Grennell is absolutely, 100% correct. For actors to withhold their talents and services from an entire audience because they may have ideological differences with a member of that audience (or many) is unforgivably unprofessional and a breach of ethics deserving punishment, condemantion and shunning.
Howard Sherman, an author and critic whose existence I had been blissfully unaware of before this day, issued an insufferable essay on Facebook that naturally my many show biz friends, Trump Deranged all, rushed to share and applaud. The post is as nauseating as it is overlong and unethical: I read it so you don’t have to, but here are some lowlights to “How the Blacklisting Starts.”
See, he’s saying that an industry deciding that members who are unethical and refuse to do their jobs is the same as an industry putting members on a blacklist for their political beliefs, as Hollywood did to Communist sympathizers during the McCarthy era, and asd Hollywood does now to conservatives (like, say, James Woods). That’s bonkers, and exactly backwards. It is the misguided artists linking their art to political views who are emulating those blacklisters of yore. I’ll pick out some of the more pernicious misrepresentations in Sherman’s post…
- “Whatever the precise circumstances, this reflects the politicization of art by outside forces – in this case the federal government – since the new administration came in, in line with the dismantling of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Humanities Endowment and public broadcasting now underway.” Me: Getting government out of the art business, which gives the State power to control it, is politicizing it! Black is White, Up is Down, War is Peace.
- “That “Les Misérables,” a story about fights for justice large and small, is one of Trump’s favorite musicals suggests that he is drawn to the scale and grandeur but completely incapable of appreciating the politics buried within the show itself. The central story is about a good man forced to petty crime to feed his child and an implacable foe whose campaign to punish the man is wholly out of proportion with the infraction.” Me: Ha. People who like that show like the (shamelessly derivative) music. The lyric are infantile (as translations of lyrics tend to be), and the story is all but incomprehensible, which is why the show’s programs include the longest plot summaries in theater history. I’ve grilled people who say “Les Miz” istheir favorite show and that they’ve seen it multiple times, and almost without exception, these fans say the story involves the French Revolution. (Uh, no.) So Javert is Trump…let me guess: Jean Valjean is…Abrego Garcia ?
- “[Grennell’s statement] is without question, a new blacklist – names that the government doesn’t want hired if they won’t perform for the king, exposed in such a way as to make future employers think twice about engaging them and exposing them for a rabid subset of MAGA supporters to harass and intimidate.” Me: As an artistic director, I would aggressively “blacklist” actors who came to performances drunk, who harassed other performers, who defied me, and who behaved unprofessionally. Any performer who “boycotted” a performance for any reason would be placed, by me, on a professional theater community blacklist, because that performer would be untrustworthy.
- “Yet that is what Grennell believes is the proper treatment of actors who won’t assent to amuse the monarch, and he doesn’t even need a Senate hearing room to do it. Today, thanks to social media, all he needs to do is activate the center’s social media, or take to Truth Social, to make life hell for these conscientious objectors.” Me: You know what? There’s a lot more to this thing, but reading it makes me physically nauseous, so this will be the last excerpt. Go here if you want to read the whole offensive mess, and have a wastebasket handy to barf in.
Theater doesn’t have “conscientious objectors.” The conduct of an actor who refuses to perform for any audience member is exactly as indefensible as a dental hygienist who refuses to work on a Democrat’s teeth, or a sanitary worker who won’t empty a Republican’s trash can. There’s nothing noble about discriminating against customers because of their opinions or even their actions. It’s destructive to society and wrong, and it doesn’t matter if the target of the discrimination is the President, a talk show host, or a toxic asshole like, say, Robert De Niro or Sonny Hostin.
Theater types are throwing the same hissy fits as the denizens of the other sectors infiltrated with bias, progressive propaganda and ideological agendas like education, journalism, scholarship, science, and law. The tide has turned, the public is waking up to reality, and the danger to pluralism and democracy is being addressed, a bit ham-handed at times, but addressed nonetheless. Good. The weakness of Sherman’s argument shows how important Trump’s initiatives are.
Ethics Alarms 
This is absolutely right. This is another example of blatant double standards when it comes to Trump. They would not tolerate an actor who refused to perform for ideological reasons (or, frankly, for any other reason if said actor was physically able to do so), especially one who decided not to perform for a Democrat. This is just Trump Deserves Special* Treatment.
*These aren’t ordinary times rationalization.
I assume this guy is flipping out because of the perceived threat the new Kennedy Center regime poses to gay guy hegemony in musical theater.
So what are producers to now, write performance requirements vis-a-vis the audience or venue into their employment contracts? Has it really come to this?
I’m not quite as sanguine about a simile between actors and trash collectors or dental hygienists. The expectations are somewhat different, one being a government employee or subcontractor and the other being a private professional. Just as a restaurant may decline to serve someone because of their political beliefs in most states (not all, though), a dental hygienist with his/her own practice may of course limit his customers for any reason not legally protected.
I agree that professionalism is a factor, and I also agree with Grinell’s position on it. But I am generally fine with people placing politics over professionalism because it helps me eliminate idiots and prevent spending money to enrich them. I am also fine with shunning them, and blacklisting them as untrustworthy and professionally deficient.
But I’m quite happy for them to identify themselves, loudly and proudly. It will enable actual professionals to step in and take their jobs, reduce their income, and hopefully bankrupt them into homelessness.
If that sounds mean, good. If people want to place politics before job performance, self-deporting from the workforce is a public benefit, and the self-imposed punishment should be as harsh as possible.
And please, Leftists, boycott the Kennedy Center. It would vastly improve the audience experience, I’m sure. Join your fellows in the nearest echo chamber so you can collectively enhance your ignorance and justify my disdain for you a little more.
Jesse Owens immediately came to mind. No, not a actor/singer, but he chose to “perform” in Berlin, in front of the actual Hitler. He put his incredible skill on the world stage for all to see. Now, Mr. Owens showed courage.
There is no real threat to anyone who refuses to perform for President Trump. Instead, they will be lauded by the TDS crowd as heroes. They diminish the office of president.
I wasn’t a Dittohead, but I was impressed with Rush Limbaugh’s advice to Mannheim Steamroller. They had been invited by President Obama to perform. Not being fans of the Obama administration they asked Rush’s advice. He responded that the should perform. It was not an act of support for President Obama, but an act of respect to the office of the presidency.
“As an artistic director, I would aggressively “blacklist” actors who came to performances drunk, who harassed other performers, who defied me, and who behaved unprofessionally. Any performer who “boycotted” a performance for any reason would be placed, by me, on a professional theater community blacklist, because that performer would be untrustworthy.”
I have a trouble with blacklists. How do we know if a person on a blacklist is guilty of any of the unprofessional conduct you mentioned above and are not on the blacklist because the director and actor had some personal disagreements? More specifically, how many actresses did Harvey Weinstein place on a blacklist because they did not give into his sexual demands?
My personal position on theatrical blacklists are 1) I only pat attention to blacklists if a) they are my own; 2) I can independently verify the justification for the blacklist. However, regarding conduct like that at issue, I will take pains to alert every other director and producer and theatrical organization regarding the performer (or designer) in question. That’s an obligation. For example, I engaged a director/designer who walked out on his own show and cast before curtain on opening night because he became angry at the producer for something, and threw a fit. He literally “never worked in this town again.” I made certain of it.
From ‘The Guardian’ 16 Dec 2017. Film director Peter Jackson has admitted to blacklisting actors Ashley Judd and Mira Sorvino in response to a “smear campaign” orchestrated by accused sexual predator Harvey Weinstein.
“I recall Miramax telling us they were a nightmare to work with and we should avoid them at all costs,” Jackson said, referencing the production company Weinstein ran with his brother Bob. As a direct result, he said, both women fell out of the running for parts in his Lord of the Rings series.
“At the time, we had no reason to question what these guys were telling us. But in hindsight, I realize that this was very likely the Miramax smear campaign in full swing. I now suspect we were fed false information about both of these talented women.”
It looks like not everyone verifies what they are told.
I look at this at not unlike the Pharmacist who won’t fill birth control prescriptions. If you are a professional, then be professional and do your job while respecting other people’s political beliefs. Your job is not to stump for or against parties or candidates.
After all, political speech is supposed to be the very most highly protected speech of all.
–Dwayne
That’s a perfect analogy.