Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department alum Khanisha Foster ’02, a graduate of the Theatre Department’s BA Program in Acting, has been named Director of Equity, Belonging, and Engagement at the nonprofit Center Theatre Group arts organization, located in Los Angeles, California. “Khanisha’s hiring is another step forward for Center Theatre Group, our Social Accountability efforts, and our Commitments to Change,” CTG said in a statement posted on Instagram.
“In partnership with us, Khanisha will provide vision and leadership around equity-focused initiatives, and work closely with colleagues and community members to promote inclusion and belonging throughout the organization and our community,” said CTG artistic director Snehal Desai and managing director Meghan Pressman in a statement. “Khanisha is a compassionate and talented force of nature who has done it all in the theatre space and has a strong track record and implementing Anti-Racism, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (AREDI) programming and engagement. We are thrilled that she will be joining us at Center Theatre Group in this newly created leadership role.”
One of the largest theatre companies in the nation, CTG operates Los Angeles’ Mark Taper Forum, Ahmanson Theatre, and Kirk Douglas Theatre. CTG’s mission is “to serve the diverse audiences of Los Angeles by producing and presenting theatre of the highest caliber, by nurturing new artists, by attracting new audiences, and by developing youth outreach and arts education programs. This mission is based on a belief that the art of theatre is a cultural force with the capacity to transform the lives of individuals and society at large,” according to a statement on CTG’s website.
Foster is an actor, director, writer, and solo performer based in Los Angeles. “Every time I step into a theatre, I get goosebumps at the sheer possibility of the thing,” she said in a statement. “An empty space aching to be filled. Imagine what will happen when artists and audiences cross that threshold and get to bring their full selves – unfractured – into a room that doesn’t center panic and that imbues joy. To my amazing colleagues at CTG and to all who seek the liberation that theatre can offer, I say, let’s do this.”
In October, Foster will direct a production of the landmark 1959 drama A Raisin in the Sun at South Coast Repertory in Mesa, California.
