From its founding, Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, its leaders, artists, and staff, have held that our purpose as a theatre includes promoting an experience of shared humanity. Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival’s mission statement begins with: “to enrich, inspire, engage, and entertain the widest possible audience with first-rate professional productions…”
“The widest possible audience” is intended and interpreted as plain language. We believe that Shakespeare’s insights into human experience are a gift to all humanity, and our mission is to share this gift with the widest possible audience.
Our commitments to action in support of equity, diversity, and inclusion include:
Learn, listen, grow, evolve, share;
Proactively combat racism, conduct ongoing anti-racism training for our staff and other constituencies, and advance anti-racist principles throughout our operations;
Investigate solutions to financial barriers that help keep inequitable systems in place in the not-for-profit sector;
Deepen our commitment to diversifying our staff, Board, artists, and artisans, and support our Black, Brown, Indigenous and other PSF family members who are People of Color;
Deepen the diversity of the voices and stories reflected on our stages, so that our work will better reflect the cultural breadth of our region and our nation.
To these commitments we are accountable, and our actions are on-going.
If every theatre company, arts organization, business, school, agency, etc., in the country commits to creating change, safety, and a sense of shared humanity, imagine the possibilities.
Questions? Observations? We would welcome your input. Please send your thoughts in an email to [email protected]. We have a small staff, even smaller of late, and yet we will endeavor to respond. Each email will be read. Your input is valued.
These lists reflect this moment in the Festival’s learning and evolution. These resources will expand as we continue to put our commitments into action.