Cessalee Smith-Stovall

About Cessalee Smith-Stovall

With over 15 years of experience in professional theatre, community engagement, business management, arts education, and live event marketing, I am a visionary leader and changemaker in performing arts with a passion for increasing, amplifying, and sustaining opportunities for artists of colour in Australia. I founded Stage A Change in 2017 to realize my vision of the future of performing arts in Australia, where artists who identify as First Nations, Black, Indigenous, or People of Colour (BIPOC) have equal, authentic, and abundant opportunities in all arenas of the performing arts.As the Founder and CEO of Stage A Change, I oversee the implementation of a 3-Spoke Plan to initiate change: Artist Training, Community Engagement, and Industry Standards. I leverage my skills and knowledge in arts equity and inclusion, access and belonging, strategic planning, theatre project management, diversity and inclusion workshops and coaching, and creative ideation to partner and collaborate with community, industry, and artists. I am also a certified Intimacy Director and Coordinator, and a proud member of the 2023 ArtEquity BIPOC Leadership Circle and the Westpac Social Change Fellow 2022 cohort. My mission is to create a more diverse, inclusive, and equitable performing arts sector that reflects and celebrates the richness and diversity of our world.

Experience

1. Founder and CEO

   Stage A Change

   Dec 2017 — Present · Melbourne, AU

   In partnership and collaboration with community, industry and artists, STAGE A CHANGE works to increase, amplify and sustain professional opportunities for artists of colour in Australia.Our StoryFounded in 2017 by Cessalee Stovall, Stage A Change was born from her vision of the future of performing arts in Australia. Her vision included equal, authentic and abundant opportunities for artists who identify as First Nations, Black, Indigenous, or People of Colour (BIPOC) in all arenas of the performing arts. From its origins, Stage A Change operates on a 3-Spoke Plan to initiate change; Artist Training, Community Engagement, and Industry Standards, each spoke is critical for forward motion. Training leads to being hired in the industry, being visible in the industry creates impact in community, community support encourages training. Stage A Change believes we are all responsible for the change we want to see. Operating as a social enterprise, our artist training programs and community engagement activities are funded by our supporters and our industry standards programming, our advocacy work is directed and led by community, and our staff and board maintain a minimum representation of 66% people who are First Nations or BIPOC, or otherwise racialised.Founded in 2017, Stage A Change is an organisation working to create more professional theatre opportunities for aspiring artists of colour throughout Australia. In 2021, Stage A Change developed an industry-focused consultancy program, specifically created for arts practitioners and theatre companies. This program enables independent artists, producers, creatives and organisations to initiate, develop, build and take action on best practices with regards to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, based on their project, vision, budget and goals. We now work with over 15 arts and NFP organisations across Australia. For more information about Stage A Change and The ChangeMakers, please contact h••••@stageachange.org.

Education

• Cathedral High School

  High School Diploma

  1996 — 2000

• Purdue University

  Certificate Understanding Diversity and Inclusion

• The Global Leaders Institute

  Master of Business Administration - MBA, Executive Arts Leadership

• University of Massachusetts Amherst

  Certificate, Arts Leadership

  2021 — 2023

• Florida State University

  Bachelor's degree, Theatre/Theater

  2000 — 2003

• Cornell University

  Diversity and Inclusion Certificate