Girls, it is bad enough this had to happen at all, but that it should happen during both Pride Month, and TONY Week!
On Saturday, May 31, the Repertory East Playhouse, in Santa Clara, CA, was presenting Tennessee Williams' classic, "Cat On A Hot Tin Roof." At some point, most likely during the Act Two scene between Brick and Big Daddy, a drunken heckler began disturbing the performance repeatedly, with anti-gay slurs. Being drunk is no excuse; if you are in any way homophobic, sober or not, what are you doing going to a Tennessee Williams play????????????/
So disturbing was this that John Lacy, who was playing Big Daddy, broke through the Fourth Wall, into the audience, and physically removed this nut from the theater! I, for one, applaud his efforts! And I am sure the audience did, too!
But guess what? When the curtain came down, Lacy was fired! And his costar, Anton Troy, whom, I imagine, played Brick, resigned because he felt it wrong that the theater did not support Lacy's action. And I agree!
Wait! It gets worse! The stupid theater cancelled the rest of the run, putting the entire cast and crew out of work! How smart is that? And where was the House Manager and ushers when this was gong on? Why did an actor onstage have to deal with this crisis at hand, when it should have been their jobs??????? And, for the record, nobody fired Patti Lu Pone in "Gypsy" when she stopped the show and called out a photographer for taking pics during her climactic number!
Guess California has less respect for its theater community than New York! I suggest that anyone connected with this production, who was there that night, get on a plane, and come here!
And I hope the Repertory East Playhouse goes under!
Disgraceful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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