Email Cambridge Colleges to demand they withdraw support from Cambridge Shakespeare Festival

Can you take two minutes of your time to help us end wage theft at Cambridge Shakespeare Festival?

We need you to email the Masters of Cambridge Colleges to withdraw their support for Cambridge Shakespeare Festival

Four Cambridge Colleges currently host the Festival on their premises. One college has already withdrawn support to host plays on their quadrangle in 2026.

We're calling on the remaining three colleges to withdraw their support and not allow the plays to take place on their premises until the Festival Director Dr Crilly complies with the tribunal judgement against him and pays his performers a wage for their work.

Use our pre-drafted email to write to the three college masters to demand they end their support for Cambridge Shakespeare Festival whilst the festival's wage theft continues.

King’s College, Provost Gillian Tett

St John’s College , Master Heather Hancock

Trinity College, Master Sally Davies

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<div>Saturday 14th June 2025</div><div> </div><div>I am writing to you today as a local resident to <strong>ask you to withdraw your support for Cambridge Shakespeare Festival performing on your premises from 2026 onwards</strong>, unless and until the festival director Dr Crilly complies with the tribunal judgement against him and pays his festival workers a wage.</div><div> </div><div>Cambridge Shakespeare Festival was <a href="https://www.equity.org.uk/news/2024/cambridge-shakespeare-festival-major-employment-law-victory">found guilty by an Employment Tribunal</a> of withholding wages and holiday pay from performers working at the 2022 festival, because the Festival claimed they were volunteers. <span data-teams="true">The performers brought claims with the support of the performing arts union Equity.</span><br><br>Two years on from that 2023 Tribunal, and Dr Crilly, refuses to employ his actors as workers. He continues to advertise theatrical roles at this prestigious event yet refuses to pay even the National Minimum Wage to his actors.</div><div> </div><div>The 2023 Employment Tribunal agreed with Equity that the actors were in fact workers entitled to at least the National Minimum Wage, Holiday Pay, and other basic employment rights; which the Festival unlawfully withheld. <a href="https://www.equity.org.uk/news/2025/equity-launches-fresh-tribunal-against-cambridge-shakespeare-festival">The judge found that the actors were subject to a “high degree of control” </a>by the operator of Cambridge Shakespeare Festival, Dr David Crilly. This included working “extremely long days”, six-day weeks, and being made to leaflet as well as being expected to be off book ideally by Day 1.</div><div> </div><div>Equity has lodged a fresh Tribunal case this year to win back wages unlawfully withheld since the 2023 Tribunal.</div><div> </div><div><strong>You have the power to force Dr Crilly to comply with the law by refusing him permission to host the festival on your premises from 2026 onwards. </strong></div><div> </div><div>Equity is concerned about the future of the festival if it continues to unlawfully withhold wages from festival workers. Nobody wants to see the festival disappear from the local cultural scene, which is why we're asking for your help by showing Dr Crilly that everyone expects him to pay his workers and comply with the law if the festival is to have a future.</div><div> </div><div>I look forward to hearing from you.</div>

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