Dailes Theatre actress Lelde Dreimane has revealed that the new year began for her in a highly unusual and distressing way. She says she was summoned to the office of Dailes Theatre director Juris Žagars, where she was pressured into signing documents related to her dismissal from the theatre’s permanent staff. Dreimane has announced that she intends to take legal action, stressing that she is standing up for the traditions of professional theatre, where permanent employment signifies quality, loyalty, and responsibility.
“The year started in a very specific way for me. I received a message from Juris Žagars saying he wanted to speak with me at Dailes Theatre. I went there happily, to my Dailes Theatre. As I entered the building, I met a colleague who was in tears. I asked what had happened, and she said that 20 people from her department had just been dismissed,” Dreimane recounts in a video published on Facebook.
“I went confidently into the office, where Juris Žagars was waiting for me. On the table there were two documents, a pen, and a large Excel spreadsheet covering the wall. Juris began explaining that the theatre is currently facing a situation where state funding has been reduced, and there have also been significant expenses related to recent productions, which apparently have not generated the expected profits. Staff reductions are now underway, and I was given two options: either I sign an agreement and leave voluntarily, or the theatre eliminates my staff position and proceeds with formal dismissal,” the actress explains.
“He handed me the document to sign, and I said that after hearing such information, I needed time, because I respect myself and my relationship with the theatre. I did not want to sign anything immediately and said I had the right to think it over. Juris reacted very quickly, saying: I will call two colleagues into the office right now, they will be witnesses and will sign the document in your place. So, in any case, you are signing the document,” Dreimane recounts.
“That was the most extraordinary situation I have ever experienced in my life.
I have never been in anything like this before, and I did not understand what one is supposed to do in such a situation,” the actress says about her emotional state. She explains that the document stated there were currently no positions at the theatre matching her qualifications.
“If I were to sign a voluntary resignation agreement, I would still be allowed to continue performing my roles. So how does that work? Suddenly I am qualified and suitable for my position? But if I am dismissed by the theatre under the document he asked me to sign, there is a clause stating that I do not qualify and that my skills do not meet the theatre’s needs,” Dreimane points out, describing the contradiction.
She says the situation will be assessed legally. Dreimane also emphasizes that she currently performs in the production Retrīts (“Retreat”), which has been very successful for Dailes Theatre and is one of the longest-running productions since Juris Žagars became director—especially when compared with other, less successful productions that are staged only about ten times and then withdrawn despite significant financial investment.
“I am outraged by this decision by Juris and deeply troubled by it.
I have contacted my lawyer, and we will resolve this issue lawfully and transparently, as procedures require, because I represent the tradition of professional theatre, where permanent employment means quality, loyalty, and responsibility. This model of employment is important to me,” Dreimane stresses, adding that on a human level she does not understand what Juris Žagars is trying to achieve.
She also shared the video on Instagram, accompanied by the following message: “Not everyone is silent because they have nothing to say. Sometimes silence is the result of an environment where it is not safe to speak. Today I felt how destructive a situation can be when power is exercised without empathy. I am also not the only actress who will be invited to such a conversation. These actresses are legends of Dailes Theatre, whom the current theatre director referred to as ‘pensioners’. While presenting his Excel spreadsheet to me, he said: ‘You and the pensioners!’ At that moment, I realized that a line must be drawn. I choose to stand for a professional environment where responsibility goes hand in hand with empathy. My strength is not in remaining silent, but in speaking without fear and without hatred.”
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