In 2018, Got Your Back Canada launched a national survey in order to better understand the experience of students in Canadian actor training programs. This survey, which had more than five hundred respondents from across the country, revealed a serious need to update acting training in ways that prioritize the safety of students, reflect a more diverse and inclusive community, build a culture of consent, and allow for all students to be successful.
Got Your Back (GYB), a grassroots, intersectional, trans-inclusive feminist community, took flight after the #MeToo movement and a number of high-profile incidents in the Canadian theatre scene. Established and emerging artists in the Canadian entertainment industry came together to use their collective energy and voice to challenge the status quo in the pursuit of safe and respectful places to work.
We undertook this research on actor training in Canada because we recognized that, while the vast majority of teachers are passionate and dedicated professionals who hold the best interest of their students foremost in their minds, the systems that exist have created a culture that allows for abuses of power to happen in acting programs. We built this survey with the following goals:
- To identify systemic inequities and barriers in acting training that need a change in thinking.
- To verify the anecdotal stories we have all experienced, witnessed, or heard about.
- To offer a place for students to share their experiences in hopes that, in some small way, this validates that they are being heard.
- To advocate for change from institutions, the industry, and the governmental agencies who fund acting programs.
- To empower teachers and students to understand their rights and to speak up for themselves, and their peers.
Before we begin, we want to acknowledge that we—the authors of this piece—represent a very privileged group: all three of us are cis white folks, and our biases may have affected the outcome of this survey and these findings. We hope that the data we present is a catalyst for future study and impactful change.
A Few Important Details
When we sent our survey out, we included the note: “This survey is for anyone who has taken actor training in Canada, at any time.” This would include conservatory programs in colleges and universities, non-conservatory acting programs, and private coaching. Our five-hundred-plus respondents, coming from thirty-five training programs, represent almost every Canadian province and range in age from new graduates to folks in their seventies.
In order to maintain the security of this data and the anonymity of the respondents, we are the only three people who have access to it all, and, even then, the raw data provides no way to particularly identify any respondent. For those who have concerns about the survey or how the data will be used, we have created an FAQ page to address these concerns.
Below are some key facts to keep in mind when considering what the data says about the respondents.
- 50 percent of the graduates who completed the survey were between the ages of 18 and 30, and graduated within the last ten years.
- 65 percent identified as white.
- Cis women made up 70 percent of respondents; cis men 27.6 percent; and genderqueer, trans, and non-binary the remaining 2.4 percent.
- 75 percent of respondents live in Ontario, but almost every province was represented.
- More than half spent between $30,000 and $50,000 on their education.
Findings
Our findings revealed positive and negative experiences from students. While this article will focus on the ones that call for change, most students were happy with their training and reported that the competency of their instructors was high. However, we also encountered some troubling statistics and many moving anecdotes.
We have categorized these findings into two types:
- Systemic Findings — these point to broader inherent challenges that cannot be solely the responsibility of individuals, but require institutions to enact change. These findings include student mental health, gender and racial diversity of students and teachers, equal opportunity, the threat of elimination, and favoritism.
- Urgent Findings — these are areas in which teachers and coaches can address themselves within their practice and where institutions must develop good policies. Particularly, these findings concern harassment, intimacy and nudity, inappropriate teacher behavior, and reckless teaching practices.
Systemic Findings
1. Student Mental Health
In general, student mental health is good. However, approximately 10 percent of respondents reported a 6 or 7 out of 7 (where 7 equals “experience of a severe or chronic mental health disorder”) before beginning their training. This statistic—respondents reporting a 6 or 7 out of 7—jumps to 25 percent when looking at student mental health during training. It bears mentioning that these numbers are worse for students of color and female, trans, and non-binary students.
Every class is likely to have a student with a severe mental health issue, and teachers need to work to build into their curricula the tools and strategies needed for students to develop strong mental health and the resiliency required for a life in the arts.
Comments
The article is just the start of the conversation—we want to know what you think about this subject, too! HowlRound is a space for knowledge-sharing, and we welcome spirited, thoughtful, and on-topic dialogue. Find our full comments policy here
What you may find additionally heartening is that many institutions have begun to take significant action to address the Urgent Findings and Findings. What I personally can speak to is through my work as an Intimacy Director and “Intimacy in Performance” Educator. I’ve spend most of the last two years travelling from coast-to-coast teaching in Theatre Programs (Universities, Colleges, Conservatories...).
These programs are accessing my expertise in Intimacy Choreography and Education for guidance in updating their practices, particularly regarding Intimacy, consent, and Respectful and Joyful Workplaces. Both students and faculty across the country have received this training. I’ve also been consulting with administrators and program heads to further refine or to re-write existing policies, including guidance on how to communicate with the administration to help them understand the unique needs of actor training and theatre programs, and supporting the needs of the people involved at all levels of actor training, most of all the young artist.
Across the country, theatre programs are committed to change and excellence. This survey shows us just how sweeping and essential this change is. I, personally, am thrilled to see this extensive desire and action. Thank you, GYB, for all your work on bringing these stats to light, and in bringing people together.
—Siobhan Richardson
Intimacy Director (Soulpepper, Shaw Festival, Stratford Festival, the Canadian Opera Company, and more)
“Intimacy in Performance” Educator/Guest Artist/Intimacy Coach (Randolph College for the Performing Arts, George Brown, University of Windsor, York University Memorial College, NL, University of British Columbia, University of Calgary, and more)
Actor/Fighter/Singer/Dancer
www.SiobhanRichardson.com/intimacy
Thanks for this thoughtful comment, Siobhan.
You're right that there is a lot of desire for change in teachers and program heads, and that that desire is being backed up with the work needed to make it happen.
Training in safe intimacy and consent for the theatre is a powerful tool in the arsenal of programs that want to effect change. My students have all responded very well to it. I'm hopeful it will become a core part of every school's syllabus.
Thanks for all your great work!
Neil