The Big Bear Theatre Project

5 months ago

FROM THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

In early March, the Big Bear Theatre Project was preparing to begin our 2020 Season. Then the pandemic hit, and what I thought might be a short break in our schedule, looks like it may extend through the entire year.

But something else happened. The world watched George Floyd die. And people rose up to demand change. Not only in policing, but across the board. I have been inspired by the protests around the world and by the passion of the young people in my life to read and listen and learn as much as I can. And I’ve come to realize how grossly uneducated I am. Because I’m an actor, I was drawn to accounts from Black actors and Black theatre companies about the overt and subtle racism that they endure on a consistent basis.

I kept asking myself, what can I do? I felt ignorant and powerless.

Then I realized I’m not alone. I believe there is power in theatre. The power to share and understand the human condition. Playwright Chisa Hutchinson, in her powerful new play about race, Amerikin, wrote a line that resonated with me, “I firmly believe in the power of understanding. To understand something is to know how it works. And once you know how it works, you have the power to disable it.” I’ve also come to realize that I will never truly understand.

But, we can help promote playwrights and artists of color. We can support them in telling their stories and sharing their experiences. Artists have always fought against oppression and brought light to the things that divide us. When we embrace our common humanity and go beyond our differences, we can help create a better, more inclusive, and more just world.

Before things shut down, we had been talking about creating a new and more diverse Board of Directors and Artistic Team for the Big Bear Theatre Project. Now, we are promising to do so and invite you to hold us accountable.

I look forward to the time when we can once again gather together in the Theatre to explore and share what it is to be human. Until then, I will continue to listen and learn and do what I can to better support people of color onstage and off. I believe Black Lives Matter.

Steve Cassling
Artistic Director
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