ACTIVIST.

In 2017, Cessalee founded Stage A Change, a social enterprise working to create more professional opportunities for artists of colour throughout Australia. Stage A Change focuses on their 3-Spoke Plan to initiate change; Artist Training, Community Engagement and Industry Standards. Since 2017, Stage A Change has hosted several industry roundtable discussions, launched a training program in partnership in partnership with VCA, offered consultancy in anti-racism, DEI, and strategic planning, engaged in community outreach with the Diversity in Theatre picnics, and collected audience data to understand external stakeholder attitudes in reference to diversity within the sector.

In recognition of her work in the arts sector, in 2021, Cessalee was awarded the Betty Amsden Fellowship and in 2022, she was named a Westpac Foundation Social Change Fellow for 2022. Her fellowship plans include a global research project into best practices for equity and inclusion in the performing and visual arts sectors, continuing to investigate the intersection of identity, intimacy and inclusion in storytelling, and learning how to lobby for increased support for diversity, equity and inclusion from the government and funding bodies.

For more information about Stage A Change and The ChangeMakers, visit https://stageachange.org

For more information about the Betty Amsden Foundation, visit https://bettyamsdenfoundation.org.au/programs/scholarship-program/

For more information about the Westpac Social Change Fellowship, visit https://scholars.westpacgroup.com.au