‘For all the horrific accounts this film exposes, a sense of hope pervaded the film: hope that changes are happening, that more survivors are coming forward, that institutions are implementing new safeguards — and that just maybe this important film, if it is given the wide release it deserves, can have a profound impact on the world and its arts institutions. It certainly had a profound impact on me.‘

‘Dear Lara is one woman’s crusade to bring justice and the brightest spotlight to the heinous abuse that has plagued the prestigious music education halls for decades.‘

‘In the documentary Dear Lara, the #MeToo movement circles around to the insular, self-protective world of classical music. [...]The “Lara” is respected Canadian violinist Lara St. John, who has performed in Ventura County and around the world. News of the deeply rooted tradition of sexual abuse in classical music education and professional practices began to leak into the public sphere around the time of the Harvey Weinstein–driven toppling of film industry sins, through such exposé sources as Anne Midgette’s Washington Post story on the subject in 2018, and St. John’s personal testimonial story in the Philadelphia Inquirer about her own traumatic encounter as a 14-year-old at the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music. The film names names, as it should, including James Levine, David Daniels, Placido Domingo, and Steven Shipps. The result in the St. John–directed doc is fascinating, chilling, and necessary.‘