Florida’s anti-DEI laws are forcing local arts organizations to choose between artistic independence and keeping the lights on.
This month, the Urbanite Theatre in downtown Sarasota refused to sign an anti-DEI agreement, forfeiting a $40,000 county grant.
The intimate theater holds roughly 65 audience members who often become a part of the show. The Urbanite’s programming reflects its mission to elevate “inclusive, artist-first storytelling.” From a one-woman show imagining Shakespeare as a genderfluid sibling who steals the identity of their brother, William; to a play about a Black man raising his late husband’s white teenage son…