LOS ANGELES: The Del Shores Foundation, an organization aimed at finding and nurturing new Southern queer artistic voices, has announced director Allison Bergman as its executive director. In its inaugural year, the foundation’s programming will include a script competition and live festival.
“There are many roadblocks preventing budding LGBTQ+ writers in the South from excelling, and most importantly, writing from their authentic experiences,” said Bergman in a statement. “By providing recognition, guidance, monetary support, and exposure, the Del Shores Foundation will open those pathways and offer opportunities for successful writing careers in theatre, film, and television.”
Bergman, a vocal champion for new works and new voices, is affiliated with multiple arts organizations developing new works, including Play Café, Moving Arts, Unbound Productions, and Bay Area Playwrights Foundation. Previously, she served as assistant director of theatre for North Carolina State University and artistic director of Broadway on Sunset. Bergman has directed over 40 stage productions on both coasts. Her latest film received several international awards including the 2020 Accolade Global Award of Merit. As a dramaturg, Bergman has helped writers and producers develop new scripts and adapt popular movies for Broadway and international production. Her book Acting the Song is widely used in theatre training programs as a textbook and a teacher’s guide. She is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, Boston University, and LACC Theatre Academy.
“We are thrilled to have someone of Allison’s vast experience and passion taking the helm of our foundation,” said founder and board member Del Shores, whose plays include Southern Baptist Sissies and Daddy’s Dyin’: Who’s Got the Will?, in a statement. “Allison’s personal and professional background promise to steer the organization and the writers we help cultivate to new heights of success.”
Founded in 2019, the Del Shores Foundation is a nonprofit group focused on finding and fostering LGBTQ+ artists and voices from the South. Last year, director, producer, playwright, and actor Del Shores pulled together a one-time live reading of his play Sordid Lives with Leslie Jordan, Bonnie Bedelia, Beau Bridges, Emerson Collins, Beth Grant, Dale Dickey, and Carlone Rhea to promote the charity. The foundation’s mission is to develop queer artistic voices through the bringing together of artists and working professionals, amplification of new work, and connection of artists to platforms for the creation of their work.
