Lin-Manuel Miranda is creating a national theater directory designed to increase the number of women, non-binary folks and people of color who work in behind-the-scenes roles.
Set to launch June 8, the Representation, Inclusion, & Support for Employment (RISE) Theatre Directory is meant to serve as a resource for theater producers, directors and other managers across the country and promote the hiring of more underrepresented producers, crew members and theater employees.
The idea was inspired by Ava DuVernay’s Array Crew database, which was created in 2021 to diversify TV and film production crews. Miranda and his family provided seed money for the project and have been closely following its development.
Miranda wanted to do something similar for the theater industry. In writing shows such as In The Heights and Hamilton, Miranda has been able bring more diverse talent on stage, but he wanted to have an impact on the other side of the curtain.
“I can write as many characters and roles for us as possible, but that needs to start being matched by the folks who are backstage and front of house and the rest of the theater ecosystem,” Miranda said.
As he began building RISE, Miranda looked to existing projects in the industry and found Maestra, a directory for female and nonbinary theater musicians, created by fellow composer Georgia Stitt. The two combined the framework and partnered to launch the new directory.
The database, which currently has more than 500 entries, is meant to counter the trend of theater producers, directors and other hiring managers who claim they want to hire new, diverse crew members, but don’t know where to find them.
“Our industry operates quite quickly, so there’s kind of a feedback wheel that happens when you’re trying to staff up or where you’re trying to do something at a high, ambitious level,” said Adam Hyndman, a Broadway actor and project manager of RISE Theatre. “You’re going to go to the most immediate person that you trust and that kind of creates these silos.”
The hiring tool is also meant to replace decades-long practices, such as unpaid internships, which give advantages to those who are privileged enough — thanks to family wealth or other resources — to afford living without pay while they learn the ropes.
“I think what’s true in the theater industry is true in every other industry, which is the folks who can afford to be a part of a theater experience, unpaid, do, and that is often a stepping stone in our industry,” Miranda said.
This is the latest in a series of diversity and equity initiatives in the theater industry that came after the death of George Floyd.
Among the many groups that were created, The Black Theatre Coalition, which is now partnered with the directory, was started to help create employment opportunities for Black theater candidates, while Broadway & Beyond created a hiring database of stage managers of color. Black Theatre United, with founding members including Audra McDonald and Billy Porter, asked all sectors of the industry to pledge to make a series of reforms, such as requesting that theater owners name at least one theater after a Black artist.
Many industry leaders today express a desire to see greater diversity and inclusion in theater, according to Miranda and Hyndman, but more action is needed.
“I think that a lot of people have learned to say the right things, and that’s why I think RISE is coming at the right time. Because it’s very easy to say we are committed to things, and it’s another thing to actually hire as diversely as you say you want to hire,” Miranda said.
The RISE Theatre Directory is asking producers, directors and more to sign a pledge saying they will use the database when they begin their hiring processes. Miranda had already reached out to theater owners and hiring managers when he began the project, and has now been texting friends in the industry, asking them to create a profile and spread the word. (He’s already created his own profile within it.)
Other directory partners include the Asian American Performers Action Coalition, Arts Administrators of Color, Idina Menzel and Taye Diggs’ A Broader Way Foundation, Theatre Producers of Color and the Dramatists Guild of America, among others. Hamilton producer Jeffrey Seller, director Thomas Kail, theater owner Jordan Roth and the Broadway League are among the supporting founders.
The directory’s creators hope it will provide greater visibility to underrepresented members of the theater community and potentially spur new collaborations as more community members join.
“Theater really is one of the more welcoming communities, and I’m really hopeful that this directory will be seen as just a positive change and make the tent even bigger,” Miranda said.
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