Alika Vail considers herself to be “a Creative”. Some of her talents include dancing, writing, directing, acting and producing. She currently serves on the Board of the Women’s Theatre Festival in NC as their Head of Diversity and Co-Chair. She is the co-creator of CREW, a Facebook Group that focuses on encouraging artistic works for people of color in theatre, film, music and other creative avenues in the Triangle area. Alika has worked on several local productions as actor, producer, director and stage manager. She says, “it’s the chance to work with talented women and tell amazing stories” that inspires her.
In this episode, we discuss Alika Vail’s theatre experiences in Raleigh, the racial sensitivity workshops that she’s led for the WTF, and the projects she’ll be leading for the WTF in their Summer Con coming up in July and during their 19-20 season.
Come to the Women’s Theatre Festival July 12-14!
SEE THE SCHEDULE AND PURCHASE TICKETS!
In addition to directing a staged reading, Alika Vail will be part of a panel on Intersectional Casting and Directing on July 13, 2019 at the Women’s Theatre Festival. The panel will discuss how to maximize representation in casting across spectrums of gender, ability, and ethnicity, and how these choices affect the stories we tell.
Tamara Kissane will also be at the Women’s Theatre Festival Con from July 12-14, 2019 leading a workshop on Functional Feedback, sitting on a panel for a discussing of Parenting as a Theatre Artist. And on July 14, the Women’s Theatre Festival will premiere THE MASTER BUILDER AUDIO DRAMA!
Women’s Theatre Festival on the ASBX podcast:
- 031: Festival Production Manager for the Women’s Theatre Festival, Katy Koop, keeps it all on track
- 038: Managing Director Johannah Maynard Edwards advocates for inclusion, develops structures for growth, and turns problems into solutions
- 037: Director Michele Okoh brings the heroes of ECLIPSED to the stage as part of the Women’s Theatre Festival
- 041: How do we evolve as artists? Director, performer, writer Naima Yetunde Ince-Griffiths extends her voice into multiple genres
- 055: Troubling things in rehearsal. How to handle bullying in creative spaces.
- 072: Representation matters. Stepping out of boxes with Director Michele Okoh
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NOTES FOR ALIKA
THE THEATRE SCENE
Before we got on mic, you said that you’ve “done a lot of theatre here in a little bit of time.” Would you talk about how you got involved in the theatre community in Raleigh?
RACIAL SENSITIVITY WORKSHOP
You are currently on the Board of WTF (Women’s Theatre Festival) and their Head of Diversity. Part of your work has been leading a racial sensitivity workshop for WTF and this summer you’ll be on a panel at the WTF Con to discuss intersectional casting and directing. Why do you think a racial sensitivity workshop is important for theatre practitioners? Do you have any key points to share or best practices for us to chew on?
C.R.E.W
Let’s talk about C.R.E.W.. C.R.E.W. is a Facebook Group you co-created that “focuses on encouraging artistic works for people of color in theatre, film, music and other creative avenues in the Triangle area.” What was the genesis of this group? How has it grown and how do people use it? What are your hopes for this group in the future?
NEXT + WTF
What’s next for you and for WT?
Anything else?
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