MINNEAPOLIS -- The founder and former artistic director of the renowned Children's Theatre Co. was sentenced Thursday to one year in jail and 15 years probation for having sex with three boys who were students at the theater.
'I am profoundly and deeply sorry for any harm, hurt and embarrassment I brought,' John Clark Donahue, 46, told the court. 'I'd simply like to say that I have tried to devote myself to the positive growth of young people.'
Donahue agreed Oct. 1 to plead guilty. He must undergo testing and treatment, have no unsupervised contact with children and no involvement with the theater during his probation.
Donahue, looking pale and drawn, was taken into custody after the hearing. He already has served 42 days in the workhouse.
'What you did was wrong. There is absolutely no way to avoid that conclusion,' Hennepin County District Judge Charles Porter Jr. said. He said Donahue created a fantasy environment at the theater but added, 'You took that fantasy world and diverted it.'
Peter Thompson, Donahue's attorney, urged the court to accept the agreement as a way of recognizing Donahue also has 'touched the lives of hundreds and hundreds of children in a positive way.'
This year's graduating class at the Children's Theatre intends to dedicate its yearbook to Donahue, Thompson said.
The most disturbing part of the case was that many staff members knew of abuse at the school and some parents had suspicions of it long ago, Porter said.
People did not come forward because they feared the theater would collapse without Donahue, they thought Donahue was so powerful he could ruin the careers of aspiring performers and they were afraid big companies would withdraw their financial support.
Donahue was placed on leave after five counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct and one count of first-degree criminal sexual conduct were filed April 18. He resigned from the theater and school May 1.
Porter also required Donahue to turn over to the court any money he receives for speaking or writing about his sexual abuse experiences.
