A Dolly Parton-inspired musical was brought to a halt when the entire cast walked off stage in protest against an audience member who expressed ‘disgust at a gay character’.
Stevie Webb, a performer in the production Here You Come Again, has voiced his concerns about the homophobic abuse that the cast is subjected to almost every week while performing in the show inspired by a gay icon and LGBTQ+ ally.
A performance last Wednesday at Manchester’s Opera House was reportedly postponed due to a woman causing a disturbance by shouting homophobic slurs. .Webb mentioned this incident followed a show in London where a man had to be removed for uttering a homophobic slur.
In a statement shared on Twitter (X) on Monday, the official account for Here You Come Again stated: “In light of homophobic comments and abuse directed at our company, the producers of Here You Come Again condemn this abhorrent behaviour in the strongest way.
“Individuals making such comments are not welcome at our show. They have been – and will be – ejected from the theatre immediately. We stand against all forms of prejudice and are extremely proud of the inclusivity and respect which Here You Come Again celebrates.”
Opening up about the abuse on TikTik, Webb told his followers: “The amount of audience members that we have had to eject from our show due to homophobia is insane. Just this week, in Manchester alone, last night we had to eject someone who was shouting out slurs.
“On Wednesday we had to stop the whole show, because a woman was so disgusted there was a gay character on the stage. She was shouting out and then all the audience started shouting at her and there was a massive ruckus. She was eventually ejected and we could start again but we were stopped for 15 or 20 minutes.”
He continued: “It is crazy it is happening nearly every single week and it just blows my mind. This is a Dolly Parton musical, first of all. It is just me and Dolly Parton on stage, my character and Dolly Parton. London was the worst which is crazy to me. I remember one guy who was shouting the f-slur he was like ‘I’m not here to watch some f-ing f***** talk about his boyfriend, I’m just here to see Dolly Parton’.
“It’s just like listen to what you just said, you’re gay. It’s a Dolly Parton musical mate, you’re gay, it’s going to be a little bit gay obviously. But the amount of people, it has really opened my eyes because we are in such a bubble in this industry, but travelling the country and seeing how many people literally cannot bare to see a gay person depicted on stage, it is wild.”
Webb concluded his video saying: “I feel very sorry for them, it would be like if I had that reaction to the colour blue because it exists, it’s not going anywhere, but I could not escape it. So I feel really bad for them because I would be like ‘Oh f*** the sky” but eventually I’d probably just realise oh it’s not actually hurting me and it is not affecting my life, it is just blue and it’s just not my favourite colour. But no, they don’t come to that realisation. It is amazing. But also, read the synopsis. It is a musical and it is a Dolly Parton musical. You’re gay.”
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