(NEW YORK CITY, September 21, 2020) Stage Directors and Choreographers Society announces the digital publication of the Fall 2020 issue of its magazine, SDC Journal. The special issue, running 80 pages, is focused on the devastating impact of COVID-19 on theatre and theatre artists, and the long-overdue racial reckoning and call for equity in all facets of society, including the theatre.
The Fall 2020 issue features contributions from more than 40 directors, choreographers, and educators and is now available on the SDC website, https://sdcweb.org/sdc-journal-2/. It is the first issue of SDC Journal to be published digitally.
From personal reflections and provocative essays to wide-ranging Zoom conversations, the Journal considers the relationship between the pandemic and racial inequities; how theatre can be an effective catalyst for social change—and where it has fallen short; and the future of the theatre, “beyond the building.”
Contributors to the Journal include Stafford Arima, Lou Bellamy, Melia Bensussen, Jo Bonney, André De Shields, Sheldon Epps, Nataki Garrett, Linda Hartzell, Patricia McGregor, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Madeline Sayet, Hana S. Sharif, Bartlett Sher, Tazewell Thompson, Eric Ting, José Luis Valenzuela and many others.
“In all of the pain and suffering this pandemic has wrought, it has also done us the greatest service in destroying the status quo,” writes Pirronne Yousefzadeh in her essay, “The Time of Change: On COVID-19, Anti-Racism, and the Myths We Must Dispel.”
“There is no point in ever saying again ‘But that’s the way we’ve always done it,’ because we’ve already rendered that false with our countless streamed performances and Zoom readings. As we’ve already seen, limitations create opportunities when met with boundless imagination and a sense of wonder in experimentation,” Yousefzadeh continues. “We can now build something radically new, inclusive, and just. In fact, it is our moral imperative. Let’s use this pause to interrogate every policy, every line item in the budget, and every bit of programming on our stages so that we can reform ourselves and our institutions towards our collective liberation.”
“SDC directors and choreographers are leaders in the field as well as the rehearsal room,” says Evan Yionoulis, SDC President. “This special issue of SDC Journal has both breadth and depth; it is a record of the past six months, and a rallying cry for us to build a better future, together and stronger.”
SDC Journal was launched in 2012 in order to deepen the understanding of the work of directors and choreographers both among SDC’s own constituents and in the larger community. SDC’s credo, written by its founders, seeks to elevate the standards of the art of stage direction and choreography; to establish means for the dissemination and exchange of ideas of directorial and choreographic interest to the profession; to aid in the development and training of directors and choreographers; to increase in the professional and public esteem these arts and to develop all conditions that will encourage them. Over the last eight years, SDC Journal has been published in support of these goals.
SDC Journal is available on the SDC website (https://sdcweb.org/sdc-journal-issuu/).
About SDC
SDC is the theatrical union that unites, empowers, and protects 4,300 professional Stage Directors and Choreographers throughout the United States. Our mission is to foster a national community of professional stage directors and choreographers by protecting the rights, health and livelihoods of all our Members; negotiating and enforcing employment agreements across a range of jurisdictions; facilitating the exchange of ideas, information and opportunities; and educating current and future generations about the critical role of directors and choreographers in leading the field. SDCweb.org
# # #