Actor Vandalizes Set, Forcing Show to Close...But There's More to the Story

Last week, officials at the Utah Repertory Theatre Company(URTC) walked into the Regent Street Black Box only to find that the set of their upcoming musical, “American Psycho”, had been vandalized. Painted across the set and the stage were the words, “F**k this show”.

But before a lengthy investigation to find the culprit began, the guilty party stepped forward. It wasn’t an angry patron or disgruntled former employee.

It was an actor in the cast of “American Psycho”.

Actor Ryon J. Sharette(cast as Tim) admitted to vandalizing the set in a statement on his Facebook page. But included with his admission of guilt, came a slew of allegations against URTC that pointed as to why the production couldn’t proceed. Days after his admission, not only has the production been canceled but Utah Repertory Theatre Company has called it quits as well.

How did we get here? According to Mr. Sharette, it’s messy.

“I’m not a disgruntled employee who vandalized property on the way out the door,” says Mr. Sharette. “I’m a person who was tired of a company’s abuses against (their) castmates and was trying to make a very precise amount of trouble to stop the abuses and allow my cast to leave blame-free.”

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In his “manifesto”, Mr. Sharette describes the “American Psycho” production as problematic from the start. Rehearsal schedules were confusing and misleading about who was needed for which sessions. Even the locations of rehearsals would change at the last minute which forced actors to change travel routes and plans which added expenses for them.

But then things took a turn from disorganized to dangerous.

Mr. Sharette describes dance rehearsals where the choreographer “asked us to do unsafe things without being shown any safe technique; including dance lifts, kicking a woman, stepping on a woman, choking a woman and lifting her off the ground by the neck.”

According to cast members, the choreographer was heard making racially insensitive comments. At one point she said, “You don’t know how to pop-and-lock? You’re not a real black man.”

After the cast raised their concerns with producer JC Carter and held a meeting, the choreographer was replaced. But the problems didn’t stop there.

In the aftermath of the initial issues with the production, various actors began to quit. Then the marketing person. Then the music director. It got so bad, the stage manager had to take a role in the show.

Mr. Sharette also describes the safety issues with the production. Sex scenes weren’t choreographed carefully to make sure the actors were comfortable with what they were doing on stage. Fight calls were being scrapped which meant that fight choreography wasn’t coming together and planned safely. Props that were supposed to be safe for use, weren’t.

Actors were injured, while others were having emotional breakdowns.

In addition to all of this, allegations of sexual misconduct started to arise involving URTC Founder and Executive Producer, Johnny Hebda. Mr. Hebda was also playing the lead Patrick Bateman in the show as well.

Because of all this, Mr. Sharette decided to force the production to close. “Utah Rep didn’t deserve a successful run,” he says. So he painted those words on the set.

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In the days after the vandalization, URTC officials tried to defend themselves. JC Carter told local news that,

“There are many incorrect allegations in that manifesto.” He added that neither he nor any other member of Utah Rep management had received any complaints of sexual harassment.

Carter said Monday that as far as he knew, the sexual misconduct accusations are “100% false. And if a specific victim wishes to come forward and proceed with an allegation,” he said, “then we will openly listen to them."

In a follow-up statement on their now-deleted Facebook page, Mr. Carter stated,

“The vandal, Mr. Sharette, has a lot of friends in the acting community. And they kind of started a Me Too movement against Utah Rep. We’re just grateful that we had seven years to make wonderful theater here in Utah and we’re sorry that things came down the way they did. There’s nothing we can do at this time except let it go. If the acting community is that against us, I don’t know how we’d ever cast another show.”

According to a statement on a Go Fund Me Page to support the actors of the production, Mr. Hebda stated the following:

“I too believe theater should be a safe place. This is not meant as a defense for anything. I have made mistakes, I have done wrong, I either directly or through those involved with the company I founded have hurt those artists and volunteers involved. I have failed. I need to do better and be better. I deserve the consequences that have and will come to me. My focus will be on changing and striving to rectify those wrongs and those who have been hurt. The closing of Utah Rep is the right decision.”

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Ryon J, Sharette doesn’t seem to have any regrets over his actions. While he wouldn’t encourage criminal behavior, he freely states that there are times where similar actions are necessary.

“Am I sorry I painted the set? Not Really. (I’m not using “vandalized” carefully here. One man’s vandalism is another man’s non-violent protest.)”, he says. “I got a ticket for criminal mischief and I’m willing to pay it. I did the deed. I’ll take responsibility for my actions. Law isn’t a perfect indicator of RIGHT; destruction isn’t a perfect indicator of WRONG.”

His statement concludes with an appeal to others to come forward with their own stories of URTC.

And those stories are starting to become public.

In the days since an anonymous actress has come forward with her own experiences at URTC.

She says, “In callbacks for Heathers the musical, those called back for JD and Veronica were asked to perform the end of Dead Girl Walking. Our instructions were simple - “we want to see how far you are willing to go”. There was a mattress placed on the floor, we were paired off and then we began to literally act out a sex scene to the limits of our comfortability without consultation from the partner. We were asked to perform sex with the insinuation that it was the only way to get the part.”

Perhaps it was about time that Utah Repertory Theatre Company closed its doors.