Community Gathering on Zoom - register with the bright red reservation box to receive the Zoom link. These gatherings are a service for the theater community and are offered free for TRU members; we ask that non-members help keep us running by buying a ticket, making a donation or joining as a member.

 

In the room: Justine Bayod Espoz/Torito Arts, Executive Director at the Creative and Independent Producer Alliance (CIPA), arts journalist, producer and performing arts curator, advocate for diversity in the Chicago arts community; Christin Cato, NYC actor, playwright (Sancocho, O.K.!), freelance writer, dramaturg and educator, 2025 HOLA award for Outstanding Achievement in Playwriting; and Jorge Huerta, Chicano scholar, author and theater director specializing in Chicano and US Latinx theater. What are the challenges to creating genuine inclusion in the melting pot of American arts culture, and have the current strict immigration policies had an effect? Has progress been made in gaining acceptance of authentic latiné voices? Are non-Latiné audiences supportive of the diverse voices in our culture, or are Latiné opportunities limited to the Latiné community and companies that have a specific following? And does authenticity ever get lost in an effort to be accessible to broader audiences? Are NYC, west coast and Chicago audiences, in general, open to and supportive of culturally diverse works? Is that changing in today's political climate where non-white communities are viewed with suspicion?