Performers should not be required to be nude during auditions - Association for Performing Arts Practitioners

Performers should not be required to be nude during auditions unless they have signed an informed consent form and an agreed-upon observer is present, the Association for Performing Arts Practitioners (Apap) has recommended. Moreover, all performers should be informed about the nature and extent of any nudity or sex acts in a production before being engaged and should only be seen naked for the purpose of the filmed or staged scene, not for most of the rehearsal period. The recommendations form part of a list of guidelines regarding nudity on stage and screen, which were agreed yesterday evening during a consultation meeting in Valletta. "Our aim is to offer guidelines that protect both performers and producers, particularly when it comes to putting on sensitive material," said Apap spokesman Chris Gatt, an established theatre director. The meeting follows allegations that veteran actor John Suda had sexually assaulted a young actress during one-to-one training for a TV audition last mon. The actress was allegedly blindfolded and asked her to strip to her underwear, "to control her inhibitions and be a better actor", before Mr Suda allegedly got naked and placed her hand on his...