unthinkable.
• Do the unforgivable.
• Act in weakness.
• Be trapped in fear and do nothing.
• Inspire us to speak or be safe in silence.
• State what must be said.
• Act heroically. Take risks.
• Make us laugh. Make us cry. Make us do both at the same time.
• Teach us about our neighbors, people of distant lands, people from the past, and people from the future.
• Force us to lean forward in our seats, hold our breath, and wait for the next word, moment or action.
• Make us feel alive.