It’s no longer a matter of censure and condemnation — over the weekend an impression began to take hold that the goal of the burgeoning theatre-community movement against producer Scott Rudin is nothing less than career termination. They don’t want him chastised and repentant — they want him lashed, defrocked and gone.

Fairly or unfairly, this sentiment will probably be exacerbated by a video posted yesterday by David Graham-Caso that claims Rudin’s abuse of his late twin brother, Kevin Blake Graham-Caso, in late 2008 and ’09 while working for the producer was a significant factor in Kevin’s suicide last fall.**

DG-C: “You berated and demeaned, bullied and intimidated and harassed [Kevin] for eight solid months. It was so intense that he developed anxiety and depression and post-traumatic stress, and like many survivors of traumatic abuse, he soon found himself in another abusive relationship later on in his life. It was so intense that last October, he took his own life.”

From Greg Evans’ 4.18 Deadline story about the gathering punitive storm chasing producer Scott Rudin: “Actors’ Equity Association is calling on producer Scott Rudin, who ‘stepped back’ from his Broadway productions today in response to allegations of workplace abuse, to release employees from nondisclosure agreements.

“Earlier this week Equity, along with SAG-AFTRA and American Federation of Musicians Local 802, issued a joint statement condemning harassment, bullying and toxic environments and pledging ‘to hold accountable those who violate human and legal norms of fair, respectful and dignified conduct in the workplace.’ The statement did not specifically name Rudin.

“Some members of Equity have been calling upon the union to place Rudin on the ‘Do Not Work’ list, and have spread word on Instagram of a March on Broadway this Wednesday to protest Rudin as well as social justice issues related to the Broadway industry.”

** One sad, respectful question: “It is known that PTSD can manifest in a professional business context and that it can “often persist for months and sometimes years” after the initial trauma. Despite allowing that the Rudin trauma may have been a seminal factor in Kevin’s emotional condition over the years, doesn’t logic suggest that the tragedy which befell the poor man had as much if not more to do with the more recent past rather than events of 12 years ago, give or take?”

April 19, 2021by Jeffrey WellsNo Comments