Why can Patti Murin tweet about Broadway World but Broadway World can't talk about Patti Murin?- Page 2

[jonah3500]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 7:39pm

Does anybody know where her blog post about these boards is?

[Tag]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 7:52pm

I think this is the most infuriating comment:
"I read them periodically to see if what we agreed upon is still being enforced, and this is what I found."

What?  WE?  Did she become a moderator or owner of the site?  Why does she have any say at all?

[Loopin’theloop]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 7:57pm

Sondheimite said: "I’m going to try to broach this topic from a personal stand point.

I’d first like to say that playing a lead in a Broadway Musical (in some cases) gives you mental health opportunities that others who are suffering could not dream of. The millions of people trying to struggle to make ends meet don’t get mental health days, we get fired for missing work. I’ve been in the hospital twice for trying to kill myself. I lost a job one of those times. Not because of work performance, not because I was losing the company money, but because I missed work due to being in the hospital because I had a mental health emergency. That’s the reality for most people. That’s the reality for almost everyone else who works for Murins parent company, Disney. I watched so many cast members get driven by Disney to the brink of suicide only to lose their jobs once they attempt suicide. Patti Murin is paid very well to work (at max) four hours a day playing the lead in a Broadway Musical. People who have to work 60 hour work weeks for 1/3rd of Patti Murin’s pay don’t get the luxury she gets. That’s not a dig on Patti, that’s a dig on the system.

(I’d also like to say that not myself or anyone made personal attacks on Murin. We asked hard questions and brought up hard talking points)

And I’ll share another personal story:
I played Hedwig in Hedwig and the Angry Inch last year… and it destroyed my (already iffy) mental health. I don’t mean that I went a little bit crazy playing Hedwig. I mean that I came very close to Heath-Ledgering-Out-Of-Here and the production process can best be described by the documentary film Jim and Andy which is streaming on Netflix. I completely lost myself and had an almost successful suicide attempt (to the point where my heart stopped and I was revived by police) when i was dealing with the fallout I’d caused playing Hedwig. This was late 2017/early 2018. It hasn't even been a year since my attempt at taking my life due to the mental strain that acting put on my mental illness.

I had to have a LONG conversation with myself that I didn’t want to have:
Did my mental illness allow me to safely be an actor?
Does acting put my mental state in jeopardy and, in turn, put entire productions I act for in jeopardy?
Even if the ends are justified by the means and I churn out brilliant performances, is it worth it from a personal standpoint?

These were hard discussions that I didn’t even want to let my mind wander into. It is easier and less painful to keep these conversations locked away.

But I had the conversations.
And found that my joy, talent, skills, ideas, and mental state are much better suited for directing and producing.

And I’m much happier because I battled hard conversations.

That’s all I’ll say, without making any implications or drawing any lines."

Sondheimite thank you for being so brave in sharing your story. I’m so glad that you are still with us and exploring the career options that will make you healthy and happiest. Hopefully your story might help others who are struggling. Thank you 

[Kad]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 8:05pm

Tag said: "I think this is the most infuriating comment:
"I read them periodically to see if what we agreed upon is still being enforced, and this is what I found."

What? WE? Did she become a moderator or owner of the site? Why does she have any say at all?"

...and wasn’t an anti-bullying concert featuring Ms. Murin part of that whole thing? 

 

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 8:06pm

It’s true that mental health care in the United States doesn’t get the attention it should. That’s for a variety of reasons. Stigma is a big one. The profit-driven commercialization of health care is another. The health (which includes mental health) care system is simply broken. You have to be economically fortunate or have good insurance to access the care you need. And as Sondheimite pointed out that doesn’t mean you won’t be penalized for using it. Or that you’ll access it if you fear the stigma that accompanies it.

As someone who worked as a mental health professional in a state prison system for 24+ years, I saw first hand the consequences of untreated mental illness. And yes, I had clients who killed themselves. As a mental health professional, that it not something you ever completely recover from. When I was bawling my eyes out during the revival of Spring Awakening, it was their names that were going through my head.

I have also had my mental health struggles including suicidal thoughts following the dissolution of relationships (tied to low self-esteem associated with growing up gay in a less gay-friendly time). I was fortunate to have access to brief mental health counseling including sometimes a few free mental health counseling sessions provided through my employer. I’d like to think I’d still be here without them, but I’ll never know. I am happy to report that I have not experienced persistent suicidal thoughts in 8 to 10 years. Of course, that might be because i won’t let any guy get close enough to me to get hurt again. But I digress...lol

I don’t share all this for sympathy or attention. I just believe we all feel less alone when we share our stories as Sondheimite has bravely done. It is then we believe we are not alone. When we drop our facades.

I do try (and often fail) to consider before posting anywhere on any social media platform the three rules:

1. Is it true?
2. Is it necessary?
3. Is it kind?

Ideally, I would only post when the answer to all three questions is: yes. But I miss the mark occasionally. And of course it could be argued that very little of what I post on here is necessary. No easy answers I guess...

I admit I haven’t followed the Frozen saga closely as it is not a show that has engaged my interest much. But I wish Patti and Sondheimite and all of us good mental health and the access to resources to maintain it.

 

Updated On: 12/9/18 at 08:06 PM

[n2nbaby]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 8:09pm

This whole thing is ridiculous. I have literally nothing against Patti and have never commented in the subject but this is getting out of hand. I also LOVED her on Show People this week.

That being said.

Why do Broadway performers hold themselves in higher regard as, say, movie actors? Nobody has issues with people crapping on bad movies or bad performances but the second someone says something negative about a Broadway show or performance all hell breaks loose. THAT is a double standard. Yes, you worked hard on a show but if your show is a turd, it’s a turd no matter how long you spent working on it.

As for the things being mean to Patti or saying negative things, her being out of Frozen is clearly an issue. Someone said she’s been out more than 40 times. The show has no been open for even a year. Do you know what would happen if I called into my job over 40 times? I would be fired. Oh, and yes, I also have panic attacks, anxiety and depression.

The tweets she shared were not terrible, in fact some of them were a bit fair. When you are in the limelight, you subject yourself to scrudity, especially in 2018. It’s not right but it’s the world we live in. If you have such soft skin, maybe this isn’t the profession for you or maybe you should just not have a Twitter, go on BroadwayWorld or google yourself. Yes, some of the things being said are negative but why is Patti reading them? Does she not have anything better to do?

[ChildofEarth]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 8:31pm

mental health is a bitch, period. I feel for anyone who has to deal with and do believe that anyone who can take off should acknowledge her privilege at being able to do so.

But what I don’t understand is this - why go looking for discussions about your show and performance on a website you have publicly talked about disliking before? If you dislike it so much, why give it hits? It seems that self care for mental health should be avoiding message boards and reviews, a la Stephanie J Block (who let’s be honest, is always a delight and has nothing to avoid).

As far as I can tell (and I could be wrong) BroadwayWorld survives on the traffic brought here by the message boards. By Patti repeatedly vilifying those who post here, she is damaging the site’s chance of survival - and as a fan of the articles here (usually much better than other news sites) I would hate to see this.

I’m not a fan of Donald Trump, so I don’t follow him on Twitter. I don’t eat meat so I don’t check out the Hormel site for recipes. Porn sites make me feel icky so I don’t go on them. It isn’t hard to find something else to do on the internet.

[Patti LuPone FANatic]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 8:35pm

I read her tweet.  She was directing her ire at the specific poster, who was rather insensitive.  

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 8:45pm

I think it’s helpful to remember that when we make insensitive remarks about a celebrity’s mental health or other struggles then shrug it off by saying, “they’re famous; if they didn’t want to be criticized they shouldn’t have become famous”, what we forget is that others who have those same struggles and aren’t famous see or hear our remarks and thus the cycle of stigma is perpetuated.

That’s why I didn’t think it was funny when Britney had her public melt down a few years ago. It’s why as much as I dislike him, I don’t laugh at Chris Christy fat jokes. Other more vulnerable citizens hear those remarks and assume the same is true of them as well.

[GreeneStreet]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 8:49pm

If you get upset over a message board, why are you returning to them just to get upset all over again?

[ArtMan]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 8:49pm

Patti LuPone FANatic said: "I read her tweet. She was directing her ire at the specific poster, who was rather insensitive."

The tweet I read, she uses plural context. Posters, fans...

[Blockhead24]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 8:53pm

GreeneStreet said: "If you get upset over a message board, why are you returning to them just to get upset all over again?"

This is my question too.

[Catsbroadwayfan]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 8:58pm

If Patti Murin has SUCH a problem with these boards, block them. Don’t come back, stop putting yourself through this.

[Sondheimite]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 9:00pm

And thank you all for the kind words and the nuanced discussion of mental health/the arts that we’re having in these posts.

I really really respected Kanye West when he had a mental breakdown and he stepped away from fame for a year.  I was sad when he came back swinging even harder than he had been before.  Kanye West is one of my favorite artists.  I love (a lot of, not all) his ideas, I think his music is masterful, I think his art is beautiful, and I damn near an obsessed with his clothing.  But I’d rather have no new Kanye ideas/music/art/clothing if it meant that Kanye would be able to live a mentally happy/stable life away from the arts/spotlight that seem to cause so many cracks in his psyche.  

I feel the same way about all artists and myself.
The art we create should never come at the expense of our mental stability.

There isn’t a piece of art that’s worth it or a performance that’s worth it.

We are defined by the people we are, not by the things we create… even if our mind tries to tell us otherwise.

I am not a professional in mental health but I do live with mental health issues 24/7+365.  In my experiences, walk away from something for a while if you think that it’s damaging your mental health.  It can be your friend group.  It can be your job.  It can be your vocation.  It can be skipping a family Christmas.  It can be your major.  It can be your art.  It can be the things that you are most known.  Walk away for a little while, turn your back to it, and see what changes in your life.  

if your mental health improves because of walking away from said thing…. consider life changes.

But if your life as a particular type of artist is causing mental health problems…. it’s okay to walk away and try something else.  

[bwayrose7]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 9:00pm

I too work in the theatre and I too have struggled with mental health on and off for many years. My anxiety manifested itself in digestive issues and migraine variants (and still does, now and then) that led to me being unable to go to work on occasion. I was lucky, as Patti seems to be, to have supervisors who were understanding. 

And yet. I knew that there might come a time when I might have to stop my work or shift into a different aspect of it if my symptoms did not get under control. Pointing that out is not attacking or bullying anyone, it is a simple discussion of fact. I follow a sport that is notoriously high-pressure mentally and full of snippy fans; it is not bullying when we wonder if someone has to step away for a season to recover from a broken ankle or concussion, so why is it bullying if we wonder if someone has to step away to recover from a mental issue? If they cannot perform, they should take care of themselves first. If we're going to talk about mental health like physical health - which we should! - then let's do it properly.

[bk]

Posted: 12/9/18 at 9:09pm

In response to Dustin Hoffman's getting so lost in his character and his method bull****, Mr. Laurence Olivier famously replied: "Dear boy, try acting."

Acting is a job.  Jim and Andy was nauseating and Man in the Moon was a flop.  I will never understand this concept of someone getting so LOST in a character that they would attempt to do away with themselves.  I understand that in this instance here that someone has issues already, but then why even go near any role?  And as a director will the former actor be asking his actors to go to that place?  I'm just baffled by stuff I read here.  Obviously Ms. Murin was not lashing out in a void - someone on here said something that was offensive to her, hence she lashed out.   Or is the issue that threads being closed isn't fair game because she responded via Twitter and people are upset they don't have a place here to be even nastier?  I would love someone to honestly explain this to me.