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As the longtime artistic director of Celebration Theatre, the city’s leading LGBTQ stage, Michael A. Shepperd has been an outspoken advocate for social justice. As a gay Black theater-maker, Shepperd has pushed for inclusion and diversity in the arts. And as a successful director and actor — someone who has landed not just on Broadway but also
in
TV series such as “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “NCIS” and “Criminal Minds” — he has been an inspiration to a younger generation trying to break into the business.
But in interviews with The Times, nine people who worked with Shepperd, 58, painted a different portrait of the artistic director, and two men accused Shepperd of sexual misconduct in incidents spanning 13 years. The men also allege Celebration mishandled complaints about Shepperd’s behavior and ultimately chose to keep him in his leadership position until this week, when the theater announced his termination and said an internal investigation had found credible allegations of misconduct against him.