Stop me if you ’ ve heard this one before , but it ’ s been a stressful and immensely tough year for anyone who works in live performing arts , from major concert tours to local theatre productions . Few understand the current reality better than the folks running the Associated Designers of Canada ( ADC ), the non-profit organization that is rooted in the theatre world , but that promotes , pursues , and protects the interests of set , costume , lighting , projection , and sound designers across Canada ’ s live performing arts industry .
In October 2020 , the ADC ’ s membership voted to join IATSE , the Northern American union representing theatrical and motion picture technical workers . From the merger came IATSE Local ADC 659 , which became active on Jan . 1 , 2021 .
And so , to find about this merger , as well as discuss wider topics affecting lighting designers and their colleagues , PL & P caught up with the ADC ’ s volunteer executive team , who happen to all be theatre lighting designers . So , joining us is ADC President Ken MacKenzie , VP Kimberly Purtell , and Secretary / Treasurer Simon Rossiter . This interview has been edited for length and clarity .
PL & P : When did you begin to understand the extent of the crisis that the pandemic posed for your membership ?
30 | Summer 2021
THE ASSOCIATED DESIGNERS OF CANADA ’ S HECTIC YEAR
The ADC ’ s executive team weighs in on the pandemic ’ s financial impacts on the arts , theatre ’ s attrition problem , merging with IATSE & more
BY MICHAEL RAINE
Purtell : The three of us started talking almost immediately . Because we are working designers and volunteers on the board of ADC , the three of us work quite a bit more than most of our members . And so , we ’ re not just administrators ; we ’ re working designers and all three of us make our living almost solely from designing . So , we knew our contracts were disappearing . People didn ’ t know how to deal with our contracts because we have forced majeure clauses and cancellation clauses , postponements , etc . Also , producers had no idea what was going on . But they were dealing with musicians and actors very specifically to the letter of those contracts . Designers were not necessarily being dealt with in the same way . So , there was a certain level of understanding that we needed to educate our members about what their contracts mean . And so , our constant communications started pretty soon once the lockdown hit . I think we started talking nearly every day the week of March 17 th or something .