EQUITY QUARTERLY WINTER 2013 EQUITY CO-HOSTS FIA 2012 CONGRESS OPERA ATELIER IN FRANCE EQ DISABLED PERFORMERS SPEAK OUT International performers unite! ARGENTINA AUSTRALIA AUSTRIA AZERBAIJAN BELARUS BELGIUM BRAZIL CAMEROON CANADA CHILE COLOMBIA CROATIA DENMARK ECUADOR ENGLAND FINLAND FRANCE GEORGIA GERMANY GHANA HUNGARY IRELAND ISRAEL JAPAN KAZAKHSTAN KYRGYZSTAN LATVIA MADAGASCAR THEY TRAVELLED FROM MORE THAN 50 COUNTRIES MOROCCO MOLDOVA NAMIBIA NEPAL NETHERLANDS NEW ZEALAND NIGERIA AROUND THE WORLD TO SHARE INFORMATION, DEVELOP BEST PRACTICES NORWAY PANAMA PERU POLAND PORTUGAL ROMANIA RUSSIA SERBIA AND WORK TOGETHER FOR IMPROVED ECONOMIC, ARTISTIC, SOCIAL AND LEGAL MONTENEGRO SLOVENIA SOUTH AFRICA SPAIN SWEDEN SWITZERLAND TURKEY UKRAINE UNITED STATES RIGHTS FOR PERFORMERS. CO‑HOSTED BY EQUITY, ACTRA AND UNION DES ARTISTES, URUGUAY ARGENTINA AUSTRALIA AUSTRIA THE 2012 INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF ACTORS (FIA) 2012 CONGRESS BROUGHT AZERBAIJAN BELARUS BELGIUM BRAZIL CAMEROON CANADA CHILE COLOMBIA CROATIA DENMARK PERFORMERS AND THEIR UNION REPRESENTATIVES TOGETHER FOR ONE SPECIAL ECUADOR ENGLAND FINLAND FRANCE GEORGIA GERMANY GHANA HUNGARY WEEK IN TORONTO TO DISCUSS NEW WAYS TO SUPPORT PERFORMERS, FIGHT IRELAND ISRAEL JAPAN KAZAKHSTAN KYRGYZSTAN LATVIA MADAGASCAR MOROCCO MOLDOVA NAMIBIA DISCRIMINATION AND ENSURE DECENT WORKING CONDITIONS ACROSS THE GLOBE. NEPAL NETHERLANDS NEW ZEALAND NIGERIA NORWAY PANAMA PERU POLAND PORTUGAL ROMANIA RUSSIA SERBIA MONTENEGRO SLOVENIA SOUTH AFRICA SPAIN SWEDEN SWITZERLAND TURKEY UKRAINE UNITED STATES URUGUAY EQUITY QUARTERLY WINTER 2013 EQ VOLUME 6 NUMBER 3 2 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Home at last for 6 3 NOTES FROM ARDEN R. RYSHPAN Armide 4 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 5 EQ MOVES 8 FIA 2012 Congress 16 EQUITY TWINNING PROJECT makes its mark 17 EQ BACKSTAGE 18 FONDLY REMEMBERED 13 Tackling tough 20 EQ ANNOUNCEMENTS issues at FIA 21 EQ FLASHBACK Equity members can submit letters to the editor via email at [email protected]. The deadline for Coming issue: SPRING 2013 EQ submissions is Monday, February 18, 2013. EQ reserves the right to edit for length, style and content. Subscriptions are available at an annual rate of $35, including GST. EQ Equity Quarterly (ISSN 1913-2190) is a forum to discuss issues of interest to members concerning their Publications Mail Agreement No. 40038615 WINTER 2013 – Volume 6, Number 3 craft, developments in the industry, Equity’s role in the workplace, and the important position live performance EQ is published four times a year by Canadian Actors’ Equity Association. EXECUTIVE EDITOR Lynn McQueen holds in the cultural and social fabric of Canada. It is also used as an advocacy tool to educate others about National Office the industry, promote live performance in Canada, and celebrate the achievements of Equity members. 44 Victoria Street, 12th Floor, Toronto, ON M5C 3C4 EDITOR Barb Farwell Tel: 416-867-9165 | Fax: 416-867-9246 | Toll-free: 1-800-387-1856 (members only) Canadian Actors’ Equity Association (Equity) is the voice of professional artists working in live [email protected] | www.caea.com DESIGN & LAYOUT Chris Simeon, performance in English Canada. We represent more than 6,000 performers, directors, choreographers, September Creative Western Office fight directors and stage managers working in theatre, opera and dance, and support their creative efforts 736 Granville Street, Suite 510, Vancouver, BC V6Z 1G3 by seeking to improve their working conditions and opportunities by negotiating and administering Tel: 604-682-6173 | 604-682-6174 | Toll free: 1-877-682-6173 (members only) collective agreements, providing benefit plans, information and support and acting as an advocate. woffi[email protected] Inside Front Cover: Photos from the International FIA 2012 Congress, Toronto, September 27-30, 2012 President’s message By the time you read this column, a new group of 22 members will be carrying the Council torch into the next term. Congratulations to the incoming team. It has been an honour serving both Council and the membership as President for the past six years. However Council is, of course, far from a solo act. I cannot possibly overstate the energy, wisdom and persistence brought to the table by each of the Councillors, as they ploughed their way through a (seemingly) unending agenda. Aside from those topics previously reported on, Council has used the final meetings to conclude several more and to consolidate our to-do list, so that those few issues still under discussion will seamlessly carry over for the new Council. With the “main event” elections behind us, one of Council’s first items of business will be to elect its officers for the term. I thought it might be timely to take part of this final column to talk a little bit about how that happens, and what the officers do. Council has four officers: President (CGO), First Vice-President (Advisory Liaison), Second Vice- President (Member Liaison) and Secretary/Treasurer. Unlike with many boards, these are not pro fforma positions. Each officer has a specific job description assigned to him or her by Council, and all are focused toward assisting Council with its work. Council relies heavily on this, and officers are evaluated several times per term. Council is also unusual in that it has no Executive Committee, nor any other kind of Über-Council; individual officers have no extraordinary authority. The clearly delineated responsibilities make it easier for any Councillor, new or veteran, to run for and serve capably in any capacity for which he or she has the interest, energy and time to handle the job over the course of the term. And the Council-focused approach ensures that there is only one clear governance authority: Council. On the first meeting day of the new term, nominations are opened for all officers. Candidates can nominate themselves or be nominated by other Councillors. A session is held the next day to answer any questions about the various jobs, and then Council proceeds to election at the beginning of the third day. Voting starts with the President and concludes with the Secretary/Treasurer, and candidates for each get some time to speak and to field questions. Unsuccessful candidates for any office may run for the remaining spots. Of course, the first meeting is not all business: the new Council will also host the presentation of the annual Equity Honours. These are given to members and others in our community that the Equity membership has let us know are worthy of special recognition. For 2012, Council is pleased to announce that Life Memberships will be presented to both Evelyne Anderson and Marti Maraden, and the Larry McCance Award will go to Dawn Obokata. Vancouver philanthropist, Martha Lou Henley, has been chosen for Honorary Membership in recognition of her outstanding support of opera across the country. Congratulations to each of our honours recipients, and all the best to the new Council! Allan Teichman President WINTER 2013 2 EQUITY QUARTERLY Notes from Arden R. Ryshpan We are pleased to feature the recent FIA Congress as the subject of this issue of EQ. While I have long known the value of our participation in this international organization, the positive response of the members who attended as del- egates was a huge reminder of the impact such an event can have on those who have not had the experience of spend- ing five days in discussion with international colleagues. Here are their thoughts in their own words: “While attending the FIA Congress it was quickly apparent that many countries around the world still consider performers second class citizens and/or criminals. The importance of perform- ers associations and unions to continue working together in the fight to have our voices heard and our work not only respected but considered of value, no matter what the sex, age, religion, ability, sexual orientation, colour of an artist, etc., is paramount. And for issues that are closer to home it’s also a great opportunity to exchange ideas with our sister unions, AEA, British Equity, and Australia’s MEAA and New Zealand Equity.” – Kerry Ann Doherty “Membership in FIA helps the world’s associations of performers and related artists band together at an international level, to achieve goals that most cannot accomplish alone, and it provides Equity with a voice on the global stage. It also gives those as well off as Equity the opportunity to appreciate how fortunate we truly are, viewed in the context of the whole. It was an hhonour tto bbe one of the co-hosting organizations of the quadrennial FIA Congress. Along with fellow presidents Raymond Legault (UdA) and Ferne Downey (ACTRA), I had the opportunity to welcome association delegates from more than 50 countries.” – Allan Teichman “Common struggles: That’s what the FIA Congress highlighted for me. The struggles that our Association faces are the same struggles that our sister associations and unions are facing around the world. Whether it be advocacy for the status of the artist, lobbying for fair tax legislation or ensuring safe workplaces, you can be sure that other associations are out there fighting for the same issues. Being in the room amongst the various unions’ elected and staff leaders served to remind me: We are not alone in our work. We are part of a global community of artists, working together for equitable treatment of artists.” – Evan R. Klassen “Apart from the warm, fuzzy feelings of solidarity between artist unions and associations from across the world, FIA was a sobering experience. It exposed our Association’s strengths and weaknesses,