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“Jagged Little Pill” arrives at tonight’s Tony Awards with 15 nominations, more than any other show, but also with its producers facing two controversies that have drawn close scrutiny and an apology.
The show, a musical featuring songs by Alanis Morissette and a storyline that explores a host of social issues, is one of three nominees for Best Musical and is a top contender in the Actress categories. best presented and best book. He plans to resume performances on Broadway next month.
But as the Tonys approached, the show’s producers found themselves responding to criticism of how representations of a character’s gender identity evolved as the series developed, and on the accusation of a former cast member who said they were asked to delay surgery. (Tony’s voting period ended in March, before this accusation was made public.)
On Saturday, the show’s main producers, Vivek J. Tiwary, Arvind Ethan David and Eva Price, noted that they had hired a labor attorney to review a charge against the former actor, Nora Schell, who uses the pronouns them and them, and who noted the production had asked them to delay a procedure to remove vaginal cysts. The performing artists ‘union, Actors’ Equity, also said he would investigate; Schell said a union vice president was among those who mismanaged the medical issues.
The producers’ statement came just over a week after the musical apologized for its response to concerns about the gender identity of one of the show’s main characters, Jo, who is played by Lauren Patten, nominated for best film. actress in a musical.
During the show’s pre-Broadway airing, some people saw Jo as a rare example of a non-binary performance in a major musical; when the show subsequently moved to Broadway, some of those fans were disappointed with the role’s development.
“In Jo, we set out to portray a character on a genre journey with no known outcome,” the lead producers said. “Throughout the creative process, as the character evolved and changed, between Boston and Broadway, we made mistakes in the way we handled that evolution. In a process designed to clarify and rationalize, many lines that flagged Jo as gender non-conforming, and with them, something vital and integral, have been removed from Jo’s character journey.
The producers said they had “hired a new dramaturgical team (which includes non-binary, transgender and BIPOC representation), to revisit and deepen the script.”
Schell, who was a member of the ensemble when the musical opened in late 2019, has raised concerns about the behind-the-scenes treatment on Twitter.
“During the JAGGED LITTLE PILL series premieres on Broadway, I was intimidated, coerced and forced by several supervisors to postpone the surgery CRITICAL AND NECESSARY to remove the growths from my vagina that was making me anemic,” wrote Schell.
The producers responded with their own statement, declaring himself “deeply disturbed” by the allegations and pledging to “take this matter very seriously”.
“Broadway shows are inherently collaborative human endeavors, so there is nothing more important to us than our people,” they said. “We are committed to continuing to foster a work environment where everyone feels valued and respected. “
One of the show’s Tony-nominated stars, Celia Rose Gooding, said on Twitter on Saturday that she was concerned about the allegations. In response to Schell’s tweet, she wrote, “This is unacceptable. No one should have to postpone the necessary medical treatment for a show, ever.
And, in a more general tweet saying goodbye to the show, which she is leaving for a role in “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds”, she wrote that she “cannot ignore the harm Jagged has done to the trans and non-binary community.”
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