Being part of the solution is why WAM Theatre wants to take action by using theatre to benefit women and girls worldwide. Telling the missing half of the story through our theatrical events and donating proceeds from those events to organizations who are dedicated to taking action to promote the full utilization of half the talent in the world (see Bill Gates quote below) is our way of helping hold up half the sky.
An excerpt from Marsha Norman’s terrific November 2009 article in American Theatre, ‘What will it take to Achieve Equality for Women in Theatre’ that was mentioned in the last blog post:
“A theatre that is missing the work of women is missing half the story, half the canon, half the life of our time. That is the situation we have now. I was deeply moved a few weeks ago, when Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times proclaimed in print that saving the women of the world was the central cause of our time. “The world is awakening to a powerful truth,” he wrote. “Women and girls aren’t the problem; they’re the solution.” If you didn’t read this important piece called “Saving the World’s Women,” find it on the Times website. Telling the stories of women is the first crucial step in insuring their safety and their worth. We must join Kristof in this cause.”
“Saving the World’s Women,“, adapted from the book that inspired WAM Theatre, is a must read. If you have not yet read it, I urge you to stop reading right now, click on the link above and read about Saima, Abbas and the other inspiring women who found a way to turn oppression into opportunity.
Another well quoted section of that article (Marsha Norman mentions it in her article as well):
“Bill Gates recalls once being invited to speak in Saudi Arabia and finding himself facing a segregated audience. Four-fifths of the listeners were men, on the left. The remaining one-fifth were women, all covered in black cloaks and veils, on the right. A partition separated the two groups. Toward the end, in the question-and-answer session, a member of the audience noted that Saudi Arabia aimed to be one of the Top 10 countries in the world in technology by 2010 and asked if that was realistic. “Well, if you’re not fully utilizing half the talent in the country,” Gates said, “you’re not going to get too close to the Top 10.” The small group on the right erupted in wild cheering.”
Another must read article about how women and girls are the solution is the August, 2009 New York Times interview by Mark Landler with Hillary Rodham Clinton:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/23/magazine/23clinton-t.html
An excerpt from that interview:
“I happen to believe that the transformation of women’s roles is the last great impediment to universal progress — that we have made progress on many other aspects of human nature that used to be discriminatory bars to people’s full participation. But in too many places and too many ways, the oppression of women stands as a stark reminder of how difficult it is to realize people’s full human potential.”
Agreed.
WAM Theatre is joining the cause. Time to be part of the solution.
Join us?
Written by Kristen van Ginhoven, Co-Artistic Director of WAM Theatre. www.kristenvanginhoven.com