In an age where creative work increasingly intersects with social change, understanding accountability is crucial for artists striving to make a civic impact. Whether you’re creating in your own community or stepping into unfamiliar territory, this episode explores the moral and practical anchors that define responsible, effective, and meaningful community cultural engagement.

• Learn how deep cultural competency and trust-building are essential for impactful community-based art.
• Discover real-world examples, like Marty Pottenger’s transformative police poetry project, that reveal the power of accountability to inspire civic connection.
• Gain insights into the layered responsibilities artists carry—from honoring their craft to serving diverse community stakeholders ethically.

🧑‍🎨 People

1. Bill Cleveland

Host of Art is Change and director of the Center for the Study of Art & Community; a key voice in community-based art and cultural development.

2. Jerry Stropnicky

Veteran theater director known for creating community theater frameworks; referenced for his “A Principles” guide in episode 135.

3. Barbara Schaffer Bacon

Educator, cultural advisor, and longtime advocate for arts-based civic engagement; co-host on this episode.

4. Leni Sloan

Cultural activist, performer, and historian, recognized for decades of work integrating art, identity, and democracy.

5. Marty Pottenger

Playwright, performer, and cultural organizer whose work blends theater with social justice themes like labor rights and police-community relations.

6. Chuck Davis

Founder of DanceAfrica, he was pivotal in bringing African dance to American audiences in respectful and celebratory ways.

7. Catherine Dunham

Influential dancer and anthropologist who brought African and Caribbean dance traditions into American theater and film.

8. Pearl Primus

A pioneering African-American choreographer and anthropologist, known for exploring African diasporic traditions in dance.

📅 Events

1. DanceAfrica

A vibrant festival of African and African-American dance, music, and culture hosted by the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM); discussed as an example of cultural appropriation and transformation.

2. No Kings Actions

Referenced as a current cultural movement or art action focused on community-led change and artistic protest (exact reference likely points to grassroots activist...

In a world where communities face trauma, disconnection, and invisibility, this episode explores how the ancient impulse to gather and perform stories can foster healing, agency, and real-world change. If you’ve ever wondered how art can truly make a difference, this conversation reveals what it takes. In this episode we:

• Learn how ensemble-based, community-driven theater projects have tackled crises like the opioid epidemic and flood response with lasting impact.
• Hear firsthand how storymaking catalyzes civic empathy and even reshapes local policy, as told by someone who’s witnessed communities reclaim power through their own narratives.
• Discover the 7 principles that guide ethical, effective, and deeply human community arts practice—from agency to accessibility.

Press play to experience how Jerry Stropnicky uses theater as a tool for justice, healing, and democracy—and be inspired to see your own community through a new lens.

Here’s a comprehensive list of all people, events, organizations, and publications mentioned in your podcast transcript, each with clickable hyperlinks and a contextual description:

Gerry Stropnicky Director, actor, and founding member of the Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble in rural Pennsylvania

Jo Carson: American playwright, storyteller, and collaborator with Stropnicky; known for works like Stories I Ain’t Told Nobody Yet ()

John Malkovich: Famous actor and Stropnicky’s college friend at Northwestern, sharing tales of selling office supplies together

Peter Brook: Legendary theater director Stropnicky observed in Paris at the International Centre for Theatre Research ()

Alvina Krause: Renowned acting teacher in Bloomsburg and inspirational founder of the Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble ()

Bill Rauch: He was named the inaugural artistic director of the Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center (PACNYC) at the World Trade Center in 2018.[1]Previously, Rauch served as the fifth artistic director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF), Rauch is also the founder of the Cornerstone Theater Company,

Lori Woolery (Associate Director, Public Works) Leading figure in the Public Theater’s “Public Works” community-driven initiative in New York City ()

Bruce...

What do the arts have to do with resisting authoritarianism? And how do we, as creative community leaders, keep pushing for democracy when the odds feel stacked against us?

If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed by the news, discouraged by political setbacks, or unsure how artists and cultural organizers fit into this urgent fight, you’re not alone. This episode brings powerful insights from the 22nd Century Initiative Gathering in Atlanta—where movement leaders, activists, and artists came together to ask the big questions: How do we stop the rise of authoritarianism? And what does it look like to build a resilient, creative resistance?

• Discover the proven strategies of nonviolent resistance that have toppled regimes and fortified democracies around the world.
• Learn why loneliness fuels authoritarianism—and how art can be the antidote by reconnecting communities.
• Hear how artists are not just reflecting change, but making it: organizing, blocking, bridging, and building democracy in real time.

Listen now to explore how you—as an artist, funder, or cultural leader—can be a strategic force in resisting authoritarianism and imagining a democratic future worth fighting for.

Here’s an expanded list of the key figures, events, organizations, and publications mentioned in the podcast transcript—now with richer context and updated hyperlinks for deeper exploration:

• Daniel Hunter – Founder and co-director of Choose Democracy, renowned civil resistance trainer and author of Building a Movement to End the New Jim Crow
• Maria J. Stephan – Co-lead and Chief Organizer at the Horizons Project, political scientist and co-author of Why Civil Resistance Works
• Ash‑Lee Woodard Henderson – Co-Executive Director of the Highlander Research & Education Center, organizer in the Movement for Black Lives
• Emory Douglas – Minister of Culture and graphic artist for the Black Panther Party, his visuals became iconic protest art
• Lily Yeh – Founder of the Village of Arts and Humanities in Philadelphia, pioneer of community-based public art

• Civil Rights Movement – Legendary U.S. nonviolent struggle for racial justice, often cited as a model of civil resistance
• Protests against Authoritarian Leaders – Global instances (e.g., Brazil’s Bolsonaro, Hungary’s Orban) illustrating the worldwide struggle to defend democracy
• 22CI Gathering – The Twenty‑Second Century Initiative conference focused on resisting authoritarianism and fostering democratic resilience

• Choose Democracy – Nonpartisan group preparing Americans to resist undemocratic power grabs through training and strategic organizing