Trumpers on Broadway

[kdogg36]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 7:45pm

Over the past few years, some BWW posters have suggested that a number of Broadway movers and shakers are active Trump supporters. I don't really doubt it.

Well, I think it's time to name some names and to pledge not to support their work in the future. I think things have gotten out of hand to such an extent under Trump that such an endeavor is fully justified, even if it means in the short term that we have to steer clear of some shows that we'd like to see.

If anyone has any relevant and verifiable information, I would very much like to know about it.

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 7:51pm

Thread getting deleted in 3…2…1…

[Matt Rogers]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 8:32pm

kdogg36 said: "Over the past few years, some BWW postershave suggested that a number of Broadwaymovers and shakers are active Trump supporters. I don't really doubt it.

Well, I think it's time to name some names and to pledge not to support theirwork in the future. I think things have gotten out of hand to such an extent under Trump that such an endeavor is fully justified, even if it means in the short term that we have to steer clear ofsome shows that we'd like to see.

If anyone has any relevant and verifiable information, I would very much like to know about it."

I agree with this 100%. If anyone does not, considering what is going on with the NEA and other crap, you need to look within. 

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 8:39pm

This should also go for producers and theatre owners. If you continue to support the man who is actively destroying artistic freedom and enrichment in this country you shouldn't have a place in this community.

[sinister teashop]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 9:13pm

While I'm all for exposing Trump supporters, the biggest problem with the theater "community" has been the same one with the academic "community". 

There is no community there. 

A community sticks together when one member gets assaulted by someone like Trump. Broadway, Off-Broadway, Non-Profit... everyone is turning away from their colleagues while they get hurt and hoping it won't happen to them.

There is no American Theater Community.

[VernonGersch]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 9:17pm

Name em.

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 9:23pm

sinister teashop said: "While I'm all for exposing Trump supporters, the biggest problem with the theater "community" has been the same one with the academic "community".

There is no community there.

A community sticks together when one member gets assaulted by someone like Trump. Broadway, Off-Broadway, Non-Profit... everyone is turning away from their colleagues while they get hurt and hoping it won't happen to them.

There is no American Theater Community."

This.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 9:31pm

If anyone has any relevant and verifiable information, I would very much like to know about it.

K, I adore you and your contributions on here. I just don't know what you hope to gain from this or where it stops. Do you want every producer involved in every show to disclose who they voted for? Every single director in the tri-state area? The painters? Stage crew? The musicians? Sound designer? Concessions? Prop master? Costume designers? Cleaning staff? How far would you like to go because you're talking about thousands of people all working in the theater industry in NYC. And if they're smart, they don't discuss politics at work. That is private for most people. And what if the light board operator at a show you are dying to see voted for Melon Rapist? Would you then not see it? Do you even have a right to know? To what end, basically, is what I'm asking you. 

[TheatreFan4]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 9:53pm

If you think attempting to boycott performers/producers/theatre owners is what's going to "stick it" to them over their support of Trump in an already struggling industry you're cutting off your nose to spite your face. It doesn't affect them. For most of them theatre is a hobby. Just something to invest some money in and they've already wagered they're likely to lose and write it off for their taxes. 

[inception]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 10:05pm

Generally I have found that Trump supporters don't seem to try to hide their feelings. 

[kdogg36]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 10:05pm

Call_me_jorge said: "This should also go for producers and theatre owners."

Actually, that's mainly what I was referring to when I mentioned "movers and shakers."

[kdogg36]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 10:12pm

Sutton Ross said: "K, I adore you and your contributions on here. I just don't know what you hope to gain from this or where it stops."

First, thank you! We've had a rumble or two in the past but I also very much respect your contributions as well.

Second, I'm very much thinking about top-level individuals in my question; that's why I said "movers and shakers." So, producers, theater owners, maybe directors, maybe writers.

Updated On: 5/6/25 at 10:12 PM

[kdogg36]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 10:14pm

TheatreFan4 said: "If you think attempting to boycott performers/producers/theatre owners is what's going to "stick it" to them over their support of Trump in an already struggling industry you're cutting off your nose to spite your face. It doesn't affect them. For most of them theatre is a hobby. Just something to invest some money in and they've already wagered they're likely to lose and write it off for their taxes."

This may be true, but isn't there something to be said for integrity? Even if my personal choice won't change much, I'd rather support good people than bad people as a matter of conscience.

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 10:18pm

Because one person or a producer may have voted Republican, you're willing to put hundreds of people out of work, destroying a cornerstone of the city's economy?

Willing to bet a good portion of the stagehands voted Republican. Are they MAGA? Not necessarily. But people have their reasons, and some may have regrets. Does your blanket need to out folks and boycott go this deep?

While you're at it, have you also boycotting every company that's had a CEO donate or vote Republican? Because guess what, you're pretty quickly going to run out of products to buy and places to patronize. 

[kdogg36]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 10:28pm

everythingtaboo said: "Because one person or a producer may have voted Republican, you're willing to put hundreds of people out of work, destroying a cornerstone of the city's economy?"

No, I'm willing to allow this information to influence how I make my limited choices about what to see. I don't anticipate seeing fewer shows, so I won't be putting anyone out of work.

"Willing to bet a good portion of the stagehands voted Republican. Are they MAGA? Not necessarily. But people have their reasons, and some may have regrets. Does your blanketneed to out folks and boycott go this deep?"

I have no patience or understanding whatsoever for individuals who voted for Trump the third time around, but stagehands aren't the target of my query. I was asking about "movers and shakers."

"While you're at it, have you also boycotting every company that's had a CEO donate or vote Republican? Because guess what, you're pretty quickly going to run out of products to buy and places to patronize."

I am trying my best based on the information that's available to me. I made this post in the hopes of acquiring the kind of information that could help me make informed choices in the future.

[TheatreFan4]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 10:35pm

kdogg36 said: "TheatreFan4 said: "If you think attempting to boycott performers/producers/theatre owners is what's going to "stick it" to them over their support of Trump in an already struggling industry you're cutting off your nose to spite your face. It doesn't affect them. For most of them theatre is a hobby. Just something to invest some money in and they've already wagered they're likely to lose and write it off for their taxes."

This may be true, but isn't there something to be said for integrity? Even if my personal choice won't change much, I'd rather support good people than bad people as a matter of conscience."

Then it's a personal choice and not one done to affect change in those people or to hurt them, it's to make yourself feel better about it which is fine, but that's not how you framed it in your original post.

[kdogg36]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 10:43pm

TheatreFan4 said: "Then it'sa personal choice and not one done to affect change in those people or to hurt them, it's to make yourself feel better about it which is fine, but that's not how you framed it in your original post."

Well, I really don't see anything in my initial post that's contrary to my desire to find out which high-level individuals support Trump and to make choices based on that information, and to suggest that others might want to do the same.

Anyhow, I'm beginning to think it's a bit weird that I've fielded multiple questions about my motives and haven't gotten one actual answer to my question.

[PipingHotPiccolo]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 10:54pm

lotta conflating two things. its one thing to know who the trumpists are, and another to then use that information to boycott productions.

the latter is a personal choice, and i understand the arguments for/against (im all for--communities should keep fascism persona non grata), but regardless why should this information not be shared publicly? We cant know who ppl actually voted for so were talking about who is proudly backing trumpism, public information. share away.

But its not that simple- because there are those who say "I LOVE TRUMP" and those who just quietly support him financially, and those who proudly hang out with Trumpist filth (Nicole) and those who have never said one word pro Trump but have been accused of it anyway (Denzel) etc. So i think this is dangerous game. 

but the idea that this isnt information worth sharing, if true/verified? Please. Its 1929 Italy here. Its 1934 Germany. Speak up.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 10:56pm

Sure. So if you feel that strongly don't patronize any theaters owned by the Nederlanders who have given him hundreds of thousands of dollars. So don't ever go to the Brooks Atkinson, Gershwin, Lunt-Fontanne, Marquis, Minskoff, Nederlander, Palace, Richard Rodgers, and Neil Simon Theatres. Outside of New York don't ever go to the Cadillac Palace Theatre, CIBC Theatre, James M. Nederlander Theatre, The Broadway Playhouse (Chicago, IL); The Durham Performing Arts Center (Durham, NC); The Pantages and Greek Theatres (Los Angeles, CA); The Broadway Series at the Civic and Balboa Theatres (San Diego, CA); TCC Music Hall (Tucson, AZ); North Charleston Performing Arts Center (North Charleston, SC); The Grove (Anaheim, CA); The San Jose Center for the Performing Arts (San Jose, CA); and the Aldwych, Adelphi and Dominion Theatres (London, England) or watch The Jimmy Awards ever again. 

[kdogg36]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 11:10pm

Sutton Ross said: "Sure. So if you feel that strongly don't patronize any theaters owned by the Nederlanders who have given him hundreds of thousands of dollars."

This is exactly the kind of information I'm looking for, although preferably with some objective means to verify the information. If this is true, those of us who feel strongly enough indeed should not patronize these theaters.

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 11:24pm

kdogg36 said: "Sutton Ross said: "Sure. So if you feel that strongly don't patronize any theaters owned by the Nederlanders who have given him hundreds of thousands of dollars."

This is exactly the kind of information I'm looking for, although preferablywith some objective meansto verify the information. If this is true, those of us who feel strongly enough indeed should not patronize these theaters."

They’re still getting their rent paid in full whether you walk through the doors or not. So if a show you’d otherwise want to see is playing there, going or not going won’t make a dent. To really make an impact you’d need to be a producer and turn down the Nederlander venues in favor of another owner. 

[BroadwayGirl107]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 11:40pm

There’s plenty of bad people who work on Broadway it don’t vote for Trump as well. I always wonder how that NY Times expose circa the height of Me Too got killed and then we never heard anything else.

[Kad]

Posted: 5/6/25 at 11:59pm

David Mamet. 

[binau]

Posted: 5/7/25 at 2:29am

I agree it’s your right where you choose to spend your money or not, I just hope this kind of thing (writing a hit/cancel list of trump voters) doesn’t reinforce examples of the kind of toxicity in progressive culture that I think got trump elected in the first place and continue this counter productive spiral of toxic progressive culture that doesn’t really always seem progressive anymore and seems to be achieving the exact opposite that it aims to. 
 

Is it not better to focus on the root causes of why people voted for Trump, especially those that are controllable? Demand better democratic leadership and a better Democratic Party who failed you, try and contain the divisive progressive culture that has caused people to switch off or backlash?
 

You know the same kind of culture that caused the great comet employees, many of whom were POC, to lose their jobs needlessly. Or the same kind of culture that meant not a single democratic leader would speak out against biological men playing in women’s sports until Trump won - a position that almost everyone in US population holds according to opinion polls - causing a wider backlash against trans people and hurting the very people you are trying to protect who deserve dignity, safety and respect not being thrust into controversial spaces where there are some legitimate concerns held by the literally the vast majority of the population (I saw around 75%). This did not seem like a good idea at the time and it CERTAINLY doesn’t seem like a good idea now.

Or the same kind of culture that meets any well intentioned criticism by accusing those providing it, who are literally just trying to help, of being ‘MAGA’  and trying to ostracise dissenting views coming from within (leading to reinforcing this same toxic culture that can’t get out of the spiral because there appears to be no feedback mechanism that works to get it back on track - I thought Trump winning would be the best feedback necessary to recognise that the progressive movement needs a different playbook to succeed). 

This is also not to recognise that of course many Trump voters will always vote trump, or always vote Republicans. And I can see that this Trump presidency is going about as badly as anyone might have predicted. So yes it might be frustrating. But I just don't see naming and shaming Trump voters as the best way to deal with this...

Updated On: 5/7/25 at 02:29 AM

[jimmycurry01]

Posted: 5/7/25 at 7:07am

I hate everything that is going on right now, and I'm mad that we are doing this a second time. In a sane world, this would have been done when Biden took office. With that being said, is actively causing deeper division really the answer? Do we want those running businesses to make hiring decisions based on who someone voted for? That's something that will work both ways.

Now, it is certainly well within our rights to spend money as we see fit, but every business or show will be made up of both Trumpers and non-Trumpers. You might choose to punish a show because of one Trumper, but you will be punishing several non-Trumpers at the same time.

Additionally, Trump would certainly be happy if his crowd started naming non-Trumpers so that those who don't follow him would experience negative consequences, and I dare say that's likely to happen. Before we say that we need to start naming names, think about how it will be when they are the ones naming you.

Naming names isn't the solution. Getting the silent majority off their butts and into polling stations is. I imagine your solution of naming names based on political affiliation would have Arthur Miller spinning in his grave. That sort of tit-for-tat is not the world we want.