PRIVATE: A Note from the Directors of SFBATCO

As two guys who grew up in San Francisco, it’s really easy to point the finger at tech companies, blaming them for changes in our city that we ain’t quite down with. And when describing the themes of Private, we found people responding like, “Here we go, a play blasting the tech industry.” 

But while the play uses digital privacy as a backdrop, its characters are actually grappling with their personal and interpersonal situations, reminding us of the common saying, “When you point a finger, there are three fingers pointing back.” Georgia and Corbin’s relationship issues aren’t an effect of his new tech job; it is just the new circumstances that expose long-existing problems. As difficult as this is to admit, we see a parallel with this tension and what’s happening in our home of San Francisco.

Artists have been unable to survive in San Francisco for years, and the city has long been losing its diversity in many senses of the word–ethnic, cultural, economic, occupational. But, as Abbey says in the play, “In the name of honesty,” instead of pointing fingers at others, what if we all looked inward? What are we doing to ensure that the arts thrive in San Francisco? What are we doing to combat the displacement of people of color? What are we doing to support those experiencing homelessness, those persevering through mental health crises, those without consistent access to food?

Theater cannot solve the world’s problems. But we hope you leave the space today ready to be honest with yourself, and those around you, about how we can all step up to create the community we want to live in. With your support, we will continue to produce work that provides a fresh perspective about the collective issues we face. But after that, it’s on all of us to get to work.

Thank you for choosing to spend your time (both public and private) with SFBATCO. It truly means the world to us.

Rodney Earl Jackson Jr., Co-Founder & Artistic Director
Adam Maggio, Managing Director