Jim Morgan resigns from York Thestre

[BIG BALONEY]

Posted: 10/12/24 at 7:58pm

Jim was the backbone to the York Theatre located at St.Jeans Theatre at 76th and Lexington Ave. He gave his all and will be sorely missed. He was pushed out by others and I think this will put a stake in the heart of the company. Expect a lot of blood loss at the box office in support of Mr. Morgan. Their future looks uncertain at this point.

Updated On: 10/12/24 at 07:58 PM

[jakethesnake]

Posted: 10/12/24 at 9:12pm

BIG BALONEY said: "Jim was the backbone to the York Theatre located at St.Jeans Theatre at 76th and Lexington Ave. He gave his all and will be sorely missed. He was pushed out by others and I think this will put a stake in the heart of the company. Expect a lot of blood loss at the box office in support of Mr. Morgan. Their future looks uncertain at this point."

I heard differently.  He wasn’t pushed out as much as dug his own grave.   But I do agree that this does not bode well for the theatre.  

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 10/12/24 at 9:55pm

Yeah, it’s easy to read between the lines of the Playbill story –– though there's probably more to it and this simply could have been the last straw.

The York barely had a sustainable audience and donor base to begin with, so it’s not like they’re losing a ton. The York has been tolerated by the larger theatre community for a while; perhaps now it can take steps towards gaining a greater respect.

Morgan's interests were niche and old-fashioned, the York is terrible at developing new work, and Morgan’s curtain speeches were among the most uncomfortable things I’ve ever sat through in a New York theatre.

Change is good. 30 years is a long time for a person to run an institution. 

Updated On: 10/12/24 at 09:55 PM

[chrishuyen]

Posted: 10/12/24 at 10:51pm

I wasn't able to find the Facebook post that Playbill mentioned but it's interesting to call out InunDATEd specifically as that only has two actors (and a pianist).  And their previous show Monte Cristo DID have actors of color in it.  I don't know the York or the overall situation well enough, but I've generally enjoyed the shows I've seen there (though I agree about the pre-show speeches) and wish them the best in the future

[CoffeeBreak]

Posted: 10/12/24 at 11:00pm

He didn't have great programming.  Also well known, McIntyre wanted the job.

Updated On: 10/14/24 at 11:00 PM

[Theater3232]

Posted: 10/13/24 at 12:47am

Inundated (playing thru tomorrow) was one of my favorite shows at the York since it finally had 2 accomplished talented actors in it.  Rather than some of the new faces in recent shows who were terrible actors and gave the shows they were in a clownish amateur feel. They were very foolish if they pushed Jim Morgan out. He loves the theater and knows what the Upper East Side audiences want to see. The sudden announcement means he was pushed out.  

Updated On: 10/13/24 at 12:47 AM

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 10/13/24 at 1:23am

Theater3232 said: "knows what the Upper East Side audiences want to see."

You've hit the nail on the head: He was catering to an unsustainable audience. Most of that crowd is dead or dying, and he –– and the Board that enabled his programming for so long –– failed to adapt as time went on. (Whether that's ego or ignorance is a different matter.)

It's fine for producing organizations to have no aspirations to be highbrow or even middlebrow, but producing minor, esoteric works in an uninspired way is not a recipe for success.

As I said above, if he was encouraged to resign, I have no doubt there were multiple reasons, some of them financial.

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 10/13/24 at 2:32am

One other thing to remember, going by the Playbill piece:   It’s totally valid for an AAD to go to their boss and point out an issue. But the *way* that a leader responds is the key!

Calmly saying “Thank you for your input, the creative team and I chose to do it this way for XYZ reasons but you’re right we should be more mindful on future shows” isn't gonna get anyone in trouble. Throwing a hypothetical fit or responding to criticism in a less professional way could certainly be grounds for losing your job, especially if it’s not an isolated incident.

It could also be that the Board proposed an alternative, the AD disliked it, and chose to resign instead. We’ll probably never know, and I have no behind the scenes knowledge of this specific situation.

A nonprofit leader will always be at the mercy of the Board, as we saw with 2nd Stage earlier this year. Leaders who don’t want to report to a board should form their own for-profit company where they are the majority shareholder.

[Kad]

Posted: 10/13/24 at 9:39am

Yes, one incident like the one described does not get an AD forced out, particularly at a fairly ossified company like the York. 
 

Fresh leadership would only be good for the company, imo. It’s become a stagnant afterthought in NYC’s theatre world. It‘s a venue that’s out of the way for many, in the sub level of a church basement that feels like it’s deep in the Earth’s mantle, and whose facilities look like they haven’t been touched since Clinton’s first term- they need to do more to get people interested in schlepping over there again.

Updated On: 10/13/24 at 09:39 AM

[Marco Drift]

Posted: 10/13/24 at 11:28am

Jim was such a big part of it. Just to see how they bounce back, but yeah… things look shaky right now.

[CoffeeBreak]

Posted: 10/13/24 at 11:34am

The shows at The York did not lack diversity, that's just silly. 

Since Morgan is out the company should clean house, top to bottom, and start over with new AD and AAD etc.  The way things were handled by both AD and AAD were not good.  A completely fresh start is needed here.

Updated On: 10/13/24 at 11:34 AM

[Owen22]

Posted: 10/14/24 at 5:33am

Jim Morgan had a prejudiced and old fashioned idea of what makes good new work. I've heard second and third hand stories about him for years, which I probably believe, but have first hand witnessed incidents regarding my first sentence.

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 10/14/24 at 10:40am

"Yes, one incident like the one described does not get an AD forced out, particularly at a fairly ossified company like the York."

 

One incident is enough if it is egregious and witnessed by others, as this one apparently was, Kad. An outburst like that should never be tolerated. From what I've read/heard, Morgan resigned before they could fire him.

 

Updated On: 10/14/24 at 10:40 AM

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 10/14/24 at 4:32pm

Morgan has confirmed that the allegations are true, and also revealed that he suffered a stroke in 2022 and is dealing with aphasia which have impaired some of his methods of communication.

As someone critical of his poor programming choices in this thread (including decisions pre-stroke), I appreciate the candidness of the statement.

Hopefully the York can regroup with an AD who has a better sense of what audiences & donors want 

https://playbill.com/article/james-morgan-responds-to-allegations-following-resignation-as-yorks-producing-artistic-director

[Theater3232]

Posted: 10/14/24 at 4:42pm

Perhaps they will concentrate on only 1 or 2 shows a year now. It was dizzying they had 4 shows in just the past month, at a time many people wanted to still be at the beach or outdoors after work. I also find it hard to believe the only church they could find is in an extremely inconvenient location, especially when weekend and/or weeknight 9 30pm+ trackwork diverts the 6 train, making an already arduous commute completely insufferable.

[Mr. Wormwood]

Posted: 10/14/24 at 4:48pm

That statement is one of the most direct and specific I've ever seen in a situation like this. Usually it's something more generic like "I made an errant statement and I apologize to anyone who was offended "

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 10/14/24 at 4:59pm

Good for him. If everyone could apologize in such a direct, honest, and humble way, there would be a lot more peace on earth. What a shame his career had to end this way - but I think his response was the best possible public address he could make about what happened. May he have a happy and healthy retirement!

[bwayobsessed]

Posted: 10/14/24 at 7:17pm

Jim is such a good kind person. The stroke definitely was (and is) a frustrating thing to deal with. Anyone who knows him knows this. I don’t think every York show was in alignment with what the modern theatre goer wants to see but I find the attempt at character assassination appalling. His message is so clear and honest. I hope everyone remembers him fondly as he deserves 

[RUkiddingme]

Posted: 10/14/24 at 8:33pm

Has the York ever done a show that garnered this many comments?

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 10/14/24 at 8:34pm

bwayobsessed said: "I don’t think every York show was in alignment with what the modern theatre goer wants to see but I find the attempt at character assassination appalling."
 

Nobody is attempting character assassination, but you're probably too close to this situation to have any sort of objectivity. Remember that there are also many sides to every person, especially people in positions of power.

Racism, even of the passive variety, is inexcusable and has no place within theatre companies, especially in companies that get massive tax breaks from the U.S. government. Having a stroke is obviously very sad, but it doesn’t excuse any leader’s poor behavior. As he himself implied, if he wasn’t able to effectively lead the company with civility, he should have resigned or scaled back his involvement (where he probably would have been given a hero’s exit instead of this self-inflicted mess).

But all that is irrelevant now. All they can do is rebuild and move on.

And may his statement be the new standard for other leaders whose behavior costs them a job!

Updated On: 10/14/24 at 08:34 PM

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 10/14/24 at 8:38pm

Theater3232 said: "Perhaps they will concentrate on only 1 or 2 shows a year now. It was dizzying they had 4 shows in just the past month, at a time many people wanted to still be at the beach or outdoors after work."

Multiple shows in close proximity is tough even for the most competent of companies. If I had to guess? I bet that was because of the space: if they rent by the week, and if it involves bringing in things like lighting & audio equipment for each show, it probably helps their budget to produce in consecutive weeks. Could save them a few bucks on marketing, too.

[round2]

Posted: 10/14/24 at 9:03pm

RUkiddingme said: "Has the York ever done a show that garnered this many comments?"

One that first occurs to me is YANK.

 

[George in DC]

Posted: 10/14/24 at 9:51pm

.....

Updated On: 10/15/24 at 09:51 PM

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 10/15/24 at 5:37pm

"Gerry McIntyre better not get the job. His manipulations were truly Machiavellian"

 

I think you are being unfair. The timeline of events that led to Morgan's resignation makes it unlikely that McIntyre choreographed Morgan's downfall in any way, George In DC. 

 

McIntyre could not have had any idea that Morgan would lose his temper - and direct it towards him - in such an extreme and public way, during a staff meeting in front of witnesses.

 

McIntyre resigned as a result of this very public event, and Morgan confirmed McIntyre's version of events. We do not know if this is the only time Morgan has behaved this way - in fact, Morgan himself has alluded that it might not have been.

 

It's an unfortunate situation all around, but it isn't helpful to make baseless accusations.