Honeymoon in Vegas Reviews — Page 5

I'm not insisting That anyone's wrong about perceiving this show as offensive. I don't find it so and I'm asking for details from those who have been offended as to why they find it so, beyond restating a story point. To me, the show doesn't treat Betsy as a chit. A character does. Is West Side Story racist because racial epithets are tossed around?

People need to stop being so friggin thin skinned

Give me a break.

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Neither do you

If you or your friends find it so offensive, send letters to the composer c/o the theater stating your displeasure. I as a PONC do not find it offensive

I am Irish and care not about the flood of Irish jokes be it On St Patricks day or any other day. I am not so thin skinned things like this bother me.

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Updated On: 1/30/15 at 11:16 PM

"I'll be happy to write Mr. Brown a letter."

You want to put a petition on Change.org too? Get 10,000 signatures telling the creative team of Honeymoon that you find their show offensive and demand that they cease and desist?

Get over it.

Updated On: 1/30/15 at 11:42 PM

Zanna

Last time I heard there is still a thing called free speech. We are losing more and more of that right day by day. You call me racist and because I am white , I have lesser rights than you. Sorry but that ain't gonna fly pal. By saying I have no voice because I am white, you show who the real racist is.


Send your letters. By the time he gets them the show will be closed. You can than puff out your chest and be proud you had a hand in it closing and putting people out of work. You really won't but I say it to make you feel better

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I'm a person who loves to joke just about anything/everything WITH THAT BEING SAID...

I don't believe racism, sexism, homophobia, etc are things we should be ignoring or "getting over." Once these things don't have serious effects on our society (and if you don't think they are alive & well, then good for you for keeping your head up your ass) THEN, maybe.

Until then, they're not always just jokes, especially if it's coming from a form of media. They're real to a lot of people, and whether you can relate or understand is not the point. People of privilege don't get to tell oppressed people what is or what isn't offensive. That's not how the game works. You have no credentials that give you the understanding.

The trick of "speaking ON the stereotype" is that we don't live in a world where that is clear. There are so many people who see stereotypes and racist portrayals of people in media and go, "ahahahaha, oh my god, that's so true!", make similar jokes in real life, and so it continues.

Who the hell is a white person (and I'm a white guy, so don't act like I'm seeing it from a different angle) that they feel they have enough understanding or right to tell someone to "get over it"? You don't have the hurdles/issues/prejudice/harassment/etc these people do. That's incredibly ignorant.

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No reverse racism?

OK I have now heard it all. This conversation is like pissing up a rope. I suggest we all go to bed as this is getting us nowhere . None of us will change our views so let us leave it at that .

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ZannaDo, why the need to position my sensibility as potentially so far gone it may be beyond change? My question is pretty simple I think. "Is West Side Story racist because racial epithets are tossed around? "

You write, "Do you genuinely believe that's a valid comparison? Because, if so, you may never understand." I didn't compare the shows as if they had the same message or used potentially offensive material to the same ends.but even if I did, you really think that might make me irredeemable?

Let's leave racism off the table and stick to sexism for my question. Do you or others here think the production treats Betsy as worthy of how her fiancée treats her?

Updated On: 1/31/15 at 12:15 AM

15minutecall,
I think the fact that you'd compare a show like WSS that very clearly shows the real, human cost racism has and compare it to what is being discussed about HMiV is concerning, yes. Maybe it doesn't make you irredeemable, but it certainly is revealing of a certain level of ignorance. If you're willing to learn and want to understand why the racial issues here are so insulting and complex, then that's a fantastic step forward.

I agree with GiantsIntheSky2 100%, especially on the insane notion that is "reverse racism". I don't think anything should be shoved "off the table" as this thread is about the show in general, but I'm certainly going to tag out.

as a POC I found nothing wrong with the token characters in the show. The actors were given material and excelled in selling it to the audience. They're probably feeling grateful to have material to perform, even as token characters. As a POC performer, I can tell you that as "real" as west side story is, it's us sharks who still spend most of the show offstage while there's 6 white guys who have lines and only 3 of us that sort of do.

I agree w your post MrJ but, at the risk of antagonizing you, why are they "token" characters? They're character roles, sure. But they don't seem included out of some obligation of diversity.
Everyone here, except arguably Betsy, is a stereotype. Even the lead is a "guilt ridden Momma's boy." It also seems, in the writing but not in the playing, that he's a Jewish guit-ridden Momma's boy in love with a shiksa.
The Hawaiian characters at least knowingly present themselves as types as they sing send-ups of songs that purport to be traditional but are only Western Ideas of traditional songs. I can understand people finding these moments offensive, but for me it's primarily because the non-offensive aim isn't carried out with enough cleverness or the characters given enough agency of their own to make it worth the risk of giving offense.

I think it needs to stop being about thickness of skin, and I think that's really reductive to say. Just because someone finds something offensive, degrading, or hurtful doesn't mean they have thin skin. That's really, really condescending and flat out wrong. Different people with different lived experiences find different things offensive for various reasons and it doesn't make anyone "thin skinned".

Uy. Just because he wrote some have thicker skin doesn't mean those who don't are thin-skinned. Maybe he thinks their skin is adequately layered. But he seems to respect the people who are willing to sigh, wish things were better, and maybe even respect and enjoy this work. Are you offended that other people of color may not find the material offensive?