Former Vermont Performing Arts League Vice President April Werner plans to resign from the organization’s board, following extensive allegations of sexual misconduct involving her husband, Ben Bergstein, the former president of the league.
Her resignation comes after VTDigger interviewed eight people who reported being groped, forcibly kissed or harassed by Bergstein over the course of a decade. Four of those people told VTDigger they believed Werner was aware of the misconduct at the time.
Werner and Bergstein have run the Vermont Performing Arts League since 1978 and jointly founded North End Studios, an arm of the organization, in 2007. For years, the arts league ran community events in Burlington and Winooski where, some of those interviewed told VTDigger, Bergstein harassed and abused them.
Werner told VTDigger on Thursday she plans to resign from the performing arts league’s board of directors by the end of the month. She expects to continue, however, to serve as the organization’s executive director for several more months — in order to help it “move onto their next phase,” she said — and would then retire.
Bergstein has already resigned from his role with the organization, as Seven Days reported on Wednesday. Werner told VTDigger the board asked him to step down in early April “for the sake of the organization” and is no longer affiliated with the league “in any way.”
The arts league issued a statement Thursday night saying that Werner had “just resigned from the Board” and that she would be stepping down as executive director “as soon as a replacement is found. …”
In extending “an apology to Winooski, Burlington and the communities we serve,” the board said, “our organization is strongly committed to ensuring a safe, vibrant and respectful community space.”
Still, the move will likely not appease many who want to see stronger action taken.
Burlington City Council President Max Tracy, along with City Councilors Brian Pine and Perri Freeman, released a statement on Facebook and Front Porch Forum Wednesday calling for accountability from Bergstein, Werner and the arts league. The three council Progressives represent the Old North End neighborhood, where North End Studios’ main studio space is located.
“There has been no acknowledgement from Ben or April of the tremendous harm that was done or, as an extension, acceptance of any consequences for their actions,” the councilors wrote.
They called for the organization to immediately sever ties with Bergstein and Werner. If the couple remained in their positions, the councilors said, they would urge those doing business with the arts league to boycott the organization.
Tracy told VTDigger on Thursday that he felt the news of Bergstein’s own resignation was “just not enough.”
“There’s been nothing but denial of the multitude of stories that have come out from the people that were harmed and that continues to be unacceptable,” he said, noting that Bergstein’s decision to step down was not originally made public.
In emails obtained by VTDigger, Werner firmly denied the allegations of misconduct originally raised by the city of Winooski. Both Bergstein and Werner declined to comment on the allegations for VTDigger’s original story. On Thursday, Werner again told VTDigger she would not discuss the allegations.
The Burlington councilors’ calls for action have echoed through the community. In Winooski, residents have written letters to the City Council demanding the city terminate its lease with the performing arts league.
On Wednesday, the community group Winooski Mutual Aid issued a statement requesting that until Bergstein and Werner both stepped down, “all contracts with NES should be cancelled and all future events should be boycotted.”
The city of Winooski “needs to take a stand,” said Mellisa Cain, an educator and community organizer in Burlington, and one of the women who told VTDigger that Bergstein had groped and harassed her.
Cain and others have also called for Hinsdale Properties, which owns North End Studios’ main studio space in the Old North End, to terminate its lease with the organization. Reached Thursday by VTDigger, Property Manager Jacob Hinsdale said he was aware of the allegations but could not comment on the status of the lease.
Cain says she worries, however, about the small businesses and organizations that rely on North End Studios — which has long provided resources for immigrant communities in the area. “That’s been on the forefront of my mind from the beginning,” she said.
Pine says he is determined to find alternative space. “I think the community will rally around any organization that is impacted by this,” he said.
The Champlain Housing Trust released a statement Thursday afternoon affirming that it “supports and believes” those who have come forward about Bergstein’s behavior.
The trust also encouraged businesses and individuals working with the arts league to cancel their events and offered the Old North End Community Center’s event hall — once managed by Bergstein and Werner — as a substitute.
The trust also said in a statement that it had first learned of Bergstein’s alleged behavior in February and “immediately” terminated its management contract with the organization. However, a former Burlington city councilor told VTDigger that she had brought concerns to trust CEO Michael Monte years ago.
The city of Winooski remains in negotiations with the performing arts league regarding the lease. Councilors met again Monday in executive session to discuss it.
The city has served a no-trespass order on Bergstein across city property. All staff are to notify the current executive director, Werner, should her husband set foot on the property, according to the organization’s communications with the city of Winooski, obtained by VTDigger.
This story was updated to include a statement Thursday night from the Vermont Performing Arts League board.
