Written by Mia Lowy, Jillian Hughes, and Nadia Hopkins
The cast and crew of Into the Woods sent a letter on Monday, February 27th at 8am to Katherine Bergeron and the Board of Trustees to announce our solidarity with Student Voices for Equity (SVE) and the cancellation of our production until the SVE demands are met. Our letter was answered by Katherine Bergeron in an email received on Tuesday, February 28th at 3pm. It was the first significant, direct address from Bergeron to a student group in protest since the start of the occupation.
In the initial letter to Bergeron, senior cast member Mia (MJ) Lowy, along with the 40 cast and crew members that added their signatures to the letter, explained that we would not “bring something so close to our hearts to a stage owned by an administration that does not care about our wellbeing.” In response, all Bergeron could offer was a plea for us to “consider the significant legal, financial, and institutional complexity of the demands that have been put before the College, demands that the administration and the Board are working to resolve at this very moment.” With all this concern for finances, we cannot help but wonder if she’s aware of the over $20,000 spent to produce this show, including the cost of licensing rights. Her response went on to urge Into the Woods to find “other meaningful ways you can support Student Voices for Equity without canceling the production…I hope you will consider them and let your work have its lights this weekend.” While our peers are locked inside Fanning Hall receiving food through windows, sleeping on the floor, and having no access to showers, we are expected to smile under the lights of the newly-renovated Palmer Auditorium and perform for our arts-loving President.
Bergeron’s response was patronizing to the mission of the SVE student organizers, who are working to put pressure on the administration and the Board of Trustees to accept their demands. Bergeron wrote, “by their nature, colleges and universities work through such issues with deliberation—it’s one of the reasons institutions like ours have been around so long—which means that certain demands cannot be met overnight.” SVE remains fully aware that some of these demands take time to fully put into practice, but what they are looking for is recognition of the demands and active steps towards implementing them. It is also important to note that not all of these demands take “planning, review, reflection, and deliberation” like Bergeron stated in her response — her resignation can happen immediately, with just one more email from her. The “desire for immediate decision-making and action” that Bergeron referred to in her response patronizes and delegitimizes the longevity of SVE’s fight for clear concrete steps from the administration towards the demands.
We are shocked and horrified that Bergeron’s first true recognition of the occupation is in regards to the musical — something so insignificant in the grand scheme of unrest on this campus. As important as we feel the story of Into the Woods is to tell, the cast and creative team felt it would be inappropriate, inconsiderate, and insensitive to proceed with a “show must go on” attitude, on a stage and opening night funded by this administration.
Bergeron has long preached an unyielding support of the arts at Conn, however, she has made it impossible for us to uphold our art without sacrificing our values. We will not perpetuate the structure of racism and inequity that Bergeron has allowed and further embedded into our arts.
We stand with SVE in the hopes that the next email Bergeron drafts is her resignation.
You get a standing ovation from at least this parent for your response here. In addition to how well written and thoughtful your article is, your support of your peers deserves a second round of applause.
I really hope the students get to see the show. I know many people who worked really hard since January to make this a memorable event.
This email is another sign how far KB is removed from reality. She does not even pretend to understand, why and for what the students are protesting.
She obviously also has no empathy if she can imagine this show to take place while the lock-in protest still lasts. I understand how hard it must be and how much all of you sacrifice to support your fellow students! Chapeau to all of you!
I wish you all success for your endeavors, courage you already have more than enough!!
You go camels! Your actions show me that even if KB and BoT are not what I would have wished for, YOU, the community of students at Conn are amazing!
Thank you!
Best wishes from far away Europe!
If the administration really wants to support the arts on campus in the future, they can start by having a majority of arts-related professors whose titles are not “adjunct.” Examples of funding and hiring needs extend to the arts departments as well, unfortunately.
Major kudos to the cast and crew of Into The Woods. I hope you eventually get your day in the lights but truly admire your sacrifice in support of the SVE and hope that it moves KB enough that she will take action!
On Tuesday February 28, a week after his resignation and a full 24 hours before the show was cancelled, Dean King was announced by UMASS Amherst as the incoming Assistant Dean for Diversity at the School for Public Health. Dean Jobs require national search that usually lasts months. Did he resign for other reasons than he stated? Did he lie to the students about the true reasons for his resignation? Or was this a last minute “seize-the-moment” gain for UMASS? Did the cast know of his new job when making the decision to cancel? Would the cast have made a different choice if they knew? Would the fundraiser performance for DIEI not have been a better choice?
One thing is clear: Dean King’s deafening silence after resignation now makes sense.