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A Pay Equity Resource For
Early Career Designers
DESIGN ACTION
Jonah is invested in decolonial and intersectional anti-racist work both in the content of the shows they collaborate on, as well as within the greater theatrical industry.
Since 2021, Jonah has proudly served on the Executive Board of Design Action, an intergenerational coalition of BIPOC and white designers working to end racial inequities in the North American Theater.
We have worked with organizations such as the American Theatre Wing, Park Avenue Armory, La Gente, See Lighting Foundation, and Wingspace to produce opportunities for rising BIPOC designers working the American theatre.
Contributor and Final Edit Committee member for Design Action's Five Guiding Principles of Advocacy, a collectively created document that outlines Design Action's suggestions for building a more equitable theatre industry for designers.
As part of Design Action, Jonah helped to organize six micro-commission installations at the Park Avenue Armory’s Symposium Sound and Color: The Future of Race in Design in January 2023.
“The six micro-commissions painstakingly created by eight emerging theatre artists and their collaborators over 48 hours, were presented in the Armory historic rooms in partnership with Design Action […] Chosen from a large pool of applicants, the designers were tasked with preparing responses to the question of what it means to “Take Space” and “Disrupt with Love” as young designers of color.”
— Alexandra Pierson (American Theatre Magazine)
“How to Design a More Just Theatre Field”
SOund and Color Symposium
BIPOC Director + Designer networking event
Jonah lead the organizing of a BIPOC Director + Designer Networking Event through Design Action and Playwrights Horizons in December 2024, with a goal to connect theatre-makers of color working in New York City.
Jonah has worked with the production managers’ forum to create a virtual production manager + BIPOC designer meetup for folks to meet one another and gain new professional connections.
Spring 2024 marked Design Action’s third time collaborating with the PMF to produce this event.
Production Manager + BIPOC Designer Meetup
The Pipeline: All Set to Succeed
BY Crystal Paul
Jonah was interviewed for this article by American Theatre Magazine about diversification in theatre design and pathways into the industry for early career designers.