We develop changemaking new musicals in a joyous, collaborative community free from commercial constraints. We are led by the passion to transform culture and do so through serving and gathering an artistic community that makes art to make change. We create opportunities for musical theater makers of excellence who exist at the intersections of underrepresented groups while providing all-access p
rogramming for artists to collaborate and grow together. Our philosophy and values stem from studying the concepts of solidarity economy and grassroots economic justice, seeking to meet our needs together and taking responsibility actively for our interrelationships. This is the foundation of moving from a volunteer community to building an organization grounded in the values of equity, pluralism, democracy, cooperation, and sustainability. We examine the current normative systems in the political, socio-economic landscape and disrupt them through direct engagement with powerful storytelling and narratives from marginalized and underrepresented communities. We serve and gather an artistic community from diverse backgrounds for collective support, feedback, growth, collaboration, and community that centers art-making for change-making. We do so by crafting every space that we hold as radical, intentional, rigorous, and inclusive. These values are our foundation of what we envision—accessible and brave creative spaces where all artists of all backgrounds at any stage of their career can be supported throughout their process. We are a radical incubator, lab, and playground, allowing artists the time and space necessary to innovate form and genre, and create work that inspires civic discourse. We are intentional in our role as gatekeepers and curators, and have robust systems in place through our assembly line that ensures the resources we are providing are going to support the work of artists who have traditionally not been given equal opportunity and access. We are the beginning of the pipeline for musical theatre composers, writers, directors, actors, music director, and musicians. We provide rigorous opportunities for incredible talent to meet each other to make new collaborations, challenge monolithic thought, and gather together to build a community that can support each other. We cultivate new musicals that are artistically groundbreaking and socially inclusive – making work that dismantles oppressive ideologies towards collective liberation, through powerful and joyful story in song. By placing the resources in their hands, we have seen the impact on our community and the field at large. Our qualifications for programming is rooted first in the rubric of: What are we perpetuating? What are we dismantling?™ Who are the artists reimagining what musical theatre can be—in the field as well as in the form? How can we as a pipeline for emerging artists provide the necessary support for them to experiment boldly, free from the pressures of commercial success? That is the core of how curation begins, and is held with as much care as the crafting of the work. The system of accountability is made up of retrospectives and evaluations for all our activities, continually assessing how our programming moves us towards racial and gender equity. The intent of all of our programming is to engage our audience, community, and the field at large in the developmental process. This provides a unique space to provoke civic discourse surrounding the art and ideals of the generative artists that we serve. Art is one major way to shift culture, and by supporting the work of artists who are creating work that serves that vision, we are thereby challenging the field to be more inclusive and pushing the bounds of the artform. Our community of artists works collectively, sharing peer support and feedback to strengthen the work and lift each other up, amptly able to shift quickly and pivot towards having more effective strategies that serve our mission. We encourage our artists to do the same for their work, to dream boldly, be present with what is, and be unafraid to make radical shifts for the expansion into previously unimagined possibilities. Because of this dexterity, we are able to continually take down oppressive and unjust paradigms, thereby always evolving the form and expanding the idea of what Musical Theatre can be.
