As the dispute between the board of the Cape Town City Ballet (CTCB) and the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the dance company, Debbie Turner, drags on, CTCB dancers have gone on record, urging the two parties to find a “timeous” resolution.
In a media statement released on Wednesday 10 May, the CTCB dancers collectively expressed their concern that the dispute had the potential to jeopardise the efficient functioning and operations of CTCB.
“Ultimately, this impacts negatively on us as dancers, as we must rehearse for upcoming productions to deliver performances of the usual high professional standards expected by our audiences and the general public,” the statement read.
The dancers went on to say that they feared that, should the dispute continue, it would erode CTCB’s reputation as a professional organisation “dedicated to serving and entertaining the general public.”
Turner resigned on 28 March with immediate effect “because of the growing occupational detriments in the workplace”.
According to the Public Service Commission (PSC) “occupational detriment” is very widely defined by the Protected Disclosures Act and includes harassment, dismissal, transfer against the will of the employee, non-promotion, a denial of appointment, or “otherwise adversely affected.”
With the dispute now continuing – mostly behind closed curtains – for the better part of a month, none has been more vocal in his support of Turner than recently-resigned CTCB board member Dr Ismail Mahomed.
The multi-award winning and multi-published arts management strategist and playwright was appointed as a board member on 31 May 2020.
Commenting frankly on the matter in numerous Facebook posts last month, Mahomed claimed that a mediation (held on 12 April) between the board and Turner, facilitated by an independent labour specialist, ended in a mutual agreement that both parties would work towards returning Turner to her post by no later than 17 April.
However, in what Mahomed described as a complete turnaround, the board then proposed a separate set of terms on the eve of the 17th.
People’s Post has been told of at least three members of staff who resigned from the company in solidarity with Turner and the alleged way in which she had been treated by the board.
In a Facebook post on 26 April, Mahomed wrote that the board of the Cape Town City Ballet Endowment Trust had convened a meeting with the CTCB board to work towards finding a solution “to the crisis at the company”.
Publicly going on record for the first time, the dancers this week said that they “acknowledged the statements made by the board that it was trying to resolve the issues with the CEO, and that they were in full support of these mediation efforts.”
“Although we are not privy to the details of the dispute, we appreciate that there are differences between the parties regarding various administrative and management issues. However difficult, we believe that the parties can and should work towards a collective resolution and urge both parties to do so timeously.”
The dancers also expressed their hope that Turner would, despite the dispute, continue in her role as the CEO and that the board would provide CTCB with support and general guidance.
They also urged their donors and sponsors to continue to support CTCB so that it could fulfil its vision and mission.
“We believe that together, they can develop the repertoire to which we are accustomed,” the statement read.
