Season sensitivity audit
A written brief on each production in your season, identifying cultural and intimacy considerations before they arise in rehearsal.
Consulting
Cultural Intelligence Process for the Arts.
A framework for cultural and intimacy safety in productions of culturally specific work — built by a working stage director and intimacy coordinator, for theaters and institutions staging stories that carry real historical and cultural weight.
The Problem
Physical safety and cultural safety are not the same protection.
More theaters than ever are staging work centered on the Black American experience, the African Diaspora, and other communities of color — a necessary and welcome shift. But the production systems supporting that work were not always built with those communities at the center.
Intimacy coordination protocols address physical safety, and most institutions have rightly adopted them. On their own, they do not address what it means for an actor to perform intimate scenes rooted in historical trauma, how to choreograph touch inside a work that carries the weight of lived experience, or how to build a rehearsal room where every artist feels culturally safe — not only physically safe. That gap between intention and infrastructure is where harm happens. CIP is built to close it.
Your intimacy coordinator handles the choreography. CIP makes sure the institution is culturally prepared for the work being choreographed. — Ann James, Founder
The Framework
One integrated approach.
CIP integrates cultural sensitivity assessment, intimacy choreography, and directorial coaching into every phase of a production, from first read to closing night — not a checklist added after the fact.
The Process
Five stages, one framework.
01
Pre-production cultural & sensitivity assessment
A systematic read of the script and season for cultural, racial, identity, and intimacy considerations before rehearsal begins.
02
Intimacy choreography & safety framework
Scene-by-scene intimacy protocols and performer consent systems for live theater, designed with attention to the cultural context of the work.
03
Directorial EQ assessment & coaching
Support for directors leading emotionally intelligent, culturally responsive rehearsal rooms.
04
Production-level sensitivity integration
Organizational policies, rehearsal room culture guidelines, and incident response procedures built into how the production actually runs.
05
Post-production evaluation & case study
A written debrief documenting what worked, useful for grant reporting, board presentations, and continuous improvement season over season.
Engagements
What this looks like at your institution.
Production consulting
Intimacy choreography and cultural sensitivity consultation for a single show, through closing night.
Staff & ensemble training
On-site or virtual training for staff, faculty, or your resident ensemble, tailored to your repertoire and community.
Retained advisory
Ongoing access for artistic and executive leadership across a full season or multi-production partnership.
Every engagement is scoped to the institution and season. Contact Ann James for a custom proposal — a single production can serve as a pilot before a larger commitment.
Why It Matters
Infrastructure that matches the intention.
- Reduces reputational and institutional risk around productions of culturally specific work.
- Strengthens standing with funders who increasingly prioritize documented artist safety and equity practices.
- Builds rehearsal rooms that artists of color want to return to.
- Complements — and does not replace — guild-required intimacy coordinator qualifications; CIP adds the cultural assessment, directorial coaching, and organizational layers standard intimacy coordination does not cover.
CIP is a private, proprietary methodology developed by Ann James. It is not a union, guild, legal, or accredited credential, and it does not replace guild-required intimacy coordinator qualifications — it complements them.
Ready to talk about your season?
A 20-minute introductory call is the usual first step — to understand your current protocols and where CIP could be most useful.