Create + Activate: Cohort 2

A BIPOC Collaborative Community in Ensemble Practice

Building on the Deep Learnings, Joy, and Inspiration From Our Inaugural Cohort (2022)

Following the transformative journey of our first Create + Activate cohort, NET is excited to announce the launch of Cohort 2, our second artistic-exchange circle dedicated to supporting BIPOC ensemble artists, leaders, and practitioners.

Submissions Open: July 17 | Submissions Close: August 22

About Create + Activate

Create + Activate: A NET BIPOC Collaborative Community in Ensemble Practice is an artistic-exchange circle that meets virtually over 12 months focused on group relationship building and cohort-based peer knowledge sharing.

Building on the profound connections and discoveries from our inaugural cohort, this second iteration will deepen our collective exploration of ensemble practice while expanding our community of BIPOC artists committed to innovative, equity-centered creative work. Our first cohort created lasting bonds, produced a beautiful visual scribe book documenting their discoveries, and contributed vital resources to the field and we're excited to see what Cohort 2 will generate together. Furthermore, part of this launch will be an invitation to Cohort 1 members to be compensated guest session hosts. For this round, we are adding an in-person gathering element to the program.  Invitations to the in-person gathering that will take place sometime during the Cohort 2 year. 

Cohort 2 will be selected by a panel of colleagues and peers and will include approximately 6 BIPOC ensemble representatives and individual artists from NET's membership and community.

Program Overview

Format: Virtual Gatherings across 12 months, with two pre-launch orientation sessions where the curriculum and agenda will be revised and aligned by the cohort.

Cohort Size: Approximately 6 self-identified  BIPOC participants

Meeting Schedule: Monthly 2-hour sessions including a virtual opening intensive, a mid-point or closing in-person intensive, and a virtual closing celebration.

Honorarium: $2,000 provided to each cohort member to offset expenses associated with participating in the program, plus the cost of any travel and per-diem for in-person NET Gatherings. Additionally, participants will receive waived individual membership ($165 per year) for the duration of the program.

Create + Activate (C+A) Cohort 2 is NET’s ensemble artist-exchange circle, created by and for BIPOC ensemble artists. This is a container to co-create. A yearlong gathering space where relationship is the curriculum. Where your lineage, your leadership, and your questions are all welcome. Where the people and the process are the point.

As the ensemble field continues to move through compounding crises, from political violence and economic precarity to cultural erasure, BIPOC artists remain at the forefront of imagining what care, connection, and collective power can look like. Create + Activate is one of the ways we hold that line. It’s a space to process, co-create, and build with each other; not just in response to harm, but in commitment to joy, practice, and future-making. This cohort carries forward the lessons of the past while forging what comes next.

Timeline

  • OPEN SUBMISSIONS: July 17, 2025

  • SUBMISSIONS CLOSE/DUE: August 22, 2025

  • ADJUDICATION PANEL SELECTIONS BY: September 26, 2025

  • NOTIFICATIONS: October 3rd

  • PROGRAM ORIENTATION (Meeting #1): October 14, 2025

  • INTRO TO NET & TRANSITION (Meeting #2): November 18, 2025

  • DECEMBER OFF

  • MEETING 3: January 13th, 2026

  • MEETING 4:  February 10th, 2026

  • MEETING 5:  March 10th, 2026

  • MEETING 6:  April, 7th, 2026

  • MEETING 7: May, 5th, 2026

  • JUNE & JULY OFF

  • MEETING 8: August 11th, 2026

  • MEETING 9: September 8th, 2026

  • MEETING 10: October 6th, 2026

  • MEETING 11: November 10th, 2026

  • DECEMBER OFF

  • MEETING 12: January 12th, 2027

  • MEETING 13: February 9th, 2027

  • MEETING 14: March 9th, 2027

  • CLOSING CELEBRATION: April 2027; Exact Date TBD

The timeline continues to evolve as we bring more collaborators on board and incorporate learnings from our first cohort experience.

Application Process

Please fill out this short form by no later than August 22nd, 2025 midnight (12:00am) pacific time. 

We will be announcing an open virtual program info session for questions and application support to take place early August. For more information, email info@ensembletheaters.net or get on our mailing list here.

Who Should Apply

We seek BIPOC ensemble members and individual ensemble practitioners  who are:

  • Committed to ensemble-based creative practice with baseline knowledge and lived experience. 

    • NET defines a performance based ensemble as a group of individuals dedicated to collaborative creation, committed to working together consistently over years to develop a distinctive body of work, practices, and ways of being. Ensemble members, both artists, administrators, are empowered as core decision-makers and help to shape their company's artistic direction, values, processes, and organizational structure. But NET serves and is composed of more than performance ensembles, collectives, and individual ensemble practitioners. We view Ensemble as an umbrella term for long-form, values based collaboration towards a common aim. 

  • Interested in peer-to-peer learning and knowledge sharing in an intimate setting

  • Ready to engage in courageous conversations about equity in the arts

  • Available to participate in virtual gatherings over 12+ months with a strong commitment to attendance

  • Eager to contribute to and learn from a supportive community

The panel will consider the following areas in their discussions:

  • Working knowledge of ensemble practice, particularly with a culturally specific lens

  • Specificity of approach, practices, and viewpoints on ensemble form

  • Desire to contribute to the larger narrative of ensemble practice in the field

  • Expression of need to be nurtured by a community of ensemble makers

  • Committed to bringing their full selves to the process

We encourage and welcome both newly joined members and existing long-time members. 

Program Aims

NET offers Create + Activate Cohort 2 with the hope of  fulfill the following aims:

• Build interconnected relationships, community, and capacity among BIPOC ensemble-focused artists and practitioners

• Provide support to participate in group-structured peer knowledge sharing around ensemble practice

• Feature and share cross-sector and cross-discipline resources and facilitators to inspire innovative creative practice

• Document and share the cohort's discoveries and impact with the field

• Co-create an iterative and responsive experience following the needs, dreams, and desires of the cohort in the design of the experience

• Create bridges between Cohort 1 and Cohort 2 participants through strategic networking and mentorship opportunities

FAQs

  • Yes, each participating cohort member will receive a $2,000 honorarium to offset expenses associated with participating in the program. The stipend will be paid out 50% upon agreeing to participate and 50% upon completion of the program. All travel expenses for in-person convening will be covered.

  • No. Come one, come all. But a nice perk of submitting? All selected participants will receive a waived individual membership ($165 per year) for the duration of their participation. Did you know that NET offers 50% and 100% membership waivers with this form- don’t hesitate to submit a request for your ensemble). Read more about membership here.

  • This will be determined by group consensus when the cohort is brought together for their first gathering, as our first priority is for the cohort meetings to create a space that encourages authentic sharing and connection.

  • The program is open to both individual artists and individuals who are members of an ensemble. We encourage folks to have baseline knowledge and lived experience with personal ensemble practice.

Notes & Acknowledgements

*NET’s producing director and shared leadership team members all self-identify as BIPOC marking shift for the organization. To that end NET understands that the term BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and/or People of Color) is not universally embraced by People of the Global Majority as it does not encompass all that we are beyond the margins of society. We are using it to show solidarity between the rich and vastly diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural histories of Black, Indigenous and/or People of Color (BIPOC). Throughout the course of this initiative, and based upon the conversations and insights from the cohort, this term may evolve. NET aims to honor the spirit of the term BIPOC by centering Black and Indigenous artists through the project team, panelists, guest advisors, artists, and cohort invitations. 

Legacy & Context

Create + Activate builds on a long history of ensemble-based initiatives supporting and centering BIPOC artists, acknowledging the ensembles of color which paved the way: Carpetbag Theater, El Teatro Campesino, Junebug Productions, Native Voices, Pregones/PRTT, Su Teatro, UNIVERSES, and Urban Bush Women, to name just a few.

This initiative complements other current field initiatives such as Pangea World Theater and Art2Action's National Institute for Directing & Ensemble Creation, Double Edge's Art & Survival Fellowship, Out of Hand Theater's Institute for Equity Activism, TCG's THRIVE! program, and artEquity's BIPOC Leadership Circle.

Questions? Contact: info@ensembletheaters.net

Create + Activate Cohort 2 represents our continued commitment to centering BIPOC voices in ensemble theater practice and building sustainable, supportive communities for transformative artistic work.

Application