Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Retraction and Apology

Posted by Phil Whiteway

First, let me apologize to all parties involved. With nothing but good intentions, we at Barksdale have facilitated the publication of incorrect information. We regret that it happened. If we have confused or offended anyone, we’re sincerely sorry.

We have great affection and respect for Cynthia McMullen. This misstep is our fault, not hers. We apologize to her as well.

In her On the Aisle column in Sunday’s Times-Dispatch, she listed 23 talented and beloved performers in the cast of this year’s Home for the Holidays benefit cabaret, noting that the roster was “subject to change.” The problem is, twelve of the 23 outstanding singers listed will not be appearing in the holiday cabaret, and nine of them hadn’t even been contacted. Also, the names of two of the performers who will be taking part in the cabaret didn’t make it onto the list.

The annual Home for the Holidays cabaret raises money for the Richmond Theatre Artists Fund, sponsored by RAPT (the Richmond Alliance of Professional Theatres) and managed by The Community Foundation.

After spending yesterday trying to figure out what went wrong, we now understand our error. There were three computer lists of performers created during the planning of this year’s cabaret. The first list included many of our favorite theatre singers with established reputations and name recognition. The second list included up-and-coming performers who are still relatively new or unknown to the ticket-buying public. (We created this second list because we wanted to add some "new blood" to this year's cabaret.) The third list was narrowed down from the first two, and included the names of the performers whom we invited to participate in Home for the Holidays 07.

In an inner-office communication, a staff member mistakenly emailed the first list of established singers while intending to email the third narrowed down list. The mistake went forward from there without anyone realizing it. When Debra Wagoner declined the invitation to perform due to a scheduling conflict, her name was removed from the list, as requested, but it was removed from the wrong list.

So the list that wound up being distributed to media outlets was the list of some of our favorite theatre singers with established reputations, minus Debra Wagoner. A couple of other favorite theatre singers were also not on the list, for a variety of reasons.

We apologize. As soon as we realized our mistake, it was immediately corrected in the form of updated information being sent out and published in the paper. Individual notes of apology are being written. We regret that our clogged schedule creates situations ripe for error. We try hard to open shows and distribute accurate information all around.

The finalized list of performers, as of last night, is: Brett Ambler, Corey Davis, Jan Guarino, Audra Honaker, Katrinah Lewis, Jason Marks, Robyn O’Neill, Fernando Rivadeniera, Janine Serresseque, Durron Tyree, and Tony Williams at the piano. Erin Thomas is our emcee.

It’s a great group. We’re embarrassed and sorry that other names were distributed to the media without their knowledge or consent. I hope everyone involved, whether you are an artist or an audience member, will forgive us for this blunder. I ask for your understanding and appreciate your acceptance of this heartfelt apology.

--Phil Whiteway

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey Phil and Barksdale staff,
Don't worry about the publication error. Sounds like you've gone above and beyond with the apologies, but please know that we average-going patrons are happy with whoever is performing. We're with you for a good time, name changes are no big deal to many us. My gut tells me maybe some of your performers friends are the ones who were offended. I say, keep worrying about the patrons first. In which case, no biggie! Thanks to everyone for their efforts and see you at the shows.

Anonymous said...

Hi there,

I myself wasn't offended at all. If one of the performers did get upset, it might have been someone who wanted to participate and wasn't asked back this time around. Possibly a case of hurt feelings more than offense(?) I don't know, hard to say. Sometimes we performing artists can be a sensitive lot.

Bottom line, the artist's fund is a very smart and worthy cause...and I will always support it. It was born out of the theatre community coming together to help someone recovering from a very serious illness. Sensitivity can come in handy some of the time, LOL!

I will sincerely miss appearing this year and wish all of this years performers the best of luck. Joe and I will be sure to come and cheer you all on and show our support!

Happy Holidays and best wishes to all!

Debra Wagoner

Janine Serresseque said...

And Debra, we will miss your thrilling voice this year!

Frank Creasy said...

As Fish used to say on "Ally McBeal": "Bygones"!

No big deal Phil, though the thorough explanation is appreciated. It is testimony to a professional organization which, like any other, occasionally makes a mistake.

I'm so very sorry that due to my own commitments that I'll be unable to attend this year's event (Carol and I so thoroughly enjoyed last year's celebration), and indeed it is a very worthy cause. I do encourage all who can attend to do so...even if it were not going to such a worthy cause, the entertainment value is well worth the price of admission. Even the Scroogiest among us can't resist these immensely talented performers.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!

Anonymous said...

Man, as long as Erin Thomas is there, I'll be there.