Keeping Safe In Theatre

Dmae presents an in-depth look at safety for women in theatre inspired by a June 8th, Chicago Reader article titled At Profiles Theatre the drama—and abuse—is real  that shocked theatre communities around the country. The lengthy article was a year-long investigation into  a 20-year history of sexual harassment and physical abuse at Profiles Theatre in Chicago which  closed its doors less than a week after the article.

We heard from Laura T. Fisher from Not In Our House, a group formed to address safety for women in theatre that wrote an Open letter to the Chicago Theatre community and created a Chicago Code of Conduct. Then we’ll talk with Kristen Mun, a stage manager and fight choreographer who is offering free workshops to teach women safety techniques. And we’ll hear from Jane Vogel, founder and director of Age and Gender Equity in the Arts to discuss how to eliminate power structures in theatre that don’t lead to harassment and abuse.

Featured music is Molly Bauckham from her CD Maid On The Shore. Find out more about her music at HarperMolly.com. 

(Aired  11am Tues 6/28 on KBOO 90.7FM & Stagenstudio.com.) 

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More about the guests:

Laura T Fisher is the Coordinator of the Chicago Code of Conduct. Laura is a 30-year veteran of Chicago theatre community, and a Chicago native. Most recently, she originated the role of Mary Page Marlowe at 50 in the world premier of Tracy Lett’s Mary Page Marlowe, directed by Anna Shapiro at Chicago’s esteemed Steppenwolf Theatre. She’s worked with many Chicago theatres including Theatre Wit, The Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Court Theatre, Northlight Theatre, Victory Gardens Theatre, The Lyric Opera, The Chicago Symphony Orchestra and many others. She’s won Chicago’s Joseph Jefferson award, received three additional nominations for her performances and  performed in contemporary works, devised physical theatre, improv comedy, Shakespeare and other genres, and has been a member of four esteemed local theatre companies. Fisher has also performed in Milwaukee, Indianapolis, New York, Scotland, Singapore and Saudi Arabia and is a member of Actors’ Equity and SAG-AFTRA. She received an undergraduate degree in Theatre at Chicago’s Loyola University and studied Shakespeare at the London Shakespeare Studio.

Kristen Mun is originally from Hawaii and has worked as a fight choreographer for over half a dozen theatre companies in the Portland area.  She is the recent recipient of the Leslie O. Fulton fellowship has won Drammy’s for her work on Danny in the Deep Blue Sea, Oedipus El Rey, and Henry IV Part 1.  Outside of Portland she has worked at Utah Shakespeare Festival, Idaho Repertory Theatre, and was the assistant fight choreographer at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival for 2 seasons (09-10).  She is an officer and a recognized fight instructor with Dueling Arts International.

Jane Vogel, Founder and Board President, is an actor, an activist, and a clinical psychologist. She has an extensive history of championing for social justice issues. She holds a Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Oregon. She served on the Board for the Center for Community Counseling in Eugene, OR for fifteen years, including tenure as Board President. Jane was born in Indonesia, lived in the Netherlands and became a naturalized US citizen in 1967.

More about the organization: Age and Gender Equity in the Arts was established with a mission to empower and promote the visibility of women across the life span in the performing arts. Founded by Portland actor and activist Jane Vogel, the organization seeks to create a unique movement which promotes inclusive and diverse representation of all people in the arts. AGE will recognize and grant awards to professional theatre entities that demonstrate parity in their programming, with awards targeted to begin in 2016.

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More info on Kristen Mun’s free workshops!

July 2, 2016 Training in the Park, LAURELHURST PARK 2:30-4:30p

Meet by the basketball courts, on the corner of Stark and Cesar Chavez. This is an open training session. No experience necessary! Just show up! Please bring water and wear close-toed shoes and clothes you can move in. Come by at anytime during the 2-hour block, even if you cannot make the whole training session, come by for part of it!

July 3, 2016 Training in the Park, IRVING PARK, 10:00AM-12:00PM

Meet by the basketball courts. NW corner, Fremont and 7th ave. This is an open training session. No experience necessary! Just show up! Please bring water and wear close-toed shoes and clothes you can move in. Come by at anytime during the 2 hour block, even if you cannot make the whole training session, come by for part of it!

July 9, 2016 Stage Combat Workshop/Dealing with conflict onstage and off CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY 4:00PM-6:00PM

The goal of this workshop is to provide a safe space to train in unarmed stage combat and have an in depth discussion about onstage violence and how to navigate the strategies and ethics of such challenging collaborative tasks socially, in the workplace, and the gray area between. This 2-part workshop will combine the proper execution, reaction, and safety of an onstage fight along with the tools to have those difficult conversations about your emotional and physical expectations. Please bring water and wear close-toed shoes and clothes you can move in. There is limited space for this workshop so please RSVP to: rcduelingcommunity@gmail.com.