Picture this, a man is in a work group chat with some other male colleagues. However, in the chat, there are pictures. Pictures of women, some are the men's girlfriends, some are girls they have had intimate relations with. Some of the pictures are taken without the women's knowledge or consent. In the chat, the men talk about "violating" and "abusing them like farm animals" and "the sluts they are".
You don't have to picture it. Chase Finlay, who was a principal dancer at New York City Ballet was in this group chat with principal dancers Amar Ramasar and Zachary Catazao and NYCB patron Jared Longhitano. In September 2018, Alexandra Waterbury (who was Finlay's girlfriend) happened upon this alleged group chat. Waterbury filed a lawsuit which resulted in Finlay resigning from the company and NYCB suspending Ramasar and Catazao.
All's said and done, right? Wrong.
Because the decision was reversed. 8 months later Ramazar and Catazao are reinstated as it is deemed that their punishment went "too far", Catazeo decided not to rejoin the company and so the only consequence for Ramasar was mandatory counseling. But surely someone who has these allegations surrounding him won't be hired for any roles? Right?
Wrong. A year after Amar Ramasar was cast as Benardo in the new revival of West Side Story on Broadway, despite backlash the show opened on February 20th 2020. This has sparked several nights of protesting outside the theatre from people who believe that Ramasar should not be allowed on Broadway.
However, all the protestors have received is dismissal. West Side Story management have made a statement positioning themselves as behind Ramasar 100% and stated that they have no intention of removing him from the show. No one with influence in the theatre community is willing to speak up, in fact, it seems that some will block you if you ask them to. And those who are close enough to feel discomfort at the situation do not have the power to do anything. According to On Stage, an anonymous performer who is starring alongside him is also uncomfortable about the allegations but cannot openly come out for fear of being blacklisted.
Of course, he only faces allegations. But do these allegations hold no weight at all? Is this the message we are sending to upcoming stars, that you can be involved in sexual misconduct in the workplace and face no consequences? That women who share similar experiences to Alexandra Waterbury don't matter? Theatre actors and go-ers pride themselves on being part of a community that is so open and loving. But when it comes to sexual misconduct (Ramasar is not the first alleged case of a predator on Broadway), we are met with silence or active rejection.
The theatre world loves to claim it's a safe space. But right now we have to ask, safe for whom?