Through this article, first published on the 25th of November 1986 in the American weekly newspaper The Village Voice, Eugenio Barba replied to “Roles and Poles Apart”, Erika Munk’s day-by-day report of the ISTA’s conference The Female Role as Represented on the Stage in Various Cultures, published in the same newspaper two weeks before, on the 11th of November 1986. In her article, the American author accused ISTA director and scientific staff of being sexists and of having neglected the sociological question of gender equality. In his answer, Barba clarified the fundamental principles examined during the conference and the aims of ISTA.