Wales is a diverse country.
To be a truly national company, it’s our duty to challenge the concept of a fixed Welsh identity and celebrate the intersections of identities across the nation; to create theatre for everyone in Wales.
What we’re doing:
Theatr Cymru is committed to being as inclusive an organisation as possible – for our audiences, participants, artists and employees. That's not just about ensuring diversity and representation. It means valuing difference and creating an environment that ensures all employees, artists and participants can reach their full potential and feel able to contribute. Our audiences must see themselves represented in our work and hear stories that are relevant to them.
We recognise that our work and ways of working in the past have excluded some people and communities, and that their stories and experiences have not been reflected in our productions and projects. We’ve identified that the following three groups are underrepresented in our work: disabled people, people from the global majority and people from low-income backgrounds.
Whilst we have made some progress in recent years, we recognise that this is a journey; and we as a company are committed to driving this forward.
As part of this work, we are:
- Developing an artistic programme that appeals to a wide range of people by adapting our commissioning focus to amplify a diverse range of voices, telling the stories of contemporary Wales, and celebrating contemporary Welsh identities.
- Increasing the diversity of people who work for the company – such as artists, freelancers, and staff members – and those who are involved in its governance.
- Continuing to increase the accessibility of our work by making it accessible at every stage and developing more diverse audiences in collaboration with strategic partners and Welsh communities.
- Continuing to develop and offer participation activity that is accessible and relevant, and engaging with underrepresented groups.
To ensure that these matters are discussed at every level in the company, we have established a Diversity and Inclusion Taskforce which includes trustees, staff members and freelance workers.
Wider work in the sector:
We are leading on the Newid Diwylliant | Culture Change project, in partnership with the other National Arts Companies, with funding from the Anti-racist Wales Culture, Heritage and Sport Fund to deliver an extensive programme of training to the creative workforce, including anti-racism training, for 18 organisations, and a programme of work driving organisational and cultural change and a joint inclusion-driven recruitment scheme.
Use of language use and evolution of terms:
We're trying to make the Welsh language feel like a contemporary language that can respond to big questions and discuss social challenges. Defining identity and race is complex and multi-layered. We have decided to use 'global majority' and 'disabled people' as umbrella terms. When referring to individuals or communities we try to be as specific as possible with our use of language and terms. We also recognise that terms and language use when discussing people with different cultural identities are constantly evolving and therefore, we commit to following the discussion on this and reviewing our language where necessary.
We will continue to act and hold ourselves to account as we try to be as inclusive as possible. If you would like more information about our commitment to diversity and inclusion or to share your thoughts on how we can improve our efforts, please contact us.