Appeals court rejects Broadway producer’s antitrust claim against actors’ and stage managers’ union
NEW YORK — An appeals court on Tuesday rejected an appeal by a Tony Award-winning producer who claims a union for actors and stage managers organized an illegal boycott that prevented him from producing live Broadway shows.
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan ruled that the producer, Garth Drabinsky, could not proceed with his $50 million lawsuit, which alleged that the Actors’ Equity Association violated antitrust laws and several state laws, including defamation.
The union represents more than 50,000 theatre actors and stage managers.
Luke Hasskamp, Drabinsky’s attorney, declined to comment.
Drabinsky, 74, whose hits include “Ragtime” and a 1994 revival of “Show Boat,” alleged in his lawsuit that the union waged an unlawful campaign of defamation and intimidation by spreading rumors about him, instituting a one-day work stoppage and putting him on the Do Not Work list to discourage anyone from working with him.
“As long as the union’s conduct furthers legitimate labor goals, it retains the benefit of the labor exemption and remains immune from antitrust liability,” the three-judge panel of the 2nd Circuit said in a decision written by Judge Raymond J. Lohier Jr.
The court said Equity conducted the boycott “precisely to protect the wages and working conditions of its members” after cast members of the musical “Paradise Square” objected to unsafe conditions on set, a racially hostile work environment and unpaid wages. The court noted that Drabinsky claimed he had no control over wages and working conditions, even though his lawsuit alleged he had control over hiring, firing and pay during production.
Al Vincent Jr., executive director of the Actors’ Equity Association, said the union was “pleased that the court agreed with every argument we made and concluded that Drabinsky’s lawsuit was without merit.”
He said the ruling “will serve Equity and the labor movement well in the future regarding the right to use the Do Not Work List against employers who harm our members.”
“We are glad to put this behind us,” Vincent added. “Our mission is to protect actors and stage managers from employers like Drabinsky, and no amount of intimidation will stop us from doing so.”
“Paradise Square,” which explored the racial conflict between black Americans and Irish immigrants during the 1863 Civil War race riots in New York City, closed on Broadway in July 2022 after 23 previews and 108 performances. Drabinsky’s “Ragtime” ran on Broadway for two years.
Drabinsky, a Canadian, was sentenced in August 2009 to seven years in prison in that country for fraud. He and another producer had provided false financial statements to investors in order to misrepresent the financial condition of their company.