Orange County NC Website
Has your <br />organization <br />undergone any <br />Diversity, Equity, and <br />Inclusion (DEI) <br />training? If so, <br />please explain. If not, <br />please explain any <br />barriers that have <br />prevented you from <br />receiving this <br />training. <br />In 2021, three members of the OdysseyStage Board of Directors <br />participated in the Spring Board Boot Camp training series offered by <br />Executiv e Serv ice Corps of the Triangle (ESC). One entire workshop <br />addressed Div ersity, Inclusion, and Anti-Racism, which was <br />dev eloped by Kerry Raquel and Robert Felder, Jr. The session began <br />by introducing grounding language and prov ided an exercise in <br />critical discourse. Next, the training explored four lev els of racism <br />and how we, as indiv iduals, can understand our roles as board <br />members in becoming antiracist. The session prov ided the <br />opportunity to increase our understanding of ways to address <br />antiracist work and offered practical actions to consider and <br />implement. Prior to participating in this workshop, Annie Taft, <br />OdysseyStage Board President, participated in Opening Doors, a <br />three-day antiracism workshop offered through the UNC School of <br />Medicine. <br />During the past year, OdysseyStage has made significant progress in <br />becoming more div erse and appreciating the importance of <br />antiracism in our mission and v alues. W e hav e implemented key <br />changes; three of our current fiv e board members identify as BIPOC. <br />More than one production this year included themes of div ersity, and <br />one script in our Staged: New Play Readings series addressed head- <br />on the impact of historic and institutionalized racism. Recruitment for <br />BIPOC actors and other theatre professionals was more successful <br />this year, and members of the company bring more div ersity than in <br />prev ious years. In addition, OdysseyStage initiated a new <br />collaboration with Sips & Scripts, a platform that promotes the works <br />of North Carolina playwrights. Director Yv ette Holder is Black and has <br />long included participants of v arying backgrounds, ethnicities, <br />religions, and sexual orientation across the Triangle; she accepts <br />scripts that may explore themes of div ersity and inclusion. <br />OdysseyStage believ es in strength through div ersity, which includes <br />reaching out to new and more div erse audiences, which is reflected <br />in our expanding marketing plans. Our efforts hav e already begun to <br />enrich our work as a theatre, and we commit to a continuing process <br />that eliminates disparities. W e intend to ensure that OdysseyStage <br />reflects the div ersity of Orange County artists, stories, and <br />audiences. <br />During FY22-23, will <br />your organization <br />receive operational <br />support funding from <br />the North Carolina <br />Arts Council or the <br />North Carolina <br />Department of <br />Natural and Cultural <br />Resources? <br />No <br />Organization's EIN 581870071.0 <br />DocuSign Envelope ID: 1315607F-75E6-42DD-A441-EE50D987E820