Oak Speaks out on great comet controversy- Page 2

[BroadwayConcierge]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:29pm

His quote alleging that Great Comet didn’t take the time to cultivate diversity makes my blood boil. What an asshat.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:30pm

I can't wait for Cynthia Erivo to weigh in. 

[AllThatJazz2]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:33pm

Wow. Just...wow. 

[ladypresent]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:34pm

Evreyone calm down...his point is this:

there is a difference of putting a black man into a white role and making a show about black or minorities. 
ie: carousel is using a "gimmick" (oak's words) by casting a black man in the role of billy bigelow. That is the gimmick and selling point of the show. There is almost no other reason to cast a black man in this role than the gimmick and the selling of tix and Scott Rudin knows this. Josh Henry is incredibly talented, im not saying he isn't and will perform the hell out of this (probably), but the GIMMICK of him being black in a role that has ALWAYS been played by a white man will sell tix and as such ...GImmick. 

Right now black actors and minorities are being used primarily as Gimmicks to get press or sell tx. Norm Lewis as the "first black man to play the phantom!! come see it!!" (eh..)

Ali Ewoldt is the first phillipino person to play christine come see it!! (she is the best christine i have ever seen. They should have hired her years ago)

until the actor who is hired is not seen as a gimmick to sell tix, we are deluding ourselves that race is still not an issue. So what oak is saying is that until we are done with the gimmick of this...we won't be able to move on and just cast racially blind casting or create art for just art. 

(watch....in 8..12..20  years when Hamiltion starts to slow down they will re cast the whole thing white and have king george be black and people will ooh and ahh about the amazing artistic choice)

its like doing a 1776 with all women. gimmick
its like doing hamlet with a woman as hamlet...gimmick. 

although i don't know if the "gimmick" works inversely.

   Like if you had an all white once on this island i bet people would lose their minds and protest. Or if there was a white Lion King. I think it only works if the minority takes over the presumed constant majority's job. You wouldn't see it flipped because the PC police would go nuts 

[JIMG3]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:37pm

I’d like the address and location, of the world he lives in. He needs to spend more time learning his craft, and less time making a complete ass of himself. 

[newintown]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:39pm

I find that I have no interest reading posts that being with "Everyone calm down," even more so when "Everyone" is misspelled.

Updated On: 10/4/17 at 12:39 PM

[BroadwayConcierge]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:39pm

JIMG3 said: "I’d like the address and location, of the world he lives in. He needs to spend more time learning his craft, and less time making a complete ass of himself."

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:42pm

newintown said: "I find that I have no interest reading posts that being with "Everyone calm down," even more so when "Everyone" is misspelled."

And... "phillipino"?!

[Kad]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:45pm

...the selling point of the Carousel revival is a black Billy? Huh?

I thought the selling point of the Carousel revival is the fact it's Carousel.

Updated On: 10/4/17 at 12:45 PM

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:46pm

ladypresent said: "Evreyone calm down...his point is this:

there is a difference of putting a black man into a white role and making a show about black or minorities.
ie: carousel is using a "gimmick" (oak's words) by casting a black man in the role of billy bigelow. That is the gimmick and selling point of the show. There is almost no other reason to cast a black man in this role than the gimmick and the selling of tix and Scott Rudin knows this. Josh Henry is incredibly talented, im not saying he isn't and will perform the hell out of this (probably), but the GIMMICK of him being black in a role that has ALWAYS been played by a white man will sell tix and as such ...GImmick."

I...feel like if anyone is going to see Carousel because of anything related to Josh Henry, it's because they like Josh Henry. My mom wants to see Carousel and she has no idea who is in it.

 

Also please stop using the word gimmick.

[BroadwayConcierge]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:47pm

ladypresent said: "There is almost no other reason to cast a black man in this role than the gimmick and the selling of tix"

Please show me one single advertisement where they've drawn attention to the fact that Billy Bigelow will be black. Just one.

[AC126748]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:52pm

And I am curious as to how he would define 'cultivation of diversity.' What does that mean? 

Hiring Oak Onaodowan, of course.

[fashionguru_23]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:54pm

Can some clarify for me? I never understood why there was such a big uproar over Oak's casting. I never thought replacing him with Patinkin was a comment on race. I don't really understand how race got called into it.

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:56pm

Wasn’t the gimmick of hiring oak was that he was apart of Hamilton? I think It was oak himself who brought the idea of race into it. 

Also, I agree. I hate gimmick. It sounds and looks ugly.

[JIMG3]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:57pm

“Can some clarify for me? I never understood why there was such a big uproar over Oak's casting. I never thought replacing him with Patinkin was a comment on race. I don't really understand how race got called into it.”

Ask Cynthia Erivo.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Updated On: 10/4/17 at 12:57 PM

[MCfan2]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 12:59pm

Scarywarhol said: "It's also extremely dismissive of Denee's contribution to the show (as a title character!) to act as though it didn't mean something until he stepped into Pierre. "

Yes. This. 

[ScottyDoesn'tKnow2]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 1:15pm

That was a seriously annoying read no matter where you stood on this (except for those mindless social media folks who have quick fingers) or what your opinions were on how this whole discussion happened here and elsewhere.

[KathyNYC2]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 1:17pm

BroadwayConcierge said: "ladypresent said: "There is almost no other reason to cast a black man in this role than the gimmick and the selling of tix"

Please show me one single advertisement where they've drawn attention to the fact that Billy Bigelow will be black. Just one."


Just YES.

I mean if we are upset about his race comments just think how the extremely multi racial cast of Comet must feel.Ugh. I guess the jobs are not rolling in. 

Updated On: 10/4/17 at 01:17 PM

[gypsy101]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 1:18pm

@ladypresent: isn’t really all casting a gimmick to sell tickets? that’s why people produce theater.

[kade.ivy]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 1:21pm

LOL 

Great Comet obviously cultivated him, if he is the poster child for diversity on Broadway who sacrificed himself at its altar, giving him more time and lessening his instrumental requirements. 

 

[ScottyDoesn'tKnow2]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 1:22pm

@ladypresent, I want to sympathize with your viewpoint, but I find your whole post to be confusing to read and not sure what your point is. How is the casting of Joshua Henry as Billy Bigelow more of a gimmick than hiring Oak in Natasha, Pierre, etc. using your logic? How hasn't the Great Comet cultivated a culture of diversity? I'm asking the latter question of someone who is familiar with the trend of false appearances of diversity in the corporate world for PR reasons that lack substance.

I tried sympathizing with Oak throughout this ordeal, but he comes off badly here. 

Updated On: 10/4/17 at 01:22 PM

[ChildofEarth]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 1:30pm

I wish Oak would have come to the last show. I wish he would have seen Denee struggling to get through the final songs, or Rachel having to put her hands over her face or Dave sobbing as the comet shone one last time, or the ensemble shaking and hugging each other between numbers, or the bartender wiping away a tear, or the ushers handing Kleenex to each other.

Thank god for twitters that name when an understudy is going on because I will be using that next time he’s in a show.

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 1:36pm

"Norm Lewis as the "first black man to play the phantom!! come see it!!"

Actually Norm Lewis was the first black Phantom and he sold a crap ton of tickets because he was the real deal. It is sad that Oak does address the concerns the creative were having with his level of preparedness. It's all finger pointing. He's deluded because he was associated with Hamilton.

 

[adamgreer]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 1:41pm

ladypresent said: "Evreyone calm down...his point is this:

there is a difference of putting a black man into a white role and making a show about black or minorities.
ie: carousel is using a "gimmick" (oak's words) by casting a black man in the role of billy bigelow. That is the gimmick and selling point of the show. There is almost no other reason to cast a black man in this role than the gimmick and the selling of tix and Scott Rudin knows this. Josh Henry is incredibly talented, im not saying he isn't and will perform the hell out of this (probably), but the GIMMICK of him being black in a role that has ALWAYS been played by a white man will sell tix and as such ...GImmick.

Maybe he was cast because he was the best person for the role? Most people buying tickets to this revival of Carousel have no clue who is in the cast.  They're simply buying tickets to a revival of a popular Rodgers and Hammerstein show. Where and when has the show advertised that they have a "black Billy"? I've seen no press release or ads or anything to that effect.

Right now black actors and minorities are being used primarily as Gimmicks to get press or sell tx. Norm Lewis as the "first black man to play the phantom!! come see it!!" (eh..)

Where was this publicized? I don't think the tourists buying tickets to Phantom care who the Phantom is or what his ethnicity is.

Ali Ewoldt is the first phillipinoperson to play christine come see it!! (she is the best christine i have ever seen. They should have hired her years ago)
 

Again, you really think the people seeing Phantom these days care?  Where is this ad campaign advertising a Filipino Christine? Please show us.


until the actor who is hired is not seen as a gimmick to sell tix, we are deluding ourselves that race is still not an issue. So what oak is saying is that until we are done with the gimmick of this...we won't be able to move on and just cast racially blind casting or create art for just art.

No one is saying it's not an issue.  Diversity on Broadway IS a big issue.  But in this particular case, race had NOTHING to do with it.  He wasn't selling tickets, he was unprepared, and a big star was waiting in the wings.  That's showbiz.

(watch....in 8..12..20 years when Hamiltion starts to slow down they will re cast the whole thing white and have king george be black and people will ooh and ahh about the amazing artistic choice)

Not while Lin is alive, if you take him at his word.  He's made that quite clear numerous times.

its like doing a 1776 with all women. gimmick

I agree this is a gimmick, but it's not remotely related to any of the other examples you gave.
 

its like doing hamlet with a woman as hamlet...gimmick.

Gender bending in Shakespeare has been around almost as long as the plays have.

although i don't know if the "gimmick" works inversely.

Like if you had an all white once on this island i bet people would lose their minds and protest. Or if there was a white Lion King. I think it only works if the minority takes over the presumed constant majority's job. You wouldn't see it flipped because the PC police would go nuts"

Of course it only works one way. It's because there's plenty of "white roles." Roles for non-whites and POC? Not so much.

 

[schubox]

Posted: 10/4/17 at 1:45pm

Don’t think I’ve ever lost respect for an actor faster. I remember when I learned that Groban would be gone when I was going a second time to the show, but my gf and I were so excited to see that Oak was taking over for our dates (ended up being the week Dave had to cover). We both liked him and were excited to see him in the role. And now I can’t stand the guy. What a complete ass