Tickets to Broadways shows are anything but cheap, which makes it all the more baffling that someone would willingly purchase one only to heckle a performer with transphobic drivel.
But that’s what happened at a performance of Straight White Men this week, and the cast is speaking out against the terribly rude disruption.
Among the show’s cast are Call Me By Your Name star Armie Hammer and trans performer and activist Kate Bornstein.
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It was when the latter delivered the opening line of the play — “Good evening, ladies, gentlemen, and the rest of us” — when a woman in the audience yelled, “You’re not welcome here.”
The woman and her husband also reportedly booed throughout the show and were never removed from the theater.
Bornstein addressed the incident in a Facebook post, saying the woman “could not have been more wrong.”
Here’s her full post:
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Armie Hammer also took to Twitter to offer this message to the unruly audience member:
To the woman in our audience who felt it was appropriate to yell, “You’re not welcome here!” at Kate Bornstein, our beloved friend, co-worker, and now family member….. feel free never to come back.
— Armie Hammer (@armiehammer) August 9, 2018
In response to Hammer’s tweet, another audience member who was seated near the woman provided some details:
Was sitting right behind her and her husband – they were also both booing loudly. It was terrible, and they didn’t get kicked out, but all of us around her told her too STFU. They were in row 4 center isle seats 6 and 7. ?
— Amy Spiegel (@amyspiegs) August 9, 2018
This led to a back-and-forth with the actor:
Do you know their exact seat numbers?
— Armie Hammer (@armiehammer) August 9, 2018
I was Row E Seat 104. She was in Row D Seat 105. Ppl around us thought it was part of the show at 1st, couldn’t believe what was happening. Ppl did tell her to shut up rather loudly. You were all genius, It sucks this happened and tried to overshadow the entire msg of the play.
— Amy Spiegel (@amyspiegs) August 9, 2018
Thank you… will pass this along to the appropriate people at the theater.
— Armie Hammer (@armiehammer) August 9, 2018
NOUHAVENT
They already paid for the ticket and did what they wanted. Highly unlikely that they will go back to a show. The theater should’ve removed them right then and there but didn’t. This after the fact white knight act by Armie is useless.
badpappy
What is useless is your rude comment, nouhavent
sonofseptember
Save the keyboard shade for tumblr, princess.
KevinG
I think the point is that the theatre will ban them from all of their future shows, not just this one.
jpcolter
What is useless are stupid comments like yours. Go away troll.
Dwik27
Nouhavent – duh! – what was Armie Hammer supposed to do during the fact? Jump off the stage and manually remove the people himself? He’s an actor – not theater security. The theater staff should have removed this couple ASAP for simply interfering with other attendees’ right to experience the show in peace.
QueerTruth
I don’t think it’s useless. He’s addressing something that he couldn’t address at the time since he was on stage acting.
And I don’t think he is trying to be a white knight but a decent human being and a professional. It’s rather a shame you would think his intentions are anything other than genuine.
Don’t you defend your friends?
Nosso Crankee
Really? Whattakunt….
Terrycloth
If Armie heard it. Why didnt he stop the show put up the lights and have them removed. Or why didnt an audience member get an usher ot security to have these people thrown out ? Yet aside from telling them to STFU they did nothing…
DarkZephyr
“The show must go on” is sacred to many performers.
DuMaurier
I have heard of that happening; didn’t Patti LuPone do something like that when someone was being rude with a cell phone or something? But I don’t think it’s the actor’s place, management should do something.
jms1513
It’s not his job, that theatre’s company who should do it. He is just performer just like the other actor
scotshot
Years ago I was at a Pointer Sister’s concert – I said it was years ago – that a drag queen who was in attendance started yelling unintelligible things at the stage. One of the sisters stopped everything, had the house lights brought up and read the drag queen to filth.
Everyone was happy.
Raybee
While I was not at this particular performance, there are no other actors on stage when Kate and Ty are delivering their opening monologues. It is highly unlikely the others heard. Kate and Ty’s interactions with the “straight white men” cast members during the play were brief and took place with no dialog. The theater management should have been made aware of what was happening, and acted upon it. Thank you, Armie!
batesmotel
Hardcore professional actors will rarely if ever break out of character while on stage performing or while filming. They’re trained to keep going knowing that there will be the occasional unrehearsed noises from people in the audience. They likely thought that the couple would die down with the nonsense as it did everyone else.
QueerTruth
That’s not how theater works. Have you ever been to a play or live taping?
Did you read the whole article? Some audience members thought the yelling/boing audience members were part of the show. Besides, it’s a live show. It’s not up to the audience or the cast to watch the audience. That’s what usher and security is for.
HMFan
I’m all for freedom of speech but other audience members paid to see the show, not a pair of asshats who, for the life of me I can’t fathom why, attended a show featuring ideas and values with which they clearly don’t agree. Okay, fine, whatever. Thing is, with the continued interruptions, the theatre should have stepped in, escorted the disruptive couple out and told them,“and YOU’RE not welcome HERE.”
DuMaurier
That’s actually the weirdest part for me. Going to the theater in New York isn’t cheap, you have to get ready, get down there, the whole thing is kind of a big deal. And nobody goes to the theater without knowing what they’re going to see (the movies, maybe, as I recall from decades ago when I was an usher and people indignantly stormed out of “Cruising”, “All That Jazz”, etc) You go thru all that just for the fun of doing this?
Heywood Jablowme
A possible explanation is the hecklers were Trump fans who came to NYC to see Trump Tower and buy some made-in-China hats and trinkets there. Then they mosied over to the Times Square ticket booth and chose the only play title that made sense to them. They naively thought it would be a show that glorified Straight White Men! Imagine their disappointment! After that, of course, they went to the Ruby Tuesday on 7th Avenue.
DuMaurier
@Heywood Jablowme, actually, after I posted it did occur to me that maybe they just ran across the title and said, “At last, a play about us normal, upstanding all-American Christian patriots!” and didn’t delve any further. Again, a person of normal intelligence wouldn’t do that, but judging from their behavior at that play, that doesn’t seem to describe them anyway.
jms1513
Thank you so much Armie for standing to Trans people.. You are wonderful, brave, and humble as an actor!
Johnny5
Queerty needs to add a “like” button to their articles.
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RobF
The staff at the Helen Hayes Theater needs to be reprimanded for allowing this insane outburst. An usher or security personnel should have escorted the couple out if they were going to “participate” any further in the show.
batesmotel
Unless they had no idea it was happening. Sometimes the ushers or security are outside the closed doors of certain theaters. Only the audience and performers could hear the couple.
Bob Scardino
Y’all sure do bitch and moan at each other a lot.
startenout
And you came here JUST to do the same? Bitching and moaning about “bitching and moaning” IS bitching and moaning lol
batesmotel
Ironic that they bought tickets to a show that they didn’t investigate first to see what it was about and who was starring in it, etc. I guess some people do actually blindly buy tickets to anything without investigating. Also ironic is that they were going to the theater. Generally people that go to the theater tend to be open to everything without judgment. That’s one of the big draws of the theater and art.
nitejonboy
Instead of telling them to STFU, these audience members should have gone to the ushers and had them kicked out.
mujerado
Queerty, this headline isn’t even click bait; it’s a flat-out lie. Armie Hammer didn’t “track” anyone down. He tweeted. It’s right there in the article. Come on, guys. Have at least a little respect for your audience.
DeQuan
I work in a theater, and I don’t know why the ushers didn’t remove them. We have training that in that situation, we remove them and turn them over to security.
DeQuan
I work in a theater, and I don’t know why the ushers didn’t remove them. We have training that in that situation, we remove them and turn them over to security. Also, I expected to read that he left the stage and sought them out and had them removed, based on the headline.
Lacuevaman
he’s a keeper!