Our Process

Step one was welcoming new leadership throughout the organization. 

We broadened our understanding through the addition of remarkable hearts and minds to PlayPenn’s core leadership. PlayPenn then began the process of exploring and interrogating our organizational values, clarifying and affirming who we are now, and who we commit to be in the future.

This process-oriented work of refreshing our values began in early 2021 with a small group of board members meeting regularly throughout the winter. The group was comprised of artists, academics, and professionals from varied disciplines and represented multiple perspectives and viewpoints including Black, Indigenous, People of Color, LGBTQ+ people, and parent artists.  

Our aim was to craft a restorative spine of organizational values that are intentional, aspirational, impactful, and measurable.  These values will guide PlayPenn’s artistic and administrative choices now, and as we move into our future together.  

We know that empathy is a developing skill and that organizations, like people, are “in–process.”

Through continued conversation with our community, organizational introspection, and a critical eye on the impact of our choices, PlayPenn will honor the artists we serve as an empathetic leader in new play development.

We offer this affirmation of our values for your public comment and review, and we are grateful to you for engaging with us.