Kwame Kwei-Armah pictured from the shoulders up standing outside on a sidewalk while staring straight into the camera, wearing a black jacket and glasses

Artistic Director, Young Vic

Andrew Recinos, seen from the torso up, seated in front of a bookcase.

President, Tessitura Network

Innovators in Conversation: Kwame Kwei-Armah

6/16/2020

47 min

“Our theatres have to look like our cities. We must look at what structural pathways have been blocked, and what structural pathways you can put in place.”

Kwame Kwei-Armah, Artistic Director of the Young Vic Theatre in London, joined Andrew Recinos for a conversation about the role of theatre in the unprecedented times we are collectively facing.

Kwei-Armah discussed the responsibility of theatres to address systemic inequities head-on, his own experiences as a Black man in both the United States and the UK, and the risks of thinking we’ve won a battle when we have only “won the silence.”

“How we dismantle is very important, but how we rebuild is equally important.” 

Theatre will be essential in allowing us to discern a way forward, and to envision how we can rebuild in a way that centres innovation, inclusivity, and collaboration.

 

More about the Innovators in Conversation Series >

 

Top photo: Artifacts from The floor is yours project at The Young Vic.

Kwame Kwei-Armah pictured from the shoulders up standing outside on a sidewalk while staring straight into the camera, wearing a black jacket and glasses

Kwame Kwei-Armah

Artistic Director
Young Vic

Kwame Kwei-Armah is a British actor, playwright, director and broadcaster.

In 2018 he was made Artistic Director of the Young Vic Theatre, where he has directed Twelfth Night and Tree. From 2011 to 2018 he was the Artistic Director of Baltimore Center Stage.

Kwame was Artistic Director for the Festival of Black arts and Culture, Senegal, in 2010. He was an Associate Director of the Donmar Warehouse and has served on the boards of the National Theatre, Tricycle Theatre, and Theatre Communications Group. Kwame was the Chancellor of the University of the Arts London from 2010 to 2015, and in 2012 was awarded an OBE for Services to Drama.

In 2019 he was the Chair of the Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting. Kwame is a patron of Ballet Black and a visiting fellow of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford University.

Andrew Recinos, seen from the torso up, seated in front of a bookcase.

Andrew Recinos

President
Tessitura Network

Andrew Recinos is President of the Tessitura Network.

He is responsible for oversight of Tessitura's North American operations, including Consulting, Application Support, Managed Services, Community, Conference, and Learning Resources divisions. Working closely with CEO Jack Rubin, Andrew is a key strategic leader for the company. Taking an active role in connecting with Tessitura's member organizations, Andrew visits with scores of cultural professionals around the globe each year, sharing news about the company and learning the many unique stories of our community. Andrew's presentations draw insights from the multifaceted organizations in the world of Tessitura. 

Prior to joining Tessitura, Andrew was a Managing Director at Jacobson Consulting Applications (JCA) where he oversaw their Products division.  Andrew served as a product lead for the development of T-Stats, Tessitura Dashboards and the Revenue Management Application (RMA), as well as serving as Tessitura implementation lead for more than 30 Tessitura implementations. In 2009, Andrew became the Product Manager for the Tessitura Next Generation Project and served on the Board Steering Committee for the project to re-envision Tessitura. Prior to JCA, Andrew worked in fundraising, membership and technology at a variety of non-profits, most notably Carnegie Hall in New York City, where he worked for eight years. Among his roles was Director, Friends of Carnegie Hall, where he oversaw all aspects of this 15,000 member program.

He holds a master’s degree in Arts Administration from the O’Neill School of Public & Environmental Affairs at Indiana University and currently serves on the O’Neill School Distinguished Alumni Council. Andrew also serves on the Advisory Board of the Center for Cultural Affairs and is a Board Member of ArtsFund. Andrew lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife and child.

Topics

Arts & Culture

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COVID-19

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Innovator Series

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Theatre