Nike Imoru, a British‑Nigerian actor, has filed a lawsuit against Harvard University's American Repertory Theater, claiming a backstage hair appointment during rehearsals for the A.R.T.'s 2025 production of The Odyssey left her scalp permanently damaged. The complaint accuses the Cambridge theater of racial discrimination and says an unqualified employee braided her hair into tight cornrows and added synthetic extensions, leading to traumatic hair loss and lasting emotional distress. Her attorneys argue the injury has effectively ended her ability to work onstage.
What the lawsuit says
The complaint, filed in Middlesex Superior Court, says Imoru was told she had to change her hairstyle for the show but was not given the same level of professional support as other cast members. As reported by The Boston Globe, the suit alleges the theater failed to provide a "licensed and qualified" hair technician, did not obtain written consent, skipped a proper consultation, and did not give the 48‑hour notice required under the union contract. Instead, the filing says, a backstage dresser rather than a trained stylist put in the cornrows and used inappropriate extension materials, which Imoru says led directly to her hair and scalp injuries.
Timeline and injuries
Imoru says the braids caused immediate, intense pain that only got worse. She describes feeling excruciating pressure, developing red welts, and then experiencing continuing hair loss. She told CBS Boston, "The damage is indescribable. It is cataclysmic." According to CBS, Imoru estimates she has lost about 90 percent of her hair, and a dermatologist told her that most of her follicles are now empty. She filed an accident report and a workers' compensation claim. The lawsuit says the injury forced her to pull out of some performances and has had ongoing effects on her mental health.
Contracts and bias the suit points to
The case leans heavily on protections in the Actors' Equity Association contract that are meant to safeguard performers, particularly around hair and makeup. Imoru's complaint argues that A.R.T. violated those rules by assigning an unqualified staff member to work on textured hair. As reported by The Boston Globe, her lawyers describe the situation as "a classic implicit bias case" and allege that white cast members were treated differently behind the scenes.
ART's past and response
The American Repertory Theater publicly pledged in 2020 to confront racism in its internal culture and artistic practices, outlining reforms in a message on the theater's website. In a June 4, 2020 statement, artistic director Diane Paulus acknowledged past failings and promised structural changes, according to the A.R.T.'s own site. As of this report, CBS Boston notes that the theater had not issued a new public comment responding to Imoru's lawsuit, leaving its detailed position for the courtroom rather than the press release page.
Legal context
Massachusetts is part of a broader national push to ban race‑based hair discrimination through versions of what is commonly known as the CROWN Act, which expands legal protections for natural and protective hairstyles in schools and workplaces. The national campaign behind The CROWN Act and legal analyses of state laws point out that these protections typically include styles such as braids, twists, and similar textured‑hair looks. A summary of the Massachusetts statute, Chapter 117, from BU Law notes that the law targets discrimination based on natural and protective hairstyles, a backdrop that could intersect with the union and contract issues raised in Imoru's case.
What comes next
The case is still in its early stages. The theater will have an opportunity to formally respond to the complaint, and the two sides could move into discovery, mediation, settlement talks, or eventually a trial. Outside the courthouse, the lawsuit is already fueling new discussions in local theater circles about who is hired to handle hair and wigs for performers with textured hair and whether backstage policies truly match public commitments to equity. For Cambridge stages and audiences alike, the fight over one actor's braids is testing how seriously those promises are taken once the lights go down and the real work starts behind the curtain.
