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Gordon Edelstein Terminated as Artistic Director of Long Wharf Theatre After Sexual Misconduct Allegations

Jan. 23, 2018  

Gordon Edelstein Terminated as Artistic Director of Long Wharf Theatre After Sexual Misconduct Allegations

Laura Pappano, Board Chair of Long Wharf Theatre made this statement after Tuesday's board meeting:

"Long Wharf Theatre's Board of Trustees voted this evening to terminate Gordon Edelstein as the theatre's Artistic Director, effective immediately.

The board voted to consolidate artistic and administrative leadership under Managing Director Joshua Borenstein.

The board also voted to engage a third party to conduct an independent internal review of staff and board policies and procedures for reporting instances of misconduct. We must ensure that nothing like this happens again. We'll announce in the coming weeks who has been retained to perform this review, and the timeframe in which it will be completed.

The board and management of Long Wharf Theatre take seriously the need to ensure a fair, equitable, open and supportive theatre workplace. This is a time that demands sober self-reflection and openness. We must do more to create the kind of working environment that our talented and committed staff deserve. Long Wharf Theatre has long been a place where great things started. We need to make that true on stage -- and off."

The New York Times initially reported yesterday that former employees and other theatrical professionals who have come in contact with Edelstein described deeply inappropriate and traumatizing behavior, including unwanted sexual attention, groping, and sexually explicit language used in the workplace since his appointment in 2002, per The Times report.

The Times report is based on twenty-four separate interviews with current and former Long Wharf employees and colleagues.

Long Wharf is one of the nation's most popular regional theatres and is among those institutions honored with the special regional Tony Award for its work. The company has hand a hand in developing at least 19 Broadway productions, including this season's hit play, Meteor Shower. starring Amy Schumer, Laura Benanti, Keegan-Michael Key, and Jeremy Shamos.

Read the full NYT report here.




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