Philadelphia Native, LaNeshe Miller-White To Receive National PAAL Leader In Care Award

Parent Artist Advocacy League (PAAL) will present the second PAAL Leader In Care Award to LaNeshe Miller-White, Executive Director of Philadelphia Young Playwrights and Co-Founder and Executive Director of Theatre in the X, a theatre company created to provide the people of West Philadelphia and the African American community at large the opportunity to see professional quality theatre in their own neighborhood for no cost. Theatre in the X is also a long-time parent- and caregiver-supportive institution due in large part to Miller-White’s leadership.

LaNeshe Miller-White co-founded Theatre in the X with an embedded ethos of parent and caregiver support, creating a professional community where artists with families were an accepted and expected part of the ecosystem. A mother herself, Miller-White was also on the inaugural panel for PAAL’s launch, Motherhood: Breaking the Silence, for being a known advocate and mother in the community. Since that time, she served as PAAL’s first local representative as the former Chief Representative of PAAL’s Philadelphia Chapter, current PAAL Board, former Executive Director of Theatre Philadelphia upholding their childcare grants for adjudicators, and leading collaborator in bringing enhanced programming through Philadelphia Young Playwrights to Power Street Theatre’s Siluetas Childcare Matinee with PAAL, Tree House Books and Broadway Babysitters.

For this missional dedication to creating parent and caregiver support as a leader in the industry, PAAL is proud to award LaNeshe Miller-White the bi-annual 2024 Leader in Care Award. 

“LaNeshe Miller-White is a light in the Philadelphia arts industry,” shares PAAL National Executive Director of Community and Justice Initiatives and Philadelphia Chief Rep, Tamanya M. M. Garza, “Her extraordinary wisdom, vision, and expertise have informed how many Philadelphia artists and arts organizations welcome creativity and build community with care. LaNeshe’s dedication to African American stories and storytellers in her work with Theatre in the X has fundamentally changed the landscape of theatre in the city, creating space for vital stories to be centered, shared, and celebrated. LaNeshe’s incredible leadership has helped remove barriers for Philadelphians to make and experience theatre at its most engaging and do so in their own neighborhoods, parks, and schools with their families at their side. This expertise has made LaNeshe invaluable in her work with the Parent Artist Advocacy League, and she has been fundamental in creating practices to support caregiver-artists across the country.”

LaNeshe Miller-White, originally hailing from Bridgeport, Connecticut, has immersed herself in Philadelphia's arts scene for nearly two decades. She champions arts accessibility and social impact, currently steering Philadelphia Young Playwrights as Executive Director. Previously, she led Theatre Philadelphia, the region’s umbrella marketing and support organization for theater makers and theatergoers. A Temple University alum, Miller-White's tenure at Painted Bride Art Center spanned a decade as Marketing Manager. She co-founded Theatre in the X, an organization focused on breaking the boundaries to theater and employing artists of color. Recognized for her advocacy, she's a two-time Leeway Foundation grantee and serves on the advisory board of the Parent-Artist Advocacy League. She's a multifaceted talent, gracing stages as an actor in multiple Barrymore-nominated productions, and earning accolades as an arts administrator, including the 2022 Story Changers Award from the Philadelphia Women's Theatre Festival.

There will be an award ceremony dinner on September 22, 2024 in Philadelphia honoring LaNeshe and her impact. The event will fundraise toward a goal of $5,000 in sponsorships to BIPOC Organizational Care Support. Location to be announced. Tickets to attend the event and learn more of LaNeshe’s work will be available soon on the PAAL website. Tickets will be $50 per seat or $500 to sponsor a table. Event and childcare sponsors to be announced. If unable to attend, anyone is welcome to donate to the BIPOC Care Support campaign here: https://bit.ly/paal-leader-in-care-donation

Shanta Thake, Ehrenkranz Chief Artistic Officer at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, received PAAL's first Leader in Care award in 2022 for Thake's essential role in facilitating the partnerships that made PAAL's annual international summit for leadership training possible.

For tickets: https://bit.ly/paal-leader-in-care-tickets

For donations: https://bit.ly/paal-leader-in-care-donation

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