ilasiea gray

Ilasiea Gray is a multi-hyphenated social practice artist (actress, educator, director, writer, creator) whose work has been nationally recognized. As a performer she does both stage and on-camera work and is passionate about projects with social justice themes, educational theatre, and theatre for young audiences. She made history in Colorado playing Sleeping Beauty as a Black actress (Denver Children’s Theatre) and currently tours the show Black. With a Capital B. (Curious Theatre Company). As an educator, Ilasiea runs her own acting programming for kids and works in educational capacities nationwide for students pre-K to high school. She also serves in many educational capacities for adults by way of professional development. Her internationally published essay Why Are There No Great Kids of Color in the Performing Arts? examines inequity in the arts for young people of color and she has facilitated workshops around it including speaking at the upcoming South by Southwest (SXSW) Education conference in Austin, TX this spring. Ilasiea has been featured in many publications and panels due to her vast work around equity in the arts and arts education, including Colorado Public Radio, Denver Westword, American Alliance for Theatre & Education, and is also a True West Award recipient. Ilasiea recently graduated as part of the inaugural cohort of an MFA in Social and Environmental Arts program created by BLM co-founder Patrisse Cullors. www.ilasiea.com