Community Update

October 8, 2020

Welcome to the first of PTE’s community updates. We have created this update to offer transparency into the workings of our company and to share insights into plans, actions, and thoughts that are driving the work we do. 

While producing theatre is an important part of what we do as a company, it is only a part of what we do. The morals, ethics, philosophy, politics, and passion that drive us may not be clearly evidenced in our programming alone. These updates aim to give a fuller picture of PTE. 

Our goal is to release two updates each season on our website:  one in the fall as the season is beginning and another in the spring as the season closes. This will allow our community (of artists and audiences) to know some of our priorities at the beginning of a season, and then to see how those priorities have grown, evolved, been met or changed by the end of the season.  

The content of this first update very much reflects the focus and priorities of PTE at this moment, particularly how we are navigating the beginning of the season during the pandemic and also our anti-racism work (including meeting commitments made in our recent statement). 

At the end of each update, we will include information on how to reach our Artistic Director, our General Manager/Managing Director, and our board of directors.

Board Recruitment

We are thrilled to have recently welcomed Shyamala Dakshinamurti, Sowmya Dakshinamurti, and Sarah Luby to our board of directors. They are all eager to contribute to the conversation of how we can grow and change as a company. We are deeply honoured to have their voices help in shaping the future of our company. As we move through the fall and early winter we will continue to reach out to new potential board members to ensure that our board represents the voices of our communities.

The future

As for all of us, the future is uncertain. By this time, we would normally have our 2021-2022 season all planned and would be moving toward our first live performance. But things aren’t normal. 

What we are certain of, what we know, is that we are being guided by our priorities. What we prioritize, what we believe in, who we aspire to be as company, these are the principals that shape our decision-making. 

We are dedicated to telling stories live and to reaching audiences digitally. We are dedicated to developing new works and voices for the stage. We are dedicated to the exploration of form.  We are dedicated to being a part of positive, lasting, and meaningful change. We are dedicated to celebrating and supporting Indigenous, Black, POC and 2SLGBTQ+  voices and artists. We are dedicated to the work of anti-racism and anti-discrimination. We are dedicated to accessibility and to making our spaces safe, barrier-free, and welcoming. We are dedicated to creating opportunities for artists to train, grow and explore their craft.

Finally, we are dedicated to listening, owning our mistakes, and moving forward with humility, resolve, inspiration and a full heart.

To contact us:

Thomas Morgan Jones, Artistic Director:  ad@pte.mb.ca

Lisa Li, Managing Director:  lisali@pte.mb.ca

Board of Directors:  board@pte.mb.ca