Nora Schell Shares Allegations of Mistreatment During Time in JAGGED LITTLE PILL

Nora Schell, an original chorus member of Jagged Little Pill, has recently come forward sharing allegations of mistreatment from the stage management and creative teams of the show.

Schell shared on Twitter that the situation involved asking them to postpone their surgery for Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. They also mentioned multiple members of leadership were never informed of her condition and need for surgery.

A production rep did not respond to a request for comment at press time. Kate Shindle, president of Actors' Equity also shared on social media today that the union was looking into the allegations.

As of the evening of September 24, AEA officially responded in a social post, stating they are looking into everything Schell brought forward.

"I told them I was consistently feeling faint and afraid I would pass out because of my extreme anemia from PCOS. I was met with confused stars and silence. They told me they had no idea what I was talking about. THE CREATIVE TEAM TOLD ME THEY NEVER RECEIVED THIS INFORMATION FROM STAGE MANAGEMENT," wrote Schell in their post.

Due to what they describe as intimidation from the leadership, Schell pushed back their surgery despite their doctor recommending immediate attention to their PCOS diagnosis.

"I was then asked to please understand how much of a detriment it would be to the show if I had to take those 3-4 days to recover. I was exhausted, anemic, and scared. [...] In the end, I was effectively coerced to go against my gynecologist's medical advice. [...] I waited over a month to get a surgery my gynecologist told me I needed IMMEDIATELY," wrote Schell.

Schell has added on social media that the Stage Manager in question is the current Vice President of the Actors Equity Association.

This statement comes on the day fellow cast member and Tony nominee Celia Rose Gooding also shared her reasoning behind not returning to the show when it reopens.

"I cannot ignore the harm Jagged has done to the trans and non-binary community, including cast members on stage, off stage, and behind the scenes in the production-making process," said Gooding. She credits her character of Frankie inspiring her to focus on work that aligns with herself "emotionally and morally."

On September 17, the Jagged Little Pill producers Vivek J. Tiwary, Arvind Ethan David and Eva Price, released a statement addressing the controversy surrounding the character Jo - who was performed as non-binary at the out of town tryout, before being changed to cisgender for Broadway without addressing the surrounding conflicts and story arc. The production has also put together links on their action plan and resources which can be found here.