Tony Voters Will Have to Complete Unconscious Bias Training

Since Broadway has returned, the theatre industry has been attempting to create a better environment that is more equitable for all. To help with this, Tony Award voter committee members will now be required to complete an unconscious bias training session, according to BroadwayWorld. Committee members will have to complete the Exploring Unconscious Bias course with Vernā Myers, an inclusion strategist, before March 1.

According to the Vernā Myers Company Website:

The Exploring Unconscious Bias with Vernā Myers course introduces the concept of unconscious bias and addresses the impact it has on building and retaining a diverse and inclusive workplace where people of all backgrounds can thrive. Throughout the learning session, participants will be asked to look inward to better understand some of their own unconscious biases and learn to recognize and interrupt bias. The video has 18 short chapters that build upon one another.

The voters will have to complete the course and self-attest to its completion. The voting period has not yet been announced. Some members have completed similar training through the American Theatre Wing, the Broadway League or Actors’ Equity, and they will not have to complete this course.

The course explores an individual’s cultural lens and deepens their understanding of diversity and inclusion. According to the website, its goal is to identify unconscious bias, counter it and become actively anti-bias.

This is a good step towards creating a more equitable theatre industry, which is something that many workers have been calling for and has exploded in pandemic times. This was highlighted at the most recent Tony Awards ceremony, which repeatedly emphasized the idea that the industry is at a reckoning and that change is coming. At the ceremony, Slave Play, the most nominated non-musical play, did not win any awards, which some saw as a reflection of the voters’ lack of diversity.

This requirement is a good start to making the changes the theatre industry so desperately needs. Will it be enough? We will have to wait and see if it works.

However, more than just an unconscious bias course is needed to fix the systematic issues within the industry.

As many other groups that have sprouted up during the pandemic have said, massive change is necessary if things want to get better. It may not be enough to simply educate the existing voters. The industry as a whole needs a shake-up from the top down. Instead of educating those already there, who may not even gain anything from the lessons, we need more diversity at the top. Those who do not understand should be replaced with those who do. This industry prides itself on being diverse, but as with all industries, it is overwhelmingly controlled by those who are male and white. By including those who are diverse in terms of race, gender and sexuality, the industry becomes that much better.

Diversity is what makes theatre great. But we need an industry that is equitable for all. Hopefully, this is the blossoming of a greater theatre industry, where all can be represented and feel safe. Yes, Broadway is back, and it needs to be better. With these small steps, we may actually begin to see that come true.