Envelope-to: blackm00@cam.org From: Village Scene Productions Subject: Attn: Elise Menard and QDF Staff RE: Membership support, from within ... or lack there of! To: qdf@ cam.org, Stephen Pietrantoni , qdfhiteam@ bellnet.ca, Admin Message-id: Dear Elise! I would like to bring up an issue that has been bothering me for some time. The attitude of some theatre companies versus others. It has happened to me directly over the past two years as V.S.P. grows to encounter people with in our own discipline who do not support the work that we do, and go as far as to shun our mandate. On three occasions by: The Other Theatre, The Actor Network* and The Youth Theatre, we have been told to categorically remove their e-mails from our data base and not to contact them. If their e-mail is on our data base it is because they have contacted us first either requesting something from us or informing us of something since we do not arbitrarily add e-mails to our list for any reason. We have also promoted these companies since first hearing form them either by web-links or through distributing their *flyers, or passing the word around of events they are producing and attending them. Just ask the FRINGE, ASM or DTF how much referrals and promotion and support we give them for their work. Even QDF's calendar we ensure is distributed in our community and area and refer potential members there all the time. M. Martin Boisclaire of Youth Theatre, sends us an e-mail out of no where today, (since we haven't sent out any mass e-mail in a while), interestingly post DiversCite, telling me to remove his e-mail address from our list. Well my curiosity peeks, and I send an e-mail back to ask why? I am told in a reply that he has is away until August 2nd on vacation. Strange, he just sent us an e-mail. His e-mail says to refer to his assistant Janna. So I call; I get M. Boisclaire on the phone, interesting ... I ask him directly why he doesn't want to get emails from us? If he is in theatre why wouldn't he support a major theatre event like HARVEST and want to learn more about it? He responds simply that 'what we do doesn't interest him!' So when he was producing his queer theatre play this May at Calixa Lavale and we were promoting it for them without any questions asked ... Information that he sent us b.t.w. we are not supposed to expect the same support in return. We are not even asking for anything, this is the amazing thing to me ... Then as I ask him why he is not interested in what other companies are doing and call himself a theatre professional? He answers that he is interested in what other companies are doing but, not what we are doing, that he is only interested in theatre for children ... HAHA! So I ask until what age ... Answer: '17 years old' ... So I respond : 'so I don't get the issue. 14 to 17 years is when all youth are coming out now ... All the more reason for them to know about V.S.P. and the festival and learn from these stories that we are producing. Also, If they are over 16 they are all potential candidates for acting positions in future VSP and associated productions. As a subsidized and sponsored company it is part of 'professional companies' obligation to support other theatre companies and events etc. But at very least not to try to block them from happening by refusing to acknowledge their very existence . As I move further in the conversation ... He says: 'oh and there are always errors in the French translations and sometimes the info is only in English'. He still hasn't admitted to the G.L.B.T. being the issue so he moves to language. Give ma a break! We have dedicated volunteers that ARE FRANCOPHONE that give of the time and heart to assist with all of the translation on communications. We DO NOT have funding! We DO NOT have office staff! We DO NOT have money for out side contractors to translate! I, our company VSP, supports ALL theatre, and all performing arts. (With no funding and no major sponsorship we co-produced and developed from the ground up over 12 productions a year!) We even helped BASH this year with transportation and decor. We survive on peanut peels not even the nuts! I am sure that all of the performers that were given the chance and exposure to perform and that in most cases made money or at least their efforts led to other contracts and opportunities will not argue that if it were not for VSP they may not have had those opportunities and offers. With the so called 'Professional Companies' dishing out attitude like this there will soon be no art! I am so tired of listening to complaints about this festival and that festival and event and the quality or lack there of of shows and how they are organized or not and so on and so on ... Most of which comes form these 'Organized Professionals' . Who are these individuals to play GOD with what we try to create trying to squish it. You can not be expected to be supported from out side your trade if you do not support from within. It is the duty of these so called 'professional companies' to support community, amateur and semi-professional productions ... They are taking our tax dollars to pay their rent to produce a pittance of shows a year and they have the gall to treat us like this?! ALL THEATRE IS AMATURE!!! It is all a labor of love! The day that stops is the day the art dies! It is not the size of the wallet that determines the level of drive and determination that it takes to mount a show from paper to the stage! This week 12 volunteers gave of their time and energy to support and promote the Harvest. Only 4 of them were actually members of our GLBT community. The rest just believe in our plight and appreciate what we are trying to accomplish! I am making a formal request as a member of QDF to have this issue dealt with as soon as possible. There must be a way to reach both the French and English theatre communities with this issue and put a stop to this festering attitude. We are tired of having to work with nothing and being expected to create gold, no platinum, and be treated like this by our own colleagues. Last year, with literally $5. in the VSP bank account we created, developed and produced a major 11 day theatre event in Montreal that over 1,700 patrons saw, and over 100 artists and crew got to participate in and 17 productions got to see the stage in less than 10 months. In less than 10 months from that event we will produce another 18 productions with over 125 artists and crew in 6 venues. And this is being done loosing 2 months on our production schedule (to accommodate our community partners Image & Nation) and being told 7 weeks before the event that we lost our main venue sponsorship. WE will NOT go away or be pushed aside! We will stand up for and continue to do what we believe in! This company will continue to produce and promote unique alternative theatre for those who truly believe and support what we are trying to accomplish. Support from within from QDF, Fringe, DTF, ASM, Saidie Bronfman, Concordia DBC Theatre, M.A.I., J.F.L., Le Boudoir, Out Productions and many other organizations have done so and we will always be extremely grateful and collaborative! For those who wish to transmit their comments to any of the companies mentioned above here is their contact information: Martin Boisclair The Actor Network Stacey Christodoulou With sincerest regards ... Davyn Ryall Directeur artistique Productions Village Scene B.P. 142 Succ. C Montreal, Qc. H2L 2H0 (514) 526-9842 Box Office (514) 574-GLBT (4528) www.villagescene.com coordonnateur de: Le festival de theatre Intl. G.L.B.T. de Montreal