While theaters continue to work toward a return to the stage, the Milwaukee Theatre Alliance has been busy behind the footlights as part of that return.
The MTA has drafted a document entitled “Milwaukee Theatre Standards” and has already shared drafts with the public in a series of ongoing community conversations. For those interested in participating, though next two sessions are scheduled via Zoom on:
- Monday, April 19, 7 p.m. - 8:30 p.m
- Saturday, April 24, 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
MTA was founded in 2019 with 21 companies as its members. It is a “committee of artists from large and small local member theatre companies” and was formed to not only deal with the pandemic but also the racial disparities within the community spearheaded by the Black Lives Matter movement.
The current working draft of the Milwaukee Theatre Standards is based on the Chicago Theatre Standards, the Shepherd Express letter “Coalition of BIPOC Artists in Milwaukee Writes Letter to Milwaukee Theater Community,” We See You White American Theatre, as well as input from MTA members.
MTA is scheduled to have a final draft of the MTS for the 2021-22 year available to the Milwaukee theater community by June of 2021. For the remaining two sessions, participants will review various sections of the MTS working document and provide feedback for discussion. The April 19 session will cover pages 26-38 and the April 25 session will cover pages 39-48.
As stated on page 7 of the MTS working document, the following passage best sums up what MTA is working to achieve: “We agree that it is important to amplify the voices of BIPOC, LGBTQ+, Disabled Artists and all artists marginalized by systemic racism, white supremacy and harmful theatre practices. This document does not cover all that needs to be done but is a starting point for discussions within the individual theater spaces of our community.”
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The working version of the Milwaukee Theatre Standards is available for download here. For more information, visit the Milwaukee Theatre Alliance website.
