MAYBE HAPPY ENDING Reviews- Page 20

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 9:08am

AC126748 said: ""At its core,Maybe Happy Endingis a story about the longing for connection and the complexities of being human (and Helperbot, and Vegetable) — universal themes that transcend all backgrounds. We’re proud to continue embracing infinite and exciting possibilities in casting, and to showcase this role as one that welcomes different interpretations and lived experiences. We’re so excited for what Andrew will bring to this next chapter and can’t wait to see who will plug into Oliver’s charger next."

-Will Aronson, Hue Park, and Michael Arden"

There’s something inherently wrong with your show’s dramaturgy if you have to release a statement like this one.

[n2nbaby]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 9:11am

Thrilled for Andrew! What a talent.

[Falsettolands]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 9:12am

GottaGetAGimmick420 said: "We are still allowed to be disappointed to not allow another Asian actor the opportunity to step into the role… it’s not like there aren’t plenty?"

I don't think either of the above posters were at all suggesting we aren't allowed to be disappointed. They were just providing context for this casting decision.

I still don't love this direction and the potential that these roles may soon be completely whitewashed, but I can't deny that their chemistry will be off the charts.

Updated On: 7/24/25 at 09:12 AM

[inception]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 9:14am

They need to anounce the cast for the holiday season.  I can understand why they don't if it is a bigger name - or Criss returning - as that might affect ticket sales.  They might also feel that sales for the holiday season will take care of themselves.

I debated seeing this again in November, but ultimately decided to go to something I haven't seen yet and bought for Just In Time, as budget options for that show were more limited - if you consider $179 a budget option.

[7thbighero]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 9:18am

Please god, don’t let this show get Great Cometed

[smidge2]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 9:18am

It’s

a

robot

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 9:20am

Call_me_jorge said: "AC126748 said: ""At its core,Maybe Happy Endingis a story about the longing for connection and the complexities of being human (and Helperbot, and Vegetable) — universal themes that transcend all backgrounds. We’re proud to continue embracing infinite and exciting possibilities in casting, and to showcase this role as one that welcomes different interpretations and lived experiences. We’re so excited for what Andrew will bring to this next chapter and can’t wait to see who will plug into Oliver’s charger next."

-Will Aronson, Hue Park, and Michael Arden"

There’s something inherently wrong with your show’s dramaturgy if you have to release a statement like this one."

Maybe there’s something inherently wrong with the people they know are going to have a problem with the casting, and they release a statement to forestall the inevitable ridiculous backlash. 

[Falsettolands]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 9:23am

smidge2 said: "It’s

a

robot"

and the Genie in Aladdin is a supernatural entity, but no one would think of casting a White actor in that (stage) role. It's about setting a historical precedent that opportunities can and should be afforded to Asian actors when so many other roles are relegated to white actors only.

The creators of this show are allowed to do whatever they want with their show. It's THEIR show. But there was a ripe opportunity here to provide two opportunities exclusively to Asian actors. And I think people have the right to be disappointed that they're moving away from that.

Updated On: 7/24/25 at 09:23 AM

[THDavis]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 9:24am

I feel like Criss is returning after that engagement, for some reason. Perhaps through the holidays?

[GottaGetAGimmick420]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 9:41am

Falsettolands said: "smidge2 said: "It’s

a

robot"

and the Genie in Aladdin is a supernatural entity, but no one would thinkof casting a Whiteactor in that (stage)role. It's about setting a historical precedent that opportunities can and should be afforded to Asian actors when so many other roles are relegated to white actors only.

The creators of this show are allowed to do whatever they want with their show. It's THEIR show. But there was a ripe opportunity here to provide two opportunities exclusively to Asian actors. And I think people have the right to be disappointed that they're moving away from that."

Releasing the PR statement and having all the producers put the development timeline photos on their stories and pages this morning to show "hey! we had other actors of other colors playing these roles! but creatively we decided to move away from that until we won our awards and it was time to get butts in seats, so no more asian actors!" ... you start to feel a certain way. I mean, they clearly anticipated this backlash... 

And i hate to say it -- but this is such a clear move by white producers. This is what happens when white people produce shows about people of color. Every time.

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 9:53am

“This is what happens when white people produce shows about people of color. Every time.”

Please list those times. 

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:11am

I agree that it's disappointing they wouldn't give this opportunity to an Asian actor, when there aren't exactly a lot of lead roles for Asian actors on Broadway.

But I also don't think it's a stretch within the context of the show. The idea that someone who's as big of a fan of a white jazz singer and steeped in white culture as Oliver's former owner would want a white-appearing robot to be his servant/best friend is believable. Even without the specific context of Oliver's owner, or when a non-white understudy is on as Brentley, the idea that a company catering to East Asian consumers would initially create robots that appear white...not far-fetched at all. 

Updated On: 7/24/25 at 10:11 AM

[AC126748]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:15am

Helperbots are viewed as an underclass in Korean society within the context of the show, so it makes a certain dramaturgical sense that they wouldn't look interchangeable to humans.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:18am

I don't believe the character is ever mentioned as a "Asian robot" in the show.

[MayAudraBlessYou2]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:21am

Aladdin is a terrible comparison to make here. That show, which is set on the Arabian peninsula and is therefore about Middle Eastern people, is FULL of white actors. The title character was originally played by Adam Jacobs, who is Filipino and white. Jasmine was originally played by Courtney Reed who is Vietnamese and white. Aladdin's three friends were played by white and Latino actors. I haven't seen the same amount of outrage towards this show, which continues to frequently not cast Middle Eastern actors in these roles.

I'm already over the knee jerk reactions on social media. I saw an Instagram comment from some woman saying she hoped what happened to The Great Comet didn't happen to this show...except she was saying it as in "I hope they don't start casting white people in these roles." (I guess folks STILL don't recognize that Pierre was originated by a white guy and that ALL the roles in the production were designed to be played by actors of any race). What's more likely is that the immediate furor online gets picked up by major media and causes a controversy that hurts the show, just like Comet. Except this role is a ROBOT. The creators have signed off on the casting. And obviously the producing team feels like they need someone with a fanbase in one of the lead roles. Andrew Barth Feldman has 226K insta followers. If you want an Asian actor cast, great! Who would you suggest if it needs to be someone who is a known quantity? Telly Leung? Conrad Ricamora? What happens when one of those Asian Broadway actors with a following is busy and scheduling doesn't work out? OR they simply don't want to play this role or be a replacement? 9 weeks is a short contract for a long-running musical, so this reads as "we needed to fill a gap." So why not go with Shen's real-life partner Feldman? He has a decent sized following and the relationship gives the marketing and PR team a built-in selling point. And the creators have okayed it! oy y'all.

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:22am

MemorableUserName said: "I agree that it's disappointing they wouldn't give this opportunity to an Asian actor, when there aren't exactly a lot of lead roles for Asian actors on Broadway."

What lead roles CAN’T an Asian person play on Broadway right now? I saw an Asian Aaron Burr. I saw an Asian Christine Daae. I saw Sara Porkalob in 1776. I saw multiple Asians leading Here Lies Love. I saw Asians leading Miss Saigon less than a decade ago. I saw Asians in Godspell in 2012. I saw an Asian in Come From Away. I saw an Asian as Princess Jasmine. I saw an Asian cover as Velma Kelly while an Asian played Amos Hart. I saw an Asian Abe Lincoln in Oh Mary. And an Asian just won a Tony Award for playing Norma Desmond. 

Please tell me what roles are absolutely unavailable to Asian performers right now.

THIS SH!T GOT OLD LAST WEEK. 

Updated On: 7/24/25 at 10:22 AM

[Falsettolands]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:23am

MayAudraBlessYou2 said: "Aladdin is a terrible comparison to make here. That show, which is set on the Arabian peninsula and is therefore about Middle Eastern people, is FULL of white actors. The title character was originally played by Adam Jacobs, who is Filipino and white. Jasmine was originally played by Courtney Reed who is Vietnamese and white. Aladdin's three friends were played by white and Latino actors. I haven't seen the same amount of outrage towards this show, which continues to frequently not cast Middle Eastern actors in these roles.

I'm already over the knee jerk reactions on social media. I saw an Instagram comment from some woman saying she hoped what happened to The Great Comet didn't happen to this show...except she was saying it as in "I hope they don't start casting white people in these roles." (I guess folks STILL don't recognize that Pierre was originated by a white guy and that ALL the roles in the production were designed to be played by actors of any race). What's more likely is that the immediate furor online gets picked up by major media and causes a controversy that hurts the show, just like Comet. Except this role is a ROBOT. The creators have signed off on the casting. And obviously the producing team feels like they need someone with a fanbase in one of the lead roles. Andrew Barth Feldman has 226K insta followers. If you want an Asian actor cast, great! Who would you suggest if it needs to be someone who is a known quantity? Telly Leung? Conrad Ricamora? What happens when one of those Asian Broadway actors with a following is busy and scheduling doesn't work out? OR they simply don't want to play this role or be a replacement? 9 weeks is a short contractfor a long-running musical, so this reads as "we needed to fill a gap." So why not go with Shen's real-life partner Feldman? He has a decent sized following and the relationship gives the marketing and PR team a built-in selling point. And the creators have okayed it! oy y'all."

So tell me, would you be completely fine with a white genie? I'm asking earnestly.

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:26am

^ I would be okay with that. A white Genie cover went on in Australia and played it more like Robin Williams. 

[Falsettolands]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:28am

BorisTomashevsky said: "^ I would be okay with that. A white Genie cover went on in Australia and played it more like Robin Williams."

And do you believe that outrage from Black artists would be justified? Once again, just asking in earnest.

[pagereynolds]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:31am

This was an incredibly poor choice, and they seem to be paying the price on social media.

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:32am

Falsettolands said: "BorisTomashevsky said: "^ I would be okay with that. A white Genie cover went on in Australia and played it more like Robin Williams."

And do you believe that outrage from Black artists would be justified? Once again, just asking in earnest."

I believe outrage from actual genies or specters or apparitions or ghosts MIGHT be justified. Any races that have a problem with it have no argument. 

[pagereynolds]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:35am

BorisTomashevsky said: "MemorableUserName said: "I agree that it's disappointing they wouldn't give this opportunity to an Asian actor, when there aren't exactly a lot of lead roles for Asian actors on Broadway."

What lead roles CAN’T an Asian person play on Broadway right now? I saw an Asian Aaron Burr. I saw an Asian Christine Daae. I saw Sara Porkalob in 1776. I saw multiple Asians leading Here Lies Love. I saw Asians leading Miss Saigon less than a decade ago. I saw Asians in Godspell in 2012. I saw an Asian in Come From Away. I saw an Asian as Princess Jasmine. I saw an Asian cover as Velma Kelly while an Asian played Amos Hart. I saw an Asian Abe Lincoln in Oh Mary.And an Asian just won a Tony Award for playingNorma Desmond.

Please tell me what roles are absolutely unavailable to Asian performers right now.

THIS SH!T GOT OLD LAST WEEK."

You saw an Asian in Come From Away? Like, one? Why are you using this as an example?

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:37am

^ It was an Asian actor in a lead role based on an actual person who was white in real life. I think it’s valid to use this as an example of lead roles that have been played by Asian performers. 

Updated On: 7/24/25 at 10:37 AM

[pagereynolds]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:38am

BorisTomashevsky said: "^ It was an Asian actor in a lead role based on an actual person who was white in real life. I think it’s valid to use this example."

I mean, that's more understandable than what you originally said.

[Falsettolands]

Posted: 7/24/25 at 10:39am

BorisTomashevsky said: "Falsettolands said: "BorisTomashevsky said: "^ I would be okay with that. A white Genie cover went on in Australia and played it more like Robin Williams."

And do you believe that outrage from Black artists would be justified? Once again, just asking in earnest."

I believe outrage from actual genies or specters or apparitions or ghosts MIGHT be justified. Any races that have a problem with it have no argument."

Interesting. Thank you!