BREAKING NEWS: Open Letter to Factory Board about online petition

Board asked to resign

An email was sent to The Charlebois Post today (2:15 pm) from Ed Gass-Donnelly, son of the former artistic director of Factory Theatre, Ken Gass. It was addressed to the Factory Theatre Board of Directors (who yesterday released an official statement about the firing of Ken Gass). Its subject line was "Factory Theatre's community responds". 

Following is the text of the email as well as a link to the online petition to which it is referring.

(Read the petition here)

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To the Factory Theatre Board of Directors:

A STATEMENT FROM YOUR COMMUNITY

I’m writing in protest of your abrupt termination of Ken Gass as Factory Theatre’s Artistic Director last week. I enclose a petition with more than 2600 names calling for Ken’s re-instatement and the Board’s resignation.

First, I must confess that Ken is my father, so it may seem easy to write this off as a familial bias. However, I dare you each to read through the full petition, not just the most recognizable names but also the many passionate comments.  You cannot ignore the 2600+ voices. There’s no way the Factory will have any future credibility with this board in place.

Obviously each of you cares about the theatre. It’s not my intent to suggest you don’t like Factory.  But it’s not your theatre. 

The Factory belongs to the community that it serves. And you are its trustees. 

The 2600+ people that have signed this petition ARE the community, yet you continue to ignore the very people you are sworn to serve. 

You need to acknowledge this.

This protest group became 2600 strong in less than a week, and the flood of signatures continues.  At what point will you listen? At what point will you do what is right?  The undersigned are not only the playwrights, the directors and actors, they include producers and artistic directors. The donors.   Our cultural leaders. 

And most importantly, they are Factory Theatre’s audience.

When governments lose the confidence of their constituents, they resign.  Now you must do the same.   But read the names. Read the passionate pleas.   And resign.

Yours sincerely, 

Ed Gass-Donnelly