AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE 2024 Previews- Page 5

[DaveyG]

Posted: 3/15/24 at 1:02pm

MemorableUserName said: "DaveyG said: "Adam Feldmangiving a platform to one of these protestors is mystifying to me. A quote from the article (from Feldman’s perspective):

”Disrupting shows doesn'tseem likean effective solution to the problems described. And I'm certainly not in favor of further disruptions ofAn Enemy of the People, or any other production. (I was already annoyed enough at this performance by someone unwrapping a candy very, very slowly in the seat behind me.) Butthisone particular disruption, atthis one performance, struck me as kind of perfect. So I wanted to find out more about the people behind it. ”

Interrupting a Broadway performance on press night is “kind of perfect”, Adam? Shame on you. This will only encourage more people to do the same. And I am terrified that the tactics will escalate and someone will get hurt."

It's not encouraging people when he specifically says it only sort of worked at this performance, not at any other or any other production. You might not be so upset if you didn't ignore the relevant part of the quote you yourself posted."

I included the entire quote to show his perspective and i’m certainly not ignoring it. I just think it’s highly irresponsible to give any praise or pass whatsoever to these lunatics. 

[Wick3]

Posted: 3/15/24 at 1:35pm

I understand the play is still in previews and I have a feeling the creative team may not really talk to FOH staff in terms of the changes they are making for that evening (if any.) 

I agree that the actors' and audience's safety were at risk here and the stage manager or whoever had access to the voice-over PA system should have made an announcement within the first few seconds to remove that protester & to inform the audience that that is not part of the show.

My understanding from reading the articles that the voice-over PA system was finally used after the 3rd protester spoke.

Updated On: 3/15/24 at 01:35 PM

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 3/15/24 at 1:43pm

I don't blame the ushers in this situation, but I also remember a few weeks ago someone posted on Reddit that she was groped by a drunk person sitting next to her at Enemy of the People and couldn't find an usher anywhere or anyone to help her. So this show may have safety issues that need to be addressed, or the setup of the show, or something.

[rachelfran]

Posted: 3/15/24 at 4:41pm

These were my thoughts too -- anger at the writer for making this okay. I don't think anyone will get hurt but this show is doing the talking for any of these types of organizations in a much smarter way than they are.  Anyone choosing to come to this show is already getting the message.  What a waste.  

 

Rachel

[Kad]

Posted: 3/15/24 at 5:49pm

rachelfran said: "this show is doing the talking for any of these types of organizations in a much smarter way than they are.."

By charging an average ticket price of $164 and doing it in a palatable, comfortable way with TV stars, and only accessible to people with the means to get to NYC?

Updated On: 3/15/24 at 05:49 PM

[rachelfran]

Posted: 3/15/24 at 6:27pm

Kad said: "rachelfran said: "this show is doing the talking for any of these types of organizations in a much smarter way than they are.."

By charging an average ticket price of $164 and doing it in a palatable, comfortable way with TV stars, and only accessible to people with the means to get to NYC?"

huh? I'm talking about this specific play and it's subject matter.  Not tv stars and people with the means to get to NYC.

 

[PipingHotPiccolo]

Posted: 3/15/24 at 7:25pm

the way some people increasingly ignore basic language/words. my god.

Feldman wasnt there as a journalist, but OK, he decided to launch into journalist mode. Cool, cool. So he interviewed someone about an incident and then he GAVE HIS OWN OPINION ON THE SUBJECT. Game over. That aint journalism, thats a puff piece, "look what I saw happen" account. And his opinion--his opinion, not his journalistic account--was rank stupidity, WELCOMING this sort of temper tantrum. Disgusting.

I know the ushers arent security guards, so I cant fault them here, but God do I hope these people were arrested, and I would really love to see someone sue them for ruining a million dollars' worth of theatergoers' experience. 

[BoringBoredBoard40]

Posted: 3/16/24 at 3:44am

Something about this doesn't pass the smell test

this just happened to be during a press preview, this just happened during the town hall moment with all the lights on, nobody broke character, nobody left the stage immediately or was told to leave the stage until several minutes into this going on and the protestors were from a pretty well-known group in the NYC area that you can easily contact on social media 

If I had to put money on it this is an incredibly weird stunt 

[VintageSnarker]

Posted: 3/16/24 at 3:59am

MemorableUserName said: "I don't blame the ushers in this situation, but I also remember a few weeks ago someone posted on Reddit that she was groped by a drunk person sitting next to her at Enemy of the People and couldn't find an usher anywhere or anyone to help her. So this show may have safety issues that need to be addressed, or the setup of the show, or something."

I remember that post. It doesn't seem very easy to flag an usher at most theaters during a performance but some configurations at CitS would definitely make it worse. I hope she was able to get help and a response from the theater. 

[WldKingdomHM]

Posted: 3/16/24 at 7:42am

BoringBoredBoard40 said: "Something about this doesn't pass the smell test

this just happened to be during a press preview, this just happened during the town hall moment with all the lights on, nobody broke character, nobody left the stage immediately or was told to leave the stage until several minutes into this going on and the protestors were from a pretty well-known group in the NYC area that you can easily contact on social media

If I had to put money onit this is an incredibly weird stunt"

100 percent agree 

[TheatreAddict]

Posted: 3/16/24 at 11:56am

WldKingdomHM said: "BoringBoredBoard40 said: "Something about this doesn't pass the smell test

this just happened to be during a press preview, this just happened during the town hall moment with all the lights on, nobody broke character, nobody left the stage immediately or was told to leave the stage until several minutes into this going on and the protestors were from a pretty well-known group in the NYC area that you can easily contact on social media

If I had to put money onit this is an incredibly weird stunt"

100 percent agree"

100 percent disagree. Clearly the protestors had planned it very specifically. They knew the show (I presume one or more of them had seen the show) so they knew the right time to interrupt, and it wouldn't be hard to find out when the press was coming so they could time their protest. And I presume that part of the rehearsal process of integrating the onstage audience into that scene included some discussion of how to handle any unscripted audience interaction, so I'm not at all surprised that the first instincts of the actors would be to try to deal with this in character without disrupting the show. And despite all of the press they're getting from this event, the critics who came to that performance didn't see the show Sam Gold and Amy Herzog intended. It was by all accounts a very dramatic evening but the critics just didn't see the show. So they'll either have to imagine what the experience of that production was without the interruptions or come back another time to see it (which would be challenging given the ticket inventory, timing, etc). So I find it very difficult to believe that anyone involved in the production was part of the planning of this.

[sinister teashop]

Posted: 3/16/24 at 2:53pm

BoringBoredBoard40 said: "Something about this doesn't pass the smell test

this just happened to be during a press preview, this just happened during the town hall moment with all the lights on, nobody broke character..."

I sympathize with the actors being put in that position but of course they broke character. 

Mayor Stockman would not have yelled "Go back to drama school" and Morten Kiil wouldn't have yelled "You gotta write your own play!" unless Herzog and Gold were paraphrasing Pirandello as well as Chekhov in their adaptation of Ibsen's play.

What doesn't pass the smell test is some of the coverage that suggests the actors played this to their advantage. The whole thing was a disruption of the play as it was meant to be. And Imperioli's post on Instagram stating that his character doesn't support the protesters' issue but he does personally is damage control for breaking his character and his alleged beliefs in a momentary reaction that was completely understandable and professional yet at the same time rather bitchy and condescending. 

Updated On: 3/16/24 at 02:53 PM

[PipingHotPiccolo]

Posted: 3/16/24 at 2:57pm

conspiracy theorism alive and well everywhere we look.

yes, the producers preplanned this interruption of their show while the critics were there. and they did this because... the show was already totally sold out at rocket-high prices for the whole run? so they needed more publicity from.... the kinda agitators all reasonable people absolutely detest? geniuses all around.

[BoringBoredBoard40]

Posted: 3/16/24 at 5:02pm

meanwhile some of you thoughts Second Stage purposely let those dick pics leak during Take Me Out so I don't know why this would seem as farfetched as some of you are suggesting 

[quizking101]

Posted: 3/17/24 at 8:40am

…anywho, back to the show.

I went last night as a result of an extremely lucky resale and found the show to be EXTREMELY good, though it did take about 15 minutes to get off the ground which is not what you want in an 110 minute play (acknowledging that may be a fault of Herzog’s adaptation and not Ibsen’s source material). The material feels extremely fresh though, and speaks to our current times as many have noted. I also ended up laughing more than I thought I would. 

Strong is doing fantastic work and, for my money, seems to be the only true competition for Leslie Odom Jr. for the Tony. Imperioli has the flashier role and sinks his teeth into it well without going into what could potentially be cartoonish villainy. Special mention to Caleb Eberhardt because, as was with CHOIR BOY years ago, he has a true knack for characters who stand tall, but could easily crumble when easily pressured - I would like to see him in the mix of Featured Actor.

I got to go on stage for the top of Act II and that was an EXPERIENCE. I genuinely felt like I was integrated into the action of the play and not just a set piece. The final moments of Act II, Scene I were so jarring to me in being that close and it will stick with me forever. I even was compelled (being a nurse) to ask Jeremy at the stage door if he was actually okay because I was genuinely scared for his safety in that moment.

Its a tough ticket to get but worth it if you can.

[Wick3]

Posted: 3/17/24 at 10:39am

I'm glad they didn't change Act 2 despite the protest fiasco the other day. 

How were you selected to go on stage? I was in standing room section and saw a lady give it to the gentleman next to me. It seemed pretty random? 

The only con of having audience members sit on the stage is it makes the view from the front 2 rows obstructed. I was reassigned to sit to row D so I had a great view but when I saw it, it seemed like some folks in row 1 & 2 had to move their heads a lot to see Jeremy Strong during that scene in Act 2.

[SisterGeorge]

Posted: 3/17/24 at 11:22am

rachelfran said: "Kad said: "rachelfran said: "this show is doing the talking for any of these types of organizations in a much smarter way than they are.."

By charging an average ticket price of $164 and doing it in a palatable, comfortable way with TV stars, and only accessible to people with the means to get to NYC?"

huh? I'm talking about this specific play and it's subject matter. Not tv stars and people with the means to get to NYC.

I’m not saying these protests are effective, but to paraphrase a line in “Corruption,” the new play currently at LCT, fighting corporate greed with this play and its subject matter is like fighting Goliath with a peashooter.

[kevinr]

Posted: 3/17/24 at 12:01pm

Was the stage door busy after the show?

[quizking101]

Posted: 3/17/24 at 2:22pm

The selection to go on stage was random and determined before the show. A representative gives people who consent to do so a card to come on. I was in the 400s section and all the patrons were drawn from there since that’s where the landing was to come on/off stage.

As for the stage door - busier than your average CITS stage door, but surprisingly not atrocious. The autograph hunters were there naturally but crew made it clear he was NOT signing anything from SUCCESSION. (Michael Imperioli signed someone’s “Sopranos” headshots but that’s his choice)

[FLarnhill]

Posted: 3/18/24 at 1:56am

quizking101 said: "The selection to go on stage was random and determined before the show. A representative gives people who consent to do so a card to come on. I was in the 400s section and all the patrons were drawn from there since that’s where the landing was to come on/off stage.

As for the stage door - busier than your average CITS stage door, but surprisingly not atrocious. The autograph hunters were there naturally but crew made it clear he was NOT signing anything from SUCCESSION. (Michael Imperioli signed someone’s “Sopranos” headshots but that’s his choice)"

That's odd. Succession was the project that gave him the opportunity to live out his dreams and people responded to him with undivided enthusiasm. I wonder what made him sick of it.

Updated On: 3/18/24 at 01:56 AM

[GiantsInTheSky2]

Posted: 3/18/24 at 6:45am

I mean, he devoted years of his life to that show and character. He did that work already. He’s allowed to want to move on, doesn’t mean he’s “sick” of it. 

I also imagine they don’t want to provide for those money hungry losers who see “oh, celebrity at this theater!”, wait outside with non-related memorabilia to be signed that they eventually sell on eBay for some ridiculous amount. I wouldn’t be any to feed into they either. 

[quizking101]

Posted: 3/18/24 at 11:28am

GiantsInTheSky2 said: "I mean, he devoted years of his life to that show and character. He did that work already. He’s allowed to want to move on, doesn’t mean he’s “sick” of it.

I also imagine they don’t want toprovide for those money hungry loserswho see “oh, celebrity at this theater!”,wait outside with non-related memorabilia to be signed thatthey eventually sell on eBay for some ridiculous amount. I wouldn’t be any to feed into they either."

Exactly this. All the SUCCESSION autograph hunters, which made up about 15% of the crowd, left when that was said.

Nobody is entitled to a stage door autograph to begin with and I can imagine it’s insulting to some if you just show up to a stage door with stuff from something other than the play to be signed and not having actually seen the play. People did this for PRIMA FACIE last year too

Updated On: 3/18/24 at 11:28 AM

[kevinr]

Posted: 3/18/24 at 5:01pm

Is there a windowcard yet?  I'm hoping to get one when I see the show mid April and get it signed if possible. Did either Michael or Jeremy take photos with anyone?

[quizking101]

Posted: 3/18/24 at 5:27pm

kevinr said: "Is there a windowcard yet? I'm hoping to get one when I see the show mid April and get it signed if possible. Did either Michael or Jeremy take photos with anyone?"

Yes there is and I think they mentioned no selfies but you could take pictures while they were signing just to keep it moving.

[JayElle]

Posted: 3/20/24 at 9:58pm

Where are they stage mooring in this theater?  Unfamiliar with location in this theater. Have tkts upcoming.  Tnx