THE INHERITANCE to close in March- Page 4

[Impossible2]

LightsOut90 said: "SouthernCakes said: "Oh that’s interesting to know! I just think had it been developed here it would never have been commissioned to be 7 hours long. It just doesn’t warrant it. It feels padded. And the whole thing doesn’t feel “epic” the way the Angels revival felt or even Boys in the Band. It never felt like an event."

and Lopez didnt want to cut it down..."

I wonder if he is regretting that decision right now...

[Chowd95]

yahyahyah said: "How could you assert these were the “best actors for the roles” when they didn’t even audition actors in New York for them? No gay actors in New York auditioned for several of these roles offered to the London cast. Including the straight Mr Soller.

Do you think Andrew Garfield was the best actor for the role in Angels? Even though he didn’t audition, it was an offer and no gay US actors were ever auditioned?

That’s ridiculous. Again just look at the Oscar statistics. Gay actors are at a significant disadvantage in the industry and are being shut out of telling their own stories.

Do you think that I, as an intelligent and aware, politically minded 30 something gay New Yorker, want to watch a straight guy from London show me what he thinks it’s like to struggle as a gay man?

Or play a role that is to represent the struggle of generations and the thousands and thousands of gay men who were political warriors that paved the way for this play? Those men who died of aids?

Sorry, the casting is absurd and a slap in the face to all these men past and present.

And yes, even huge film studios often now put in their casting breakdowns “seeking an openly gay actor” when they are seeking actors for significant gay roles. "

When I saw this I knew very little going in.. no plot details, didn't know who these actors were and whether they were gay or straight in real life. Leaving the theater both nights I felt like every one of them (especially Andrew Burnap, Kyle Soller and Paul Hilton) were giving some truly spectacular performances and should be very proud of what they were accomplishing. Sad to see this show closing so soon :'(

 

 

 

 

 

[qolbinau]

I agree they could have held auditions and cast new actors in the USA, I suppose they thought the original cast was part of the success and were afraid of tampering with it. Even if wasn’t true (I certainly think most could have been replaced just fine).

I still feel icky that now we are even using words like inauthentic to describe straight people playing gay roles because surely it leads to the exact opposite conclusion that gay people playing straight roles is also inauthentic.

Re: the earlier comments. Yes scarlet should have been able to play trans, too. This is an even easier example to use because at least in the case of The Inheritance it is plausible they could have found suitable gay actors. If they really wanted to make it gay only they might have been able to. Scarlett J is an a-list critically acclaimed movie actress. That is a very limited talent pool to find a trans artist. Had the movie gone ahead it could have brought trans issues to mainstream culture in a way that is now not going to happen. A real shame.

[qolbinau]

Chowd95 said: "yahyahyah said: "How could you assert these were the “best actors for the roles” when they didn’t even audition actors in New York for them? No gay actors in New York auditioned for several of these roles offered to the London cast. Including the straight Mr Soller.

Do you think Andrew Garfield was the best actor for the role in Angels? Even though he didn’t audition, it was an offer and no gay US actors were ever auditioned?

That’s ridiculous. Again just look at the Oscar statistics. Gay actors are at a significant disadvantage in the industry and are being shut out of telling their own stories.

Do you think that I, as an intelligent and aware, politically minded 30 something gay New Yorker, want to watch a straight guy from London show me what he thinks it’s like to struggle as a gay man?

Or play a role that is to represent the struggle of generations and the thousands and thousands of gay men who were political warriors that paved the way for this play? Those men who died of aids?

Sorry, the casting is absurd and a slap in the face to all these men past and present.

And yes, even huge film studios often now put in their casting breakdowns “seeking an openly gay actor” when they are seeking actors for significant gay roles. "

When I saw this I knew very little going in.. no plot details, didn't know who these actors were and whether they were gay or straight in real life. Leaving the theater both nights I felt like every one of them (especially Andrew Burnap, Kyle Soller and Paul Hilton) were giving some truly spectacular performances and should be very proud of what they were accomplishing. Sad to see this show closing so soon :'(









"

Mmmm. Except for a very small minority I doubt most of the audience knew of or investigated or cared the sexuality of the cast. It’s much easier to think the reason the show didn’t succeed because of its length, the fact that it has no stars, a very niche subject matter that does not appeal to a wide audience and even perhaps some inauthentic writing rather than inauthentic casting (though I know of course many love the writing). 

[VintageSnarker]

Ledaero said: Other than the general female demographic (who do turn out in ticket sales quite well), you're targeting the lowest income demographics who can't afford full priced tickets, especially for a two-part show that costs 2x everything else if you want to see it in its entirety. Specifically looking at the example of targeting the youth/millennialdemographic, we can see from just this past year with shows likeBe More ChillandLightning Thiefwhy that is a failure of a marketing strategy. Yesit'll get theshow flying around social media, but it clearly is not indicative of actually getting people in the seats with well-sold tickets."

I think it's hard to pin down what's going to appeal to the youth and millennial demographics. Which are not exactly the same because at this point, millennials are somewhere between 25 and 40. When I think of recent shows targeted towards millennials, I think of Anastasia (1997 movie) and Moulin Rouge (2001 movie) and Mean Girls (2004 movie). Nostalgia is easy. I think what's more difficult is these shows that are sold/perceived as something that's going to appeal to the progressive, liberal, socially conscious, "woke," etc. audience that the youth/millennial is assumed to be (regardless of how accurate that is). The Oklahoma revival? The Once on This Island revival? Waitress? The Inheritance? Hamilton? Six? Slave Play? Jagged Little Pill?

It's tricky to play that game of telling audiences that a play is important or relevant or that it's going to thoughtfully address certain issues and then leaving yourself open for that critique. The imagined "woke" audience is not primarily composed of the most frequent theatergoers. It's a fickle and demanding group to court. They will hold you to a high standard. 

[MrsSallyAdams]

I don't object to straight actors playing LGBQ or LGBQ actors playing straight.

I do object to LGBTQ artists being scorned and blacklisted by agents and casting directors. Or artists being ordered to stay in the closet. If you compare the data on Tony's to those on the Oscar's you'll see that this is still an issue in Hollywood but less so on Broadway. The Advocate tallies at least 60 actors who were Oscar nominated for playing LGBQ or coded roles. Meanwhile 4 out actors have been Oscar nominated period.

https://www.advocate.com/film/2018/2/27/52-straight-people-who-nabbed-oscar-noms-lgbt-roles

It's disturbing to hear any artist was told they were "too gay" (usually code for "too feminine" ) for The Inheritance. I hope that's just a rumor as it's extremely offensive and inappropriate.

I agree that a show marketed exclusively to gay men would have benefited from out artists promoting it. Without that they would have needed a star in the token female role, as London had, or other ways to market to a larger crowd.

I'm sad this production is being called a flop and that the play will likely disappear from the public memory. While all the factors mentioned in Forbes and here have played a role there is no one reason why Inheritance floundered while Boys and Angels succeeded.

[Ladylusiphur]

qolbinau said: "Re: the earlier comments. Yes scarlet should have been able to play trans, too. This is an even easier example to use because at least in the case of The Inheritance it is plausible they could have found suitable gay actors. If they really wanted to make it gay only they might have been able to. Scarlett J is an a-list critically acclaimed movie actress. That is a very limited talent pool to find a trans artist. Had the movie gone ahead it could have brought trans issues to mainstream culture in a way that is now not going to happen. A real shame."

I've really tried to hold back on weighing in on this one, but seriously? The reason you presumably aren't aware of any trans actors, is that 9 times out of 10 every time a trans role is cast it's given to a cis-gender person. Imagine you're a trans actor. How many cis-gender roles are you going to be cast in? Relatively few (if any). Then, when a role comes along you're born to play, that also goes to someone else. Might as well give up. 
Ryan Murphy & Co managed to find a huge trans cast for 'Pose', and that's gone on to be critically acclaimed and Emmy nominated. It's not difficult to find talent if you actually go out and spend 5 minutes looking for it. People are begging for a chance, being ignored does not do anything to highlight their situation, it just perpetuates it. 
(And for the record, I also believe that one day we should live in a world where any part should be offered to any person, but until major roles are also regularly offered to minority groups, then it's just not a fair playing field) 

If we all followed this logic, Othello would still be being played by a white guy in blackface. 

[yahyahyah]

MrsSallyAdams said: "I don't object to straight actors playing LGBQ or LGBQ actors playing straight.

I do object to LGBTQ artists being scorned and blacklisted by agents and casting directors. Or artists being ordered to stay in the closet. If you compare the data on Tony's to those on the Oscar's you'll see that this is still an issue in Hollywood but less so on Broadway. The Advocate tallies at least 60 actors who were Oscar nominated for playing LGBQ or coded roles. Meanwhile 4 out actors have been Oscar nominated period.

https://www.advocate.com/film/2018/2/27/52-straight-people-who-nabbed-oscar-noms-lgbt-roles

It's disturbing to hear any artist was told they were "too gay" (usually code for "too feminine" )for The Inheritance. I hope that's just a rumor as it's extremely offensive and inappropriate.

I agree that a show marketed exclusively to gay men would have benefited from out artists promoting it. Without that they would have needed a star in the token female role, as London had, or other ways to market to a larger crowd.

I'm sad this production is being called a flop and that theplay will likely disappear from the public memory. While all the factors mentioned in Forbes and here have played a role there is no one reason why Inheritance floundered while Boys and Angels succeeded."


Who are the 4 actors you are referring to as being gay and out at the times of their nominations?


And Ladylusiphur, 100% yes.  I can just imagine some Ye Olde Worlde audience member mingling about after a show saying, “well I don’t need to see a reeeeal Moor, I didn’t even realize he wasn’t one! There’s no way they could find a qualified Moor to speak Shakespeare and we already have [white guy] who’s just soo good!”

 

[MrsSallyAdams]

yahyahyah said: Who are the 4 actors you are referring to as being gay and out at the times of their nominations?

According to Wikipedia the were: Jaye Davidson, Angelina Jolie, Ian McKellan and Lady Gaga. I believe the other actors on this list were all closeted at the time:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_LGBTQ_Academy_Award_winners_and_nominees

[MusicAndPassion]

Shifting the conversation - I'm returning to see Part 2 tomorrow evening. With some cast changes and understudies on, I'm looking for a detailed synopsis of Part 1. I saw Part 1 back in November and need a refresher. Sadly all copies of the play on Amazon and other sources are on hold until March 3.

Can someone share a Part 1 detailed recap or point me in the right direction? Thanks!

[Addendum]

While I realize that Kyle Harris is straight. I had zero problem believing him (and his incredible ass in those jeans ?) as Jasper!

[MrsSallyAdams]

Dear MusicAndPassion, Here is a quick recap of The Inheritance part one. 

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

A Young Writer asks E.M. Forster to help him tell a story. They begin with Howard’s End. The novel’s sisters are transformed into a gay couple: vain Toby Darling and timid Eric Glass.

 

Toby’s play is bound for Broadway. He dumps Eric to pursue Adam, the play’s chilly star. When Adam rejects him he falls for Leo, a homeless rent boy who looks like Adam. The Young Writer warns Toby he’ll be dead within a year. Toby berates the cast and storms off. Forster tells the Writer he no longer needs his help to complete the story.

 

Eric befriends Walter Wilcox, a kindly neighbor. Walter tells Eric of the dying men he nursed in his country house during the AIDS epidemic. When Eric loses his rent controlled apartment Walter wills him the country house. Walter dies and his cold husband Henry Wilcox has the will burnt. But Henry warms to Walter, courting him and taking him to the house. The Ghosts of the men who died there welcome Eric. Half the audience falls apart.

 

We end part one with many questions. Will Eric grow a spine? Will Toby grow a heart? What of the play and the country house? And who is the mysterious Young Writer?

Enjoy part two!

[MrsSallyAdams]

Samuel Levine of The Inheritance is appearing in a new film, Minyan, where he plays a closeted Jewish immigrant. Surprised to see him playing gay again so soon but glad the cast is already lining up work. Now someone make a star of Andrew Burnap!

https://www.metacritic.com/movie/minyan

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoG5LKKJP6I

[BenElliott]

Any updates on the rush?

[conealpetterson]

Just got an email from The Geffen in LA announcing their season and The Inheritance will be there at the beginning of 2021z. I so happy I will get to see it.

[TheSassySam]

conealpetterson said: "Just got an email from The Geffen in LA announcing their season and The Inheritance will be there at the beginning of 2021z. I so happy I will get to see it."

Not only that, but directed by Bryan Cranston! I doubt it will happen but, I could see Cranston playing EM Forster in a production. 

[SGarrett2]

Bryan Cranston is directing a different play at the end of the Geffen's 2020-21 season but it hasn't been announced yet.

[MrsSallyAdams]

Now that The Inheritance is gone I wanted to preserve my memories of it. This play will stick with me. I’ve written a recap and analysis of the play here.

https://the-avocado.org/2020/03/16/lgbt-theater-the-inheritance-2018/

[MemorableUserName]

I guess most of the discussion of straight actors in the play was here. In case anyone is following this thread, Andrew Burnap came out today:

https://twitter.com/McDrewBur/status/1315372222559801346

[220Basswood]

I was surprised to read that he viewed it as his coming out because when I saw the show everyone around me  was talking after the first one that it was nice that they cast him since he was gay and the people thought that a gay person should play the role.