Egalitarianism at Young Vic

From another supporter:

I would like to contest that the Young Vic is as egalitarian as it thinks it is or likes to pretend it is.

Egalitarianism has always been a Young Vic ideal, it once applied to its audiences, two boroughs/ taking part schemes, its staff, it was practised in some ways through its unreserved house (which apparently some high up members of the YV still wish was in place) and through its offering of free/ discounted ticket schemes to homeless groups, mental health charities etc. It was practised through its often welcome invitations to FOH to attend program meetings and staff meetings- which I can say- ushers used to go to willingly, excitedly and through their own volition- often unpaid. At that time we could not wait to hear what the Young Vic was planning. Now there is complete change, and demands are being made on ushers that are unreasonable and aggressive, Two Boroughs seems like it is changing and the way audiences are being treated has, of late, been mean and oppressive.

Although I am no longer an employee at the YV and miss the creative energy which inspired my own work, thought processes and idealisms and helped me amass my own kind of world view, I do not, at all in any way, miss the state of affairs I feel FOH has become and seems like it still is. I was appalled in my last few months of employment there, at how staff members treated not just each other but the audience too. I dreaded attending my shifts, I was embarrassed many times when I was there and often wanted to apologise to audience members who had not been treated well, and not just by the FOH staff  but also by other higher up members of the whole YV team. For me this is symptomatic of what the YV has become- treatment of people filters down through departments from the very top and whilst everyone is responsible for their own behaviour first, to a certain extent most people end up reflecting how they themselves are being treated by those who manage them.

I now work at another Off-West-End theatre. Whilst it will never replace what the YV was for me in my heart, whilst it caters for a certain kind of audience and is a bolt hole for ex-Young Vicians, the FOH is excellent, nicely run, there is truly an egalitarian approach (and it does not have to shout about it, it is just practised), a professional attitude and friendliness - audiences are I am afraid, treated much better than they are at the YV. Other theatres do it better now, although perhaps this was not the case a few years ago.

It is my belief - and my experience- that the YV says it is egalitarian but actually struggles to fullfil this promise and perhaps always has. Without going into details I was made to leave the Young Vic because, in very simple terms, I was just an usher who had upset someone the YV decided was more important than myself, someone not even an employee at the theatre. However the person had 'connections' and their connections were greater than mine. Without any warning I was called into a meeting and told the YV did not want me to work for them anymore, despite years of loyal and supportive work. I was barely given a chance or opportunity to stand up for myself, I was lied to and against and I was convicted without trial. To my mind this is neither fair nor egalitarian. There are other instances of other employees across the board being treated in this manner and not just 'all of a sudden' but systematically over the years. I also observe that last week, when a lot of people were sacked or made redundant, that those who had done the dirty work- i.e your theatre managers, duty managers and general managers, were hanging out in the bar drinking and laughing late into the night- whilst nearby those who had lost their jobs were still working out their time and trying to earn a wage to support their families. For me this says it all about the YV now and the state of its heart.  

The Young Vic's biggest crime, surely, is in destroying the very ideals it so openly states it follows. 

In spite of this there is a part of me that wishes I was still there and fighting the good fight with you all. If I was still there, if I cared, I would be demanding an open meeting with David and Lucy- they have to see how they are destroying the support of their front lines. However, over the years, I feel that the YV has worked steadily to erase and bite off support from its own staff members, it has rid itself, from FOH and across the board, of people that really cared about it... and if anyone was to ask me who is running the Young Vic now or what is its ethos, I would be hard put to give a reply. This is not to say that there is no one person in charge with a fixed set of ideals, only that the waters have and are, becoming increasingly muddy.

Right now the Young Vic's directors need to show leadership and commitment and understanding towards its demoralised and lower ranking staff. If they don't they are as blind as bats or they don't care.