Last week, a performance of the new Broadway musical “Suffs” was briefly disrupted mid-show by protesters who claimed that the musical (which explores the history of the women’s emancipation movement at the turn of the 20th century and just won Tony Awards for Best Score and Best Book) is a “white wash” as per their banner. A website created by the protesters, cancelsuffs.com, describes them as “an autonomous group of radical, anti-racist, queer feminists” who “reject this rehashed white feminism.” Ironically, “Suffs” depicts how Black suffragettes, including Ida B. Wells (Nikki M. James), faced discrimination.
In March, a performance of the Broadway revival of “An Enemy of the People” was interrupted by climate change protesters, who were also swiftly removed from the theater. However, in that case, due to the subject matter of the play and the nature of the scene occurring at the time, many audience members believed the episode had been a pre-planned, experimental touch.
Back in 2017, a controversial Shakespeare in the Park production of “Julius Caesar” (in which Caesar was depicted as Donald Trump) led to disruptions at multiple performances by pro-Trump protesters.
Newcomers join ‘Once Upon a Mattress’ for Broadway
The cast of the upcoming Broadway revival of “Once Upon a Mattress” (which begins previews on July 31) will feature a mix of actors who appeared in the production when it premiered at City Center as part of the Encores! series earlier this year and newcomers. In addition to the previously announced Sutton Foster (Princess Winnifred) and Michael Urie (Prince Dauntless), those returning to the show from Encores! include Nikki Renée Daniels (Lady Larken) and David Patrick Kelly (King Sextimus). Newcomers to the cast include Will Chase (taking over for Cheyenne Jackson as Sir Harry), Brooks Ashmanskas (taking over for Francis Jue as the Wizard), Ana Gasteyer (taking over for Harriet Harris as Queen Aggravain) and Daniel Breaker (taking over for J. Harrison Ghee as the Jester).
Grant Gustin sets final performance date in ‘Water for Elephants’
Grant Gustin, who leads the cast of “Water for Elephants” as circus veterinarian Jacob Jankowski, will play his final performance in the new Broadway musical on Sept. 1. Gustin previously played Barry Allen on the CW series “The Flash” and had a recurring role in “Glee.” It is currently unclear how long the big-budget, big-top “Water for Elephants” will be able to survive on Broadway. In spite of mostly positive reviews and a crowd-pleasing staging full of circus-style wonders, it did not win any Tony Awards (despite seven nominations, including one for Best Musical) and has been doing only lackluster weekly business lately at the Imperial Theatre.
Borle to replace Rannells in ‘Tammy Faye’
One piece of unexpected news that came out on the Tony Awards red carpet was that Andrew Rannells will no longer co-star in the upcoming Broadway premiere of “Tammy Faye,” Elton John’s new musical about the life of televangelist Tammy Faye Messner, due to unspecified contractual issues. Rannells, who previously appeared in the musical in London, was slated to play Faye’s husband Jim Bakker. Taking Rannells’ place will be two-time Tony Award winner Christian Borle. Katie Brayben is still set to play Tammy Faye, as she did in London. “Tammy Faye” will mark the first open-ended run at the Palace Theatre following its extensive physical refurbishment and restoration (including raising the venue 30 feet into the air).
