Black lives matter/Trans lives matter

As a company, (sub)version productions, LLC, producers of The Buttcracker: A Nutcracker Burlesque©, employs BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) and Queer/Trans folk as performers, designers, choreographers, and staff, and is committed to uplifting their experiences and supporting them. We are also committed to making our audiences as diverse as our team. We know we can do more. We are actively listening, learning, and acting. We want to grow and make (sub)version productions, LLC and all its entities a safe place for artists and audiences alike. 

This year, and all subsequent years following, (sub)version productions, LLC will commit 10% of our profits to various non-profit organizations fighting for justice. We ask that you also join us in supporting these organizations, including:

• Brave Space Alliance – the first Black-led, trans-led LGBTQ Center located on the South Side of Chicago, dedicated to creating and providing affirming, culturally competent, for-us by-us resources, programming, and services for LGBTQ individuals on the South and West sides of the city.
• Black Lives Matter Chicago – Black Lives Matter Chicago is an intersectional vehicle that values Black people and our right to self-determination. They fight for justice with families most impacted, while working to create just and equitable systems.
• The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. – NAACP is America’s premier legal organization fighting for racial justice. Through litigation, advocacy, and public education, LDF seeks structural changes to expand democracy, eliminate disparities, and achieve racial justice in a society that fulfills the promise of equality for all Americans. LDF also defends the gains and protections won over the past 75 years of civil rights struggle and works to improve the quality and diversity of judicial and executive appointments.

These are just three of the many, many organizations that are out there helping to fight racism and demand accountability. For a much larger list, including organizations across the country, we encourage you to check out Glitter Moneyyy’s list here. Glitter Moneyyy is on the front lines of fighting racism in America. Their work is pretty amazing.

We also are recommitting to our mission of ensuring diverse hiring practices, as well as additional work such as outreach to BIPOC audiences, and working with a Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion consultant to ensure we are following best practices and making our spaces safe. We recognize that a statement is not enough, so we will also be working towards putting actionable steps in place to ensure we are following through with our commitments to be an anti-racist company. It is not enough for us to talk the talk, we must also walk the walk.

We can all do our part to fight racism and inequality. We have all benefitted from a system that doesn’t value the lives of BIPOC, Queer, and Trans people in America, a system that is as old as our country’s founding. We believe taking a firm stance on this is of utmost important.

The road is long, but we hope you’ll join us. 

#BlackLivesMatter
#TransLivesMatter
#ResistReimagineRedefine

Land Acknowledgement

The Buttcracker: A Nutcracker Burlesque© performs on land located on the traditional unceded homelands of the Council of the Three Fires: the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi Nations. Many other tribes such as the Miami, Ho-Chunk, Menominee, Sac, and Fox also called this area home. The region has long been a center for Indigenous people to gather, trade, and maintain kinship ties. Today, one of the largest urban American Indian communities in the United States resides in Chicago. Members of this community continue to contribute to the life of this city and to celebrate their heritage, practice traditions, and care for the land and waterways.

We embrace our commitment to Indigenous rights, racial justice, and cultural equity not only through this statement but also in our collecting and care of Native American objects, our exhibitions and programs, and our relationships with Indigenous communities.