DETROIT— BoxFest Detroit, an annual theatre festival that showcases and creates opportunities for women directors, is announcing that they have recently been approved for non-profit status and are launching a fundraiser to support the festival and Mentorship Program.

BoxFest Detroit produces festivals that grant women directors the opportunities to direct original shows of their choice and win awards to help further their careers in directing. The winning director of the festival-long audience vote competition is given the opportunity to direct a show with Planet Ant Theatre’s One Act Series. For the 2017 festival, BoxFest Detroit launched an additional opportunity: a Mentorship Program. The Mentorship Program grants at least two BFD 2018 directors the opportunity to shadow, learn, and collaborate with established, experienced, female-identifying directors. The program also gives emerging directors exposure to networking opportunities in the Metro-Detroit theatrical community.

Photo: BFD17 winners from left to right—Bridgette Jordan won the opportunity to Assistant Direct with Frannie Shepherd-Bates, Sarah Hawkins Moan won the Tipping Point Theatre Sandbox Play Festival Directorship, and Charity Clark-Anderson won the Planet Ant One Act slot.

The goals of the Mentorship Program are to connect BoxFest directors with the greater Metro Detroit professional theatrical community and other female-identifying directors working within it, support the education of female-identifying directors, remove challenges for BoxFest directors associated with the cost of education and travel, and remove challenges for professional theaters associated with artist salaries. The BoxFest Detroit 2018-19 Mentorship Associates are Frannie Shepherd-Bates, Sherrine Azab, Courtney Burkett, and Lynn Lammers. BoxFest Detroit’s 2018-19 Partner Theatres are Tipping Point Theatre, Detroit Public Theatre, Kickshaw Theatre, and A Host of People.

BoxFest Detroit has an additional big announcement: after 15 years, BFD has been approved for non-profit status. “In looking towards our future, and how we want to show up for our community, we decided that becoming a non-profit is the best way to tackle our next 15 years,” said Amanda Grace Ewing, BFD Artistic Director. “We’re now eligible for grants and our patrons can now make tax-deductible donations. We’re excited about this news and hope that our supporters will help us celebrate through the 2018 festival and our Indiegogo fundraising campaign.” Donations can be made at https://igg.me/at/bfd2018.

BoxFest Detroit 2018 will run Fridays and Saturdays, August 17 – 25 at Planet Ant Theatre, 2357 Caniff Ave, Hamtramck, MI, 48212. For more information, please visit www.boxfestdetroit.com.