Equity and Equality on Broadway- Page 2

[JSquared2]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 6:07pm

Well, this NEW thread sure didn't take long to go completely off the rails and into Batsh*t Crazyland!

[Matt Rogers]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 6:12pm

JSquared2 said: "Well, this NEW thread sure didn't take long to go completely off the rails and into Batsh*t Crazyland!"

What do you expect with two ranting lunatic racists posting nonstop nonsense and others willing to call them out on their garbage? 

[Seb28]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 6:21pm

Matt Rogers said: "Oh congratulations. You used the term “woke mob” again. There is nothing wrong with being woke, fool. It means awake. It means you are paying attention. I’d rather associate with people who are awake and paying attention than with brain dead morons who don’t have a clue about anything and just vomit b*llsh*t all over a Broadway chat board from morning till night."

You live in the past. You might think that's what it still means. Today it means: Being fast asleep.

Let me know when you become capable of typing subject-related replies too.

[Matt Rogers]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 6:32pm

Seb28 said: "Matt Rogers said: "Oh congratulations. You used the term “woke mob” again. There is nothing wrong with being woke, fool. It means awake. It means you are paying attention. I’d rather associate with people who are awake and paying attention than with brain dead morons who don’t have a clue about anything and just vomit b*llsh*t all over a Broadway chat board from morning till night."

You live in the past. You might think that's what it still means. Today it means: Being fast asleep.

Let me know when you become capable of typing subject-related replies too."

Take a seat fool. 

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 6:39pm

Matt Rogers said: "JSquared2 said: "Well, this NEW thread sure didn't take long to go completely off the rails and into Batsh*t Crazyland!"

What do you expect with two ranting lunatic racists posting nonstop nonsense and others willing to call them out on their garbage?"

Tell me a name I’ve called you.

I’ll wait. 

[Highland Guy]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 6:47pm

Seb28 said: "You live in the past."

Hush now, Seb.  Hush.

 

Updated On: 9/3/25 at 06:47 PM

[Seb28]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 7:13pm

Matt Rogers said: "Seb28 said: "Let me know when you become capable of typing subject-related replies too."

Take a seat fool."

I'll wait.

[John Adams]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 7:23pm

Seb28 said: "these guidelines are being abused by the dazed "woke" mob currently attacking MHE."

I don't agree with your characterization of a 'dazed "woke" mob'. Nothing about their expressed POVs are indicative of "dazed" or mob-like in any way.

HOWEVER (and get ready to plotz yourself...) I'm not completely on board with any insistence that either of the two lead actors must be Asian/Pacific Islander. I agree with the folks online who point out that the characters are robots, not humans. Robots do not possess an ethnicity.

I can see how an argument could be made that the robots would likely possess physical characteristics that match the image of their owner (like a GOD complex kind of thing). I could also imagine that depending on where the robots were manufactured, they might possess physical characteristics of their country of origin (does the show specifically mention whether/not the robots were made in Korea? ...I dunno). A third possibility is that like REAL DOLLS (don't ask me why I know this...), the buyer might have options at the time of purchase regarding hairstyle, facial characteristics, etc.

So... yeah For me, any argument that the robots HAVE to be Asian/Pacific Islander isn't valid.

There is one argument in favor of specifically casting Andrew Barth Feldman that trumps any reason to cast another  actor: Feldman and his co-star, Helen J. Shen are dating in real life.

Those two are uniquely qualified to bring their authentic relationship onstage with them every night. Isn't that a unique draw that audiences want to see? ....Similar to Burton/Taylor in "...Virginia Woolf", Broderick/Parker in "Plaza Suite", the various stunt-cast couples in "Love Letters" and "I Do! I Do!", etc....

The main characters in MHE are not humans. They are not Korean. It is a bit off-center to insist that they be cast as if they are. Andrew Barth Feldman is a fine actor and this show is not "Miss Saigon". Let the lovebirds do their jobs without harassment.

[Matt Rogers]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 7:24pm

BorisTomashevsky said: "Matt Rogers said: "JSquared2 said: "Well, this NEW thread sure didn't take long to go completely off the rails and into Batsh*t Crazyland!"

What do you expect with two ranting lunatic racists posting nonstop nonsense and others willing to call them out on their garbage?"

Tell me a name I’ve called you.

I’ll wait."

MAGA trash doesn’t like it when they are called out. Waaaaaaahhhhhhh!!!

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 7:30pm

Matt you’ve been on this site for 21 years. So you’re at the very least 30. But I’m gonna guess you’re 45 or above. 

WOW. 

[Matt Rogers]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 7:31pm

BorisTomashevsky said: "Matt you’ve been on this site for 21 years. So you’re at the very least 30. But I’m gonna guess you’re 45 or above.

WOW."

What does that have to do with anything you racist freak show? 

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 7:40pm

BorisTomashevsky, I sometimes agree with what you post. However, you post SO MUCH and you are so frequently hostile in what you write that you drown yourself out.

Look, I’m a middle aged white guy so who cares what I think about DEI, etc. But I will say this: perhaps, after 2020, the pendulum has swung a bit too far in a certain direction. 

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 7:40pm

“Those two are uniquely qualified to bring their authentic relationship onstage with them every night.“

This raises an interesting angle for me which I know has been broached for years but not necessarily with the ABF situation, which has mostly been about “jobs and opportunities.”

How authentic do we need or want our experiences to be? Yes it’s very nice that they get to be onstage together, but maybe I’d believe or be more enchanted by Andrew and Kimoko than I would be by Andrew and Helen. 

If I want to see relationship authenticity in front of me, I’ll look at a couple sitting on a park bench.

I’d much rather see people working at creating that reality than just showing up and “plug & play”. After all, acting is being truthful under imaginary circumstances. Do I want to see a South African do a perfect French accent more than I want to see a Frenchman do a perfect French accent? Yes. 

Would it be more impressive to see someone from Australia who hasn’t met a Jew in his life play a perfect Tevye, than to see an Israeli play a perfect Tevye? I think so. 

But the color of one’s skin is the one thing that we don’t suspend our disbelief over. 

[John Adams]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 7:42pm

I have no purpose for this post other than to provide a very short breather from the thread. Keep in mind that it shouldn’t take but barely a minute to skim this post, especially if you keep in mind that the second you’re done skimming, the ‘breather’ is completely over.

I'm watching Collection 8 E3 of The Great British Balking Show on HULU. A new season is coming soon, so I'm “pre-gaming".

Skip this if you want to:

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

 It's "Bread Week" and they're making soda breads; one sweet and one savory. And this is Britain, so they don’t eat like we do. We pretty much stick to cows, chickens and pigs (occasionally fish). They have a lot of good recipes for mutton, and some of the oldest recipes for pre-America “puddings” that can sometimes walk a very fine line between sweet and savory. I’d never heard of cardamom until TGBBS. They call rainbow bagels, “Happy Bread”. (Is that coded?) and  9½“ is described as “respectable”.

I like how they draw a very heavy line between flavor and texture. The judges take the time to judge each of those two components separately, so it’s not uncommon to give high praise for flavor, but critique the texture. The hosts do mention repeatedly that flavor should take precedence. That’s why you hear the question, “But how does it taste?” asked so often.

If you've never seen the show, do a search on it. This is what AI generates in answer to my DuckDuckGo search:
"Contestants on The Great British Bake Off often share a calm demeanor and resilience under pressure, which helps them navigate the high-stakes environment of the competition."

The rumors you may have heard (or not heard, yet) about the show and its contestants are true. This show lowers my blood pressure and boosts my faith in civility.

Breather is  over. Fight if you must, but when you get the urge to insult, take a breather and go watch The Great British Balking Show on HULU. 

Updated On: 9/3/25 at 07:42 PM

[JSquared2]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 9:33pm

Matt Rogers said: "JSquared2 said: "Well, this NEW thread sure didn't take long to go completely off the rails and into Batsh*t Crazyland!"

What do you expect with two ranting lunatic racists posting nonstop nonsense and others willing to call them out on their garbage?"

 

You’re just as bad as those other 2 fools. You don’t have to take the bait and respond EVERY single time. 

[Matt Rogers]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 9:41pm

JSquared2 said: "Matt Rogers said: "JSquared2 said: "Well, this NEW thread sure didn't take long to go completely off the rails and into Batsh*t Crazyland!"

What do you expect with two ranting lunatic racists posting nonstop nonsense and others willing to call them out on their garbage?"



You’re just as bad as those other 2 fools. You don’t have to take the bait and respond EVERY single time."

Yeah: I do. And I will. Because I hate MAGA morons. I hate white supremacist wanna be’s. And I hate racists, especially racists in sheep’s clothing. I will call these two jsckasses out every time and if you don’t like that, slap that ignore button. 

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 9:46pm

So lemme get this straight Matt. You hate a certain group because they supposedly hate others. Is that correct? 

[TheQuibbler]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 9:57pm

BorisTomashevsky said: "So lemme get this straight Matt.You hate a certain group because they supposedly hate others. Is that correct?"
 

All of Boris’s responses are basically this:

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 9:59pm

Just call me Hypocrisy Accountability Man. 

[Highland Guy]

Posted: 9/3/25 at 10:13pm

John Adams said: "This show lowers my blood pressure and boosts my faith in civility.."

I haven't watched this show since Dame Mary Berry left.  Both Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood (love those names !) reminded me of many happy days living in Scotland and visiting London while stationed onboard a U.S. Navy ship in Scotland in the 1960's.  Maybe it's time (past time) to start watching again.

There is much to be said for civility.  Thanks for the reminder.

[Seb28]

Posted: 9/4/25 at 6:17am

The Distinctive Baritone said: "BorisTomashevsky, I sometimes agree with what you post. ...frequently hostile in what you write that you drown yourself out."

I have never seen him writing hostile things. He is always on point, stable and reasonable. Perhaps you can't handle the truth or a joke at times?

There is a whole flock of hostile beasts on the rampage on the board, swearing, screaming insults, and worst of all, deliberately ruining equity and equality. He is just exposing their hypocrisy at times. Which makes them squirm even harder.

It is very peculiar to me that you don't call them out. It's like you felt addressed by the age remark. Because let's be real, Matt Rogers behaves like an 8 year old with a tantrum.

The Distinctive Baritone said: "Look, I’m a middle aged white guy so who cares what I think about DEI, etc. But I will say this: perhaps, after 2020, the pendulum has swung a bit too far in a certain direction."

You are VERY right here. It has indeed. It is forced and equity and equality do no longer exist because of it. And we don't even complain about it. Our only request is to stop attacking the 1 white role in a 90%+ asian cast.

Matt Rogers said: "garbage!!....Lunatics!.....Sit down fools!!....You are trash!!....I hate white...You are a freakshow!!...Morons!!!...Jackasses!!! "

Poor guy. I want to apologize for speaking to you like you were an adult before.

BorisTomashevsky said: "This raises an interesting angle for me which I know has been broached for years but not necessarily with the ABF situation, which has mostly been about “jobs and opportunities.”

How authentic do we need or want our experiences to be? Yes it’s very nice that they get to be onstage together, but maybe I’d believe or be more enchanted by Andrew and Kimoko than I would be by Andrew and Helen.

I’d much rather see people working at creating that reality than just showing up and “plug & play”. After all, acting is being truthful under imaginary circumstances. 

But the color of one’s skin is the one thing that we don’t suspend our disbelief over."

An interesting point indeed. I think it's a worrying tendency that casting is becoming more and more like this. That actors are only allowed to play things that they are in real life. Because where is the limit? Do you eventually have to be a real carpenter, murderer, chess champion, homosexual, autististic person, pilot, narcissist, wheelchair user or broccoli lover to play one?

About your last point, it also seems that this is a one-way street unfortunately. We have been doing it for years, suspending our disbelief. But the other way around, such as 1 white role in a 90%+ asian cast in MHE seems to be too much to ask. Even when the role description says: "All ethnicities". And "Robot". That double standard is truly racist.

Updated On: 9/4/25 at 06:17 AM

[Dreamboy3]

Posted: 9/4/25 at 7:45am

JSquared2 said: "Well, this NEW thread sure didn't take long to go completely off the rails and into Batsh*t Crazyland!"

Actually, I think this thread should be re-titled “THIS THREAD IS FOR BORIS AND SEB TO POST REACTIONARY PLATITUDINOUS COMMENTS USING FOX NEWS TALKING POINTS”. 

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 9/4/25 at 7:49am

I sincerely thank you Seb, that’s much appreciated and motivating to read (and the same could all likewise be said for you).

Your end point about the suspension of disbelief being a one way street rings so true for me, and I can only put it down to wishing such little ill-will on “the other races” that it didn’t occur to me that yes, Hamilton has us suspending our disbelief entirely - and the recent 1776 revival even more so. And these shows come and go and have their space, and I personally don’t give them a second thought in terms of “what’s being taken away!!!”

But that’s where the one way street has its dead end. Suspension of disbelief applied with racist tendencies, I guess.

 

Baritone, thank you for saying that you agree with some of what I say. I appreciate that. I wonder though if “hostility” is in the eye of the beholders around here. To some people, simply being ‘disagreed with’ feels like hostility from the other side. But like an actor who only wants to believe good performance reviews and ignores the bad - if someone takes up a cause, they must accept that they’ll be disagreed with, and that the ‘other side’ might be ready to hold on even longer. (I’m not saying this is you - but in general about anyone that expresses frustration that I don’t let go, or that I exist at all.)

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 9/4/25 at 8:04am

Dreamboy3 said: "JSquared2 said: "Well, this NEW thread sure didn't take long to go completely off the rails and into Batsh*t Crazyland!"

Actually, I think this thread should be re-titled “THIS THREAD IS FOR BORIS AND SEB TO POST REACTIONARY PLATITUDINOUS COMMENTS USING FOX NEWS TALKING POINTS”."

The louder you yell, the more flimsy your point. And it wasn’t even a point to begin with. Argue the argument, don’t comment on the argument. 

[Seb28]

Posted: 9/4/25 at 10:06am

BorisTomashevsky said: "I sincerely thank you Seb, that’s much appreciated and motivating to read (and the same could all likewisebe said for you)."

Thanks Boris. True character shines through, even on a message board like this.

BorisTomashevsky said: "Your end point about the suspension of disbelief being a one way street rings so true for me, and I can only put it down to wishing such little ill-will on “the other races” that it didn’t occur to me that yes, Hamilton has us suspending our disbelief entirely - and the recent 1776 revival even more so. And these shows come and go and have their space, and I personally don’t give them a second thought in terms of “what’s being taken away!!!”
 

But that’s where the one way street has its dead end. Suspension of disbelief applied with racist tendencies, I guess."
 

Yes, the one-way street definitely has a dead end. And it truly is suspension of disbelief applied with racist tendencies. The conclusion is that even when nearly all Broadway shows have a poc majority and more and more shows even consist of a 90%+ poc cast (Hamilton, MHE) nobody actually really complains about it. There is space for all of it. This shows a huge compliance, open-mindedness and absence of racial judgement on that side. The actual complaints and attacks come from the poc side, whenever there is 1 last white person left, they need to be erased, as we see in the MHE attacks now. So it goes even further, which changes things. Not celebrating the majority and acceptance, but attacking. The question is, when will they celebrate? This dead end and these attacks are the point of this discussion. Let's keep fighting and teach people that equity starts when people understand it is a 2-way street.

BorisTomashevsky said: "Baritone, thank you for saying that you agree with some of what I say. I appreciate that. I wonder though if “hostility” is in the eye of the beholders around here. To some people, simply being ‘disagreed with’ feels like hostility from the other side. But like an actor who only wants to believe good performance reviews and ignores the bad - if someone takes up a cause, they must accept that they’ll be disagreed with, and that the ‘other side’ might be ready to hold on even longer. (I’m not saying this is you - but in general about anyone that expresses frustration that I don’t let go, or that I exist at all.)"

Perfectly explained. I wanted to address this problem for a while too but could never explain it this well. Thank you.

Dreamboy3 said: "REACTIONARY PLATITUDINOUS COMMENTS"

The fact that you do not understand the subject or simply don't like to hear about the facts doesn't make it platitudinous. It needs to be repeated until you understand it.

Updated On: 9/4/25 at 10:06 AM