I recently watched, "Hamilton: History Has it's Eyes on You" on Disney+. I thought the documentary was really good, but I was stuck by something that the director, Thomas Kail, said. He said "Theatre is not about having all of life's biggest questions, but its job is to dig deeper into those questions, and to ask questions that no one else is asking.". That is so true... a lot of people who are in the arts, in theatre, whatever, think that it is their responsibility to have all the answers, and show people what they are doing wrong. I disagree with that, I don't subscribe to the idea that theatre is supposed to be yelling at the audience from the moment they get to their seats. I think there is a time and place for that, but for the most part I believe theatre is supposed to be good old fashion fun.
In my own experience and education, I have been told that it is the job of the theatre maker to make audiences ask bigger questions about the world they live in, which I still believe. When I was an actor back in the day, it was my goal to get one person to think differently after the show. To be perfectly frank, I think that was a pure ego thing that I built up in my head. To this day, I don't think that actually happened but I wanted to act the show so well (with the other cast members of course!) that it changed someone's heart. Little did I know that was a very Brechtian idea. I have learned in college that some of that mindset was dangerous, especially for myself. I now think that the primary job of an actor, a play, and theatre itself is to allow audience members a form of escapism. To be so believable, to act and perform so well to the point that the audience forgets about the world and any troubles that come with it, which is anything but Brechtian.
Now as a theatre administrator, my goal is to bring audiences into the theatre who might not have ever been able to experience its healing power. I'm talking Latinx, Black, Indigenous, Asian, everyone... To show them that they have a place at the table. I want to show them that they can make themselves seen and heard on the stage, that there ideas and experiences deserve to be seen. my goal is to do this via marketing for commercial theatre, because broadway and tours are the way that most people experience theatre. One of the best examples, I can think of is the HAM4ED campaign that make sure that tens of thousands of students could see the show for a deeply discounted price, which is the biggest barrier for people to see theatre.
In my experience, theatre more than any other art form welcomed me and people like me to the table and actually allowed us to share our ideas, experiences, thoughts, everything. I'm gonna leave you with a quote from a dear friend and former director, "Tell a person a fact and they will know. Tell a person a truth and they may believe you, but tell a person a story and by God that will live in their hearts forever.". I still whole heartily believe in this quote today, to me allowing someone to see a show or experience a story being told in front of them can be a transformative experience in any sense of the word.