About this Event
Overview
What does it mean to practice Anti-Racist Theatre, not just talk about it?
Author Nicole Brewer is joined by Lauren Turner Hines for a dynamic and honest conversation on how we get freer, through the lens of Nicole’s new book, The Antiracist Theatre: Crafting Theatrical Collaboration.
Drawing from their lived experiences as multi-hyphenate theatermakers and industry leaders, Lauren and Nicole will explore how they embody anti-racist practices in their work, what it takes to disrupt harmful theatrical systems, and how we can build more equitable, transformative ways of creating together.
Come ready for a conversation that is thought-provoking, practical, joyful, and rooted in possibility.
The conversation will be followed by a book signing and an opportunity to purchase copies of Nicole Brewer’s The Anti-Racist Theatre: Crafting Theatrical Collaboration.
LOCATION
André Cailloux Center for Performing Arts and Cultural Justice
2541 Bayou Rd, New Orleans, LA 70119
ABOUT THE BOOK
A how-to guide for theatermakers who want freedom from white supremacy in their creative practices
The Antiracist Theatre offers readers the tools and foundational philosophy to create their own antiracist theatre ethos and delve into its three core principles: harm reduction, harm prevention, and relationship repair.
Nicole Brewer, faculty at the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale and the originator of the Antiracist Theatre model, guides readers through self-reflection exercises designed to strengthen awareness of their own position, power, and privilege and uproot their racist practices. Brewer provides definitions of oft-used, but rarely defined terms like “accountability,” “racism,” and “abuse.” She welcomes BIPOC readers and lovingly and playfully calls in white theatermakers as she outlines methods to interrupt patterns of abuse.
All who believe the way forward for theatre is antiracist and anti-oppressive are welcome. We each have a role to play in liberating the stage, the classroom, and the performing arts.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Nicole Brewer is a theater director whose work has been seen at theaters such as Long Wharf Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage, and Folger Theatre. She is an educator with more than 18 years of teaching experience. Brewer is notably known as the originator of the internationally recognized Antiracist Theatre (ART) model. A leading voice in the movement to transform theater culture through accountability, care, and liberation-centered practices, Brewer serves as acting faculty at the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale.
In her debut book, The Antiracist Theatre, Nicole Brewer invites readers to consider the cost of business as usual and reclaim their power to challenge and shift extractive, exclusionary, and exploitative processes. Brewer creates space for readers to reimagine how creative spaces can function in healthier, more humane, and accountable ways. The book offers practical tools for building healthier creative environments where everyone can thrive.
For more than sixteen years, Brewer has developed and facilitated anti-racist and anti-oppressive training methodologies that challenge harmful industry norms and reimagine what collaborative artistic processes can be. Her work has been featured at conferences and institutions across the United States, Canada, and the UK, including workshops with Shakespeare's Globe and the University of Cambridge.
A dynamic speaker known for blending rigor, humor, honesty, and deep compassion, Brewer has taught at Howard University, her alma mater, the National Theater Institute, and the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, among others.
About Lauren Turner Hines
Lauren Turner Hines (she/her) is a cultural strategist, renowned theatre director, producer, and administrator with a profound dedication to fostering spaces where Black performing artists can thrive locally in New Orleans and across the broader national artistic landscape. Over the past two decades, she has committed to addressing the systemic barriers hindering artistic power, liberation, and agency within Black communities.
Drawing from her intimate understanding of the consequences of space inequities and cultural displacement resulting from gentrification and oppression, Lauren envisions the André Cailloux Center as more than just a performing arts venue. Her vision extends to creating a co-designed space that doubles as an economic development incubator for Black-led performing arts organizations. These organizations have historically been denied access to the resources necessary for long-term sustainability.
In the face of cultural and historical erasure threatening Black communities' sense of belonging and self-knowledge nationwide, the André Cailloux Center for Performing Arts & Cultural Justice stands as a beacon of hope. Inspired by the legacy of freedom fighter André Cailloux, it serves as a symbolic "ghost light," illuminating the stories that define our many lived experiences throughout the African Diaspora and calling us to gather in our ongoing struggle for freedom.
With its dual focus on local impact in New Orleans and national significance, the André Cailloux Center represents a groundbreaking model for justice-centered cultural institutions. It embodies a paradigm shift in how organizations can lead cultural reclamation efforts while simultaneously serving as indispensable community assets and utilities. Through Lauren's leadership, the center preserves the past and paves the way for a more equitable and inclusive future for all.
Agenda
🕑: 06:00 PM - 07:00 PM
Conversation
🕑: 07:00 PM - 08:00 PM
Book Signing
Event venue & nearby stays
2541 Bayou Rd, 2541 Bayou Road, New Orleans, United States
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