Billings — Disturbing allegations recently surfaced against a longtime theater director with deep ties to Billings’ performing arts scene.
Decades after Mace Archer founded Venture Theatre in downtown Billings and later moved to Arizona, he is now under investigation and on leave amid sexual-harassment accusations.
Watch actors describe their memories of Archer's behavior below:
Archer, who has not been charged with a crime, is accused of manipulating young actors and inappropriately touching students under the guise of coaching.
Former students in Billings say they witnessed and endured similar conduct on stage and off.
Kate Restad, a Billings actor who began her theater career at age 14, remembers working under Archer’s direction at Venture Theatre — which operated until 2007 before changing hands and becoming NOVA.
“The Billings theater scene is robust, but it’s never been huge,” she said. “Venture came in as this new avant-garde theater, pushing the envelope kind of theater.”
Restad recalled being present during what she described as “so-called kissing lessons.”
“I recalled being grossed out by it but also not surprised by it because things like that happened all the time,” she said. “We saw all the adults in the room witness what was happening when it was going on here and not do anything to stop it, and the same thing is happening now to these kids down in Mesa — and they’re kids.”
Archer currently works as a professor of theater at Mesa Community College in Arizona.
An investigation by The Arizona Republic revealed students there raised concerns for months, saying Archer encouraged female students to undress on stage during a required midterm while classmates watched.
Three women complied, two to their underwear and one fully nude. Students also alleged Archer flirted with them, touched them inappropriately and steered performances toward uncomfortable “sensuality.”
Archer has not responded to repeated interview requests from The Arizona Republic or to calls from MTN News.
Fort Peck Summer Theatre in northeast Montana, where Archer was under contract for two summer productions this year, cut ties with him earlier this month after the allegations came to light.
Executive Director Kari Prewett confirmed he resigned from his roles on June 5.
“We did not take this lightly. We felt that immediate action was necessary,” Prewett told The Arizona Republic.
For former Venture students in Billings, the reports out of Arizona echo experiences from their own childhood.
“What I saw was adult-ification, manipulation and constant abuse of power over the actors and his fellow staff,” said Seth Nehring, who worked with Archer in Billings as an assistant director.
Nehring also remembered what he called “kissing rehearsals with Mace Archer behind closed doors and behind lock and key.”
Now, decades later, former students say speaking out is the first step toward healing — and making sure others don’t endure the same treatment.
“But we’re grown up now and we are determined — unlike many of the adults in the room — that we are going to stand up and say this can’t continue, this can’t keep happening,” Restad said.
“He is a symptom of a broader system that allows predators to go unchecked,” said Nehring.
Archer has not been charged in Montana.
Meanwhile, a private Facebook group called The Mace Archer Reckoning has grown to more than 145 members in recent weeks, as former students and community members share their stories.
Mesa Community College administrators have declined to comment on the allegations but have faced criticism for not referring written complaints to harassment investigators in a timely manner, according to The Arizona Republic.
Related: Montana theater parts ways with actor facing sexual harassment allegations
