Broken Arrow Community Playhouse resetting after volunteer controversy

By John Dobberstein, Editor

Leaders at the Broken Arrow Community Playhouse (BACP) said they’re moving on this month after finger pointing and board resignations dominated the stage due to an infrequent volunteer and playwright who was discovered to be a convicted sex offender.

The controversy emerged as BACP was readying for the 4^th annual Shorts Festival, an event featuring selected one-act plays chosen for production by a panel. The volunteer in question was former Edison High School choir director Bradley Hart Morris, who pleaded guilty to sex charges in 2015 after incidents that involved students.

He was sentenced to 7 years in prison and 5 years of probation. He resigned from the school district 2 years before the criminal investigation by the Tulsa Police Department began.

The current board of directors at BACP said changes to policies and procedures are being discussed to prevent a similar situation from happening again. But they reiterated Morris was not left alone with children and nobody associated with the theater was ever in danger.

Acting President Robert Stinson said background checks are done on all board members but not for most others involved with the organization. Morris was on stage to play piano for one comedy event, but he had little other involvement with the theater, he said.

“There were no children in the production. It was two or three adults on stage who were all adults. And that’s the only volunteering that he has ever done here,” Stinson told the Sentinel.

“We would never allow anything to happen to kids here within our power,” added Marla Taylor, the board’s secretary. “He wrote a play. That’s his only sin regarding us and we didn’t know anything about this.”

‘Lapse in judgement’

Kelley Childers Friedberg, a former board member who was executive producer of the Shorts Festival, said in a Facebook post recently — which has apparently been deleted but is shared below — that she allowed Morris’ play to be considered and selected by a judging panel for production.

“This was a serious lapse in judgment on my part. I was aware that he is a registered sex offender who had completed his sentence, and I should not have permitted his work to move forward in the festival,” Friedberg wrote. “For this, I offer my sincere and humble apology. I am heartsick over the repercussions of my decision.”

Friedberg said she planned to “strictly limit” Morris’s participation — “specifically, that he would only be permitted to attend rehearsals via Zoom.” She had planned to share the information at a stage management meeting. I now realize I should have communicated this earlier and more clearly.”

When Morris’ partner began volunteering at BACP, Friedberg said she informed some individuals about Morris’ past record. Friedberg herself stepped down from her board position in July 2025 and transitioned to a trustee role, limiting her involvement only to the Shorts festival.

“I was not aware that Mr. Morris had begun volunteering with BACP,” Friedberg said. “Once again, I want to express my deepest apologies for the role I played in this situation and for the impact of my decisions.”

‘Immediately shocked’

The president of BACP at the time, Janet Brister, was reportedly among those who knew about Morris’ convictions but did not inform the entire board. She has resigned, as has Morris’ partner.

Taylor Neill, who was to serve as assistant stage manager for the Shorts Festival, said Morris’ previous conviction was brought to her attention and she called Brister, who reportedly told her, “they were aware of his record.”

Neill said she was told by Brister that the man’s charges were from 30 years ago and were “falsified by an angry ex-wife” and that Morris was a “young man and everybody makes mistakes and deserves a second chance.”

Neill said she confronted Brister with additional facts about Morris and Brister continued to insist Morris deserved a second chance and he hadn’t done anything illegal since his conviction, and he was always accompanied by someone while at the theater.

“What she doesn’t tell me is that the person who accompanies him is another board member and also his (partner),” Neill wrote in her post, adding that Brister told her, “the whole board knows about his record. So there should be nothing to worry about.”

Neill said she sent the information about Morris to two board members she “knew and trusted” and they were not aware of the man’s record and were, “immediately shocked and furious. They took that news to a circle of their friends, who also were unaware.”

Calls for transparency

During an emergency board meeting after the Shorts Festival was cancelled, Brister resigned and left the meeting without answering questions. Several other board members eventually walked out, some of them feeling there should have been more transparency about the situation. Brister did not respond to messages left by the Sentinel.

When the controversy surfaced on social media, BACP said in a March 5 Facebook post the board was, “dealing with a situation” but assured, “everyone who is, was or will be involved with the BACP is safe.” The statement didn’t go into more detail.

“We are taking steps to develop policies and procedures that ensure additional safety. We will post those guidelines on our website following their adoption at our next board meeting. Meanwhile, know that the safety and well-being of the actors, families, volunteers, and staff involved with Broken Arrow Community Playhouse is our highest priority.”

After numerous calls on Facebook for more transparency about why the festival was cancelled, BACP posted another Facebook statement saying concerns were brought to the board about an individual and leadership cancelled the festival, “in alignment with our commitment to protecting all participants.

“In addition, this individual is not part of any current process and at no time were any BACP community members exposed to any harm. For legal reasons, we cannot provide specific details.”

Board looks ahead

Those who remained on BACP’s board were left to deal with the aftermath. Technical director Scott Brister, Production Manager Ryan Mash and board members Kari Baker-Trickey, Samara Cain, Kenzie Egger and Jeremy Garrett resigned from the board. The vice president position is also vacant.

Along with Stinson and Taylor on the board, Nancy Blass is treasurer and Ted Barron is facilities manager, and Steve Cowen and Kent Dittmer are remaining board members.

New board members are Broken Arrow City Council member David Pickel, Sally Barnes, Cheryl Beese, Mike McEver and Ron Whitaker. The BACP has its annual meeting in June, where elections will be held.

Currently, production is ongoing for “Alice in Wonderland,” which debuts April 10. Stinton said BACP is eager for volunteers and others in the community who want to contribute to the organization to step forward, whether it’s in a leadership capacity or other positions, and everyone will be vetted.

“One of the things that I repeatedly visited with friends and fellow workers here about is that we’re a community theater,” Stinson said. “I think that that means that all members of the community should not only feel free to be safe here, as they always have been for the last 47 years, but how they should also have their interests represented here.

“I know there’s a lot of interest in comic books, like comic book acting out. If that’s something people wanted to happen here, and if there was an interested group that wanted to do that sort of thing, then that’s the kind of thing that we could do. If there’s more singing groups that are interested in sharing stage time with us, then we would like that.”