How We’re Organized

Distributed leadership

DT:FC is a not-for-profit business association, founded in 2022, that operates on distributed-leadership principles. There is no single artistic director or executive holding central authority. Instead, decisions are made by the people doing the work, coordinated through standing committees and a small Coordinating Council. Lacking a hierarchy encourages active membership and shared responsibility.

Decision making is never a win/lose vote. When the membership reaches concordance, the decision is accepted as a new norm or behavior. When strongly opposing values emerge, the parties state their positions clearly, sit in reflective silence, and — if consensus still can’t be reached — form a short-term committee to work out a solution together.

The Coordinating Council

The Coordinating Council (CC) consists of representatives from each standing committee. Current committees and their areas:

• Competencies / Theatre Games
• Children’s Theatre
• Shakespeare Track
• Workshops and Training
• Legacy (History + PhD Thesis project)
• Business Management (vision, values, website, marketing, funding)

Representatives rotate to the CC to keep decision-making in clear alignment with the organization’s purpose and goals. For the purposes of the nonprofit registration, a Finance Committee member serves as Treasurer; a member is named President to call CC meetings, and another serves as Secretary to file meeting reports as minutes.

The full membership may also gather for facilitated workshops, strategic planning, or any other need — with open-space agendas where participants bring topics and arrange them to fit the time available.

Standing committees

Standing committees own the ongoing work of DT:FC across all program areas. Short-term committees form around specific initiatives and dissolve when the work is done. Committees are open to any member who wants to contribute — that open access is what keeps the organization’s leadership distributed rather than concentrated.

Fiscal sponsorship

DT:FC is fiscally sponsored by We Tell Stories, Inc., a California 501(c)(3) nonprofit with closely aligned goals and methods. Contributions made through the Donate page flow through We Tell Stories and are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.