April 12--Lori Myers and Laura T. Fisher, in association with Not in Our House collective, say they have created a code of conduct for Chicago's non-Equity theaters.
An event will be held April 18 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., to present the 25-page drafted document, composed over the past year by Chicago theater artists. The initiative is a response to artists and administrators dealing with sexual harassment, discrimination, violence and various issues faced in the arts community. The code aims to provide an early response to problems, discourage negative practices and provide a clear vocabulary for dealing with various issues.
"There are always spoken and unspoken house rules that actors learn in college or by being a part of the culture, but in terms of sexual harassment, sexual misconduct and other health safety issues, there's really a deficit," said Fisher on Tuesday. "I really hope it (the code) catches on."
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Among the pilot group of companies that have committed to employing the code for the coming year are the Factory Theater, the Gift Theatre, The Inconvenience, Jackalope Theatre, Lifeline Theatre, The Neo-Futurists, No Stakes Theater Project, Oracle Productions, Stage Left Theatre, Steep Theatre Company, Underscore Theatre Company and WildClaw Theatre.
The code, which will be re-drafted after feedback received during the coming year (which Fisher referred to as an "experiment"), will be available to any non-Equity company (or Equity company that employs non-Equity actors) that would like to employ it. Following the launch event, the code will be posted on notinourhouse.org.
"We have to learn through experience -- what works, what doesn't," said Fisher, "The document is not a legal one, it's a cultural one."
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