Inside A.C.T.

By Rose Oser and Shannon Stockwell The Women’s Leadership Project began in 2013 when A.C.T. partnered with Wellesley Centers for Women (WCW), a Massachusetts-based institute devoted to gender-focused research, to do a formal study into gender disparity in regional theaters. Now, after more than three years of research, A.C.T. and WCW are excited to share the findings of that study at the Women’s Leadership Conference at The Strand Theater (1127 Market Street, San Francisco) on August 22, 2016. The morning session is free and open to the public (RSVP here to reserve your spot). The WCW researchers will share their findings, and Artistic Director Carey Perloff will lead a Q&A with a panel of arts leaders. In the afternoon, selected participants will proceed to The Rueff to discuss the research and create strategies for change. By examining a broad range of potential factors, we want to determine the specific barriers that have prevented women from rising through the ranks t...

By Rose Oser Last Friday I met my new best friends, a group of Twitter employees who signed up to volunteer at A.C.T. Their visit was part of “Friday for Good,” a Twitter-wide effort to give back to the community. According to one Tweep (their word, not mine), nearly 50 percent of Twitter employees participate, with volunteers at about a hundred different community sites worldwide. Twitter Staff Software Engineer Nick Morgan volunteers to paint A.C.T.'s rehearsal studios. Photo by Rose Oser.   This fine group of Tweeps had their own reasons for volunteering at A.C.T. Some like the arts, some have enjoyed A.C.T. shows, and some were hoping that volunteering at a theater would be less strenuous than raking leaves. We spent a few hours painting the rehearsal studios above A.C.T.’s administrative offices at 30 Grant Avenue and sewing at The Costume Shop. When I greeted the group of Tweeps at the rehearsal studios, I was only planning on being there a few moments. B...