Does art have the power to create change? For Kristen van Ginhoven, former Artistic Director of WAM Theatre and current Executive Director of Project SAGE, the answer is an unequivocal “Yes!”

Founded in 2010, WAM Theatre’s mission is one driven by a mission of arts as activism — creating theatre for everyone that benefits women and girls by pairing each production with beneficiaries working for the advancement of gender equity around the world. Since its inception, WAM Theatre has contributed more than $90,000 to such organizations, exemplifying theatre’s potential as a vehicle for philanthropy.

Kristen continues this ethos in her new tenure at Project SAGE, which advocates for victims and survivors of relationship violence by challenging attitudes and beliefs about power, control, and gender norms. They provide support for individuals and families through support groups, legal advocacy, as well as emergency services such as a shelter and 24/7 crisis hotline.

In this episode, Kristen shares about her journey from theatre artist to activist, honoring our past while crafting our future with intention, and the power of art to inspire, build empathy, and catalyze personal and social transformation.

Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when published"We Rise" by Amanda Gorman

Today, everyone’s eyes

Are on us as we rise.

Today is the day women

Are paving the way,

Speaking our truth to power.

In this hour, it is our duty

to find the brave beauty

In rooting for other women

So they too know we are not victims,

We are victors, the greatest predictors

of progress. We press for change,

A new dawn drawn into the open

By women whose silence is broken.

We push on and act on

Our responsibility to bring visibility

To the most vulnerable:

To bring freedom to those who didn’t have a choice,

To bring volume to those who are using their voice.

We clear a woman’s way,

We don’t fear the day

She steps into the light

Because we are with her

Every step of the fight.

There’s a lot at stake, but making

A difference always takes great courage.

So we encourage women who dare to stare

Fear square in its face,

Women who’ve always shown

That when one woman stands up

She is never alone.

We know that when she steps up to right a wrong,

She will fight to bring others along

To the network, into the conversation,

Working together to change communities

And nations for generations, our world

Made all the stronger the longer

Women are able to sit at the table.

It is her strength, her story, and her spirit

Which inspires other vital voices

to speak up when they hear it.

So let it be said that light will be shed

When our world is led by leaders ahead

of the headlines, the voices

Who are first on the frontline,

These women who stand up,

knowing the wind

Not by where it is, but where it is blowing,

Leading worlds not by how society is

But where change is going.

We all leap forward when one woman tries,

When she defies with her rallying cries.

Here lies, but does not rest, the best

Of tested women who call us all to rise,

Speaking the truth in this finest hour:

That to their own power,

every single woman is entitled.

But it’s how they empower others

That makes women’s voices so vital.

Show Notes:

• National Domestic Violence Hotline

• Project SAGE

• www.kristenvanginhoven.com

• WAM Theatre

Connect with Andy:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewjcahill/

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