One year after Soulpepper, what stage have we reached?
A year ago this week, news broke that shook Canadian theatre to its core. Four actors — Diana Bentley, Kristin Booth, Patricia Fagan and Hannah Miller — filed civil lawsuits alleging that Soulpepper Theatre’s founding artistic director, Albert Schultz, had sexually harassed and assaulted them, some claims going back decades. Soulpepper Theatre itself was named in the statements of claim, which referred to Schultz as a “serial sexual predator.”
Schultz resigned on Jan. 4, the day after the suits were filed, and Soul- pepper severed its relationship with Leslie Lester, the theatre’s executive director and Schultz’s wife, two days after that. The suits were quietly settled out of court in June.
Soulpepper continued to operate through and beyond the crisis, with associate artistic director Alan Dilworth stepping in as acting artistic director and the theatre committing to a “process of renewal.” The Soulpepper Academy, the theatre’s training arm, was put on yearlong hiatus.
Following the appointment of executive director Emma Stenning in August, the theatre adopted a new code of conduct. This month, Weyni Mengesha takes up her post as artistic director, an appointment widely embraced by the arts community.
The Schultz lawsuits effectively marked the moment when the #MeToo movement reached Canadian theatre full force, but we haven’t seen the kind of domino effect as happened in Hollywood following the downfall of producer Harvey Weinstein, in which other leading figures were accused
publicly of sexual misconduct and sexual assault.
The Soulpepper case was deeply painful for many people. Without wishing undue pain on anyone, it’s clear that a year of #MeToo has opened up thinking, conversation and action — that Canadian theatre is a different place than it was a year ago and that more change is still to come.
Here’s what a number of professionals have to say about how #MeToo has affected Canadian theatre.
Mikaela Davies, actor and director
“I have noticed a radical difference in Canadian rehearsal halls since Tarana Burke’s #MeToo movement reached us. I used to believe that routinely navigating unwanted sexual advances was just part of the territory of being a female actor. This is no longer my experience or belief. I am incredibly grateful to the leaders in our industry who have changed this so that our focus can go back to the actual work. However, until women are invited to sit at the table in equal numbers to men, in every aspect of leadership, the fight for gender equality will not be done.” Jennifer Wigmore, core member of Got Your Back
“After the bravery of Diana, Kristin, Hannah and Trish, and many other women, the grassroots groups Got Your Back and #AfterMeToo arose to create platforms for critical discussion, healing and collective action. Other changemakers also emerged, like the Citadel Theatre in Edmonton, which under Daryl Cloran’s leadership is addressing decades of harassment through institutional atonement and restitution. Theresa Tova, the fierce president at ACTRA Toronto and the newly elected council at Canadian Actors Equity are committed to addressing organizational barriers and harassment loopholes, and bringing industry players together. Through this collective activism the #MeToo movement will result in critical and lasting change to the entertainment industry in Canada.” Meghan Speakman, stage manager
“While stage managers have always striven to create safe workspaces, recent events have challenged beliefs about traditional power structures and created new definitions of safety. We are now sharing new ideas on how to support the creative process while maintaining a respectful work environment, and new workplace policies assist with this endea- vour. However, stage managers are often tasked with confronting issues of harassment without formal training, and we are still faced with an industry where speaking up is accompanied by fear of reprisal. Though we have a long way to go, this past year has opened the door for dialogue.”
Sedina Fiati, producer and performer
“I have seen far more conversations about how we create spaces, address conflict, create accountability. More arts managers, engagers, directors and producers are learning our legal and social responsibilities. We must continue to create a deeper shift in the industry that prioritizes our emotional and physical wellbeing and acknowledges the harmful effects of white supremacist patriarchal systems. This is part of a wider societal shift that thankfully the theatre community is actually responding to. Change is never easy, but I think the aftermath of the Soulpepper case and similar situations across the country (and the world!) is leading us to a much better place, which will mean better work and a healthier, more inclusive industry.”
Ravi Jain, artistic director, Why Not Theatre
“At Why Not Theatre, we developed a bill of rights for every artist we work with and have continued to have conversations about workplace culture, some of which have been very difficult. We’re also working on ways of addressing financial precarity in the arts. Precarity is a root cause of silence, which enables all the behaviours being called out to continue. We have earned privileges and we want to empower other artists to be able to speak out. For us, the solutions are to be found not only in the work we make, but the systems we create and ensuring the people with the least privilege are given the most power. And, in the process, establishing trust, which isn’t easy. So yes, there is a long way to go, but we are hopeful to get there.”
Jani Lauzon, artistic director of Paper Canoe Projects
“I liken the whole #MeToo movement to paddling a canoe. You make a move to change direction and you are now going against the current. You paddle hard, harder than you have in the journey. But the current resists. There are times when your arms are so tired you want to give up. It would be easier to return to the previous course. But you keep going, knowing that with slow and steady progress you may reach solid ground. You know the journey will continue to be tough as long as there is even the tiniest bit of resistance.”