Patti LuPone Apologizes for Her ‘Demeaning and Disrespectful' Comments on Kecia Lewis and Audra McDonald
Patti LuPone has issued an apology after hundreds of members of the Broadway community condemned her recent remarks disparaging fellow Broadway actresses Kecia Lewis and Audra McDonald.
'For as long as I have worked in the theatre, I have spoken my mind and never apologized. That is changing today,' LuPone wrote in the opening of a statement released via Instagram on Saturday (May 31).
More from Billboard
Patti LuPone Called Out by Broadway Community in Open Letter Condemning 'Bullying' & 'Harassment'
Cynthia Erivo Opens Up About Her Queerness: 'The More Yourself You Are, The Better Understanding Starts to Happen'
The Roots Apologize to Fans After First Day of 2025 Roots Picnic Marred By Long Lines: 'Safety Will Always Be Our Number 1 Priority'
'I am deeply sorry for the words I used during The New Yorker interview, particularly about Kecia Lewis, which were demeaning and disrespectful. I regret my flippant and emotional responses during this interview, which were inappropriate, and I am devastated that my behavior has offended others and has run counter to what we hold dear in this community. I hope to have the chance to speak to Audra and Kecia personally to offer my sincere apologies,' said LuPone.
LuPone's response arrived the day after after an open letter directed at her — and signed by more than 500 individuals in the Broadway world — was published in outcry to comments from the actress perceived to be 'degrading and misogynistic,' as well as a 'blatant act of racialized disrespect.' The letter was also aimed at 'a culture, a pattern' in the Broadway industry: 'a persistent failure to hold people accountable for violent, disrespectful, or harmful behavior — especially when they are powerful or well-known.'
In Saturday's statement, LuPone acknowledged the message of the letter and expressed regret over what she said about her peers.
'I wholeheartedly agree with everything that was written in the open letter shared yesterday,' she wrote. 'From middle school drama clubs to professional stages, theatre has always been about lifting each other up and welcoming those who feel they don't belong anywhere else. I made a mistake, I take full responsibility for it, and I am committed to making this right. Our entire theatre community deserves better.'
The New Yorker ran a profile on LuPone earlier this week that quoted her calling Lewis — who's in the Alicia Keys-created Broadway musical Hell's Kitchen, which was performed next door to the LuPone-starring The Roommate in 2024 — a 'b—-' for considering herself a stage 'veteran.'
The piece had LuPone recounting complaints she'd made to Shubert Organization head Robert Wankel that sound from Lewis' Hell's Kitchen could be heard during her stage time in The Roommate. (Lewis had responded to LuPone's complaints on Instagram at the time, and deemed them 'bullying,' 'racially microaggressive' and 'rooted in privilege' for calling 'a Black show loud.')
'She calls herself a veteran?' LuPone said in The New Yorker article dated May 26. 'Let's find out how many Broadway shows Kecia Lewis has done, because she doesn't know what the f— she's talking about. Don't call yourself a vet, b—-.'
LuPone also remarked that she had a 'rift' with McDonald, who'd shown support for Lewis: 'That's typical of Audra. She's not a friend,' LuPone told The New Yorker; McDonald later said she was unaware of the rift.
LuPone, a three-time Tony Award and two-time Grammy Award winner, in 2024 starred as Robyn opposite Mia Farrow's Sharon in The Roommate for the dark comedy's four-month engagement on Broadway at the Booth Theatre. She just wrapped a series of concert dates that ran across select U.S. cities from late January through late May, with a couple festival appearances slated for this summer.
In 2024 Lewis won her first Tony, for best featured actress in a musical, for her work as Miss Liza Jane in Hell's Kitchen, the Broadway production whose performers were also awarded the Grammy for best musical theater album last year. Hell's Kitchen is presently still playing on Broadway at the Shubert Theatre.
McDonald, currently leading the Broadway revival of Gypsy at the Majestic Theatre, has won six Tonys, two Grammys and an Emmy throughout her career. Nominated for her portrayal of Rose in Gypsy, she's up for another Tony, for best actress in a musical, at this year's ceremony. She holds a record number of total Tony nominations (11).
The 2025 Tony Awards will broadcast live to both coasts on CBS just a week from today, from 8 to 11 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 8; the show will also stream on Paramount+.
Best of Billboard
Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1
Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits
H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
San Francisco Chronicle
19 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
New S.F. Pride festival loses headliner weeks before event
Oakland R&B singer Kehlani has pulled out of the lineup for San Francisco's new Pride celebration, SoSF, leaving the event without a main headliner three weeks before it's scheduled to take place. The festival, a new one-day block party, announced that the 'After Hours' singer has decided to no longer be a part of the line-up' in an Instagram post shared on Thursday, June 5. Organizers also announced that the event, set for June 28, will no longer be held at Pier 80's warehouse. Instead, it will take place outdoors at 900 Marin Street, just across the street from the original location. The Chronicle has reached out to SoSF for more information. 'Nasty' singer Tinashe and Grammy-winning pop artist Kim Petras remain on the updated bill as headliners, and German DJ and Portola Festival alum Horsegirl has been added as a special guest. Still others on the festival's roster appear to be in flux. San Francisco DJ Adam Kraft, the 'Reparations' drag show and event company Fake and Gay have also dropped out of the lineup according to an Instagram story post from Kraft, which Fake and Gay then reposted. Kraft teased that a statement on the artists' decision to drop out would be 'prepared soon.' None of these acts are listed on the SoSF website anymore. Kehlani has been under fire recently for her stance on the war in Gaza. Her performance at Cornell University's end-of-school-year Slope Day was nixed by the school's president in April due to what he deemed 'antisemitic, anti-Israel sentiments." The artist has frequently used her platform to speak out in opposition against Israel and Zionism. She included keffiyehs, traditional Arabic scarves often associated with Palestinian identity, in the music video for her 2024 song 'Next 2 U,' which also uses the phrase 'long live the intifada,' which translates to 'uprising' or 'resistance' in Arabic. The term is also considered, by some, as a call for violence against Jews. Though the Oakland School for the Arts alum quickly responded via an Instagram video, refuting accusations of antisemitism by clarifying that she is 'anti-genocide' and 'anti the actions of the Israeli government,' more concert cancellations followed.
Business Insider
20 minutes ago
- Business Insider
The stars of 'Stranger Things,' ranked by success
14. Priah Ferguson Ferguson, who plays Lucas' sassy (and almost always correct) little sister Erica Sinclair, is the youngest member of the main cast at 18. She was 11 when she joined "Stranger Things" in season two. Impressively, while she was shooting the show, she was also balancing her studies — she graduated from high school this year. She wrote to her 3.6 million Instagram followers that "balancing an adult career — on and off screen" while maintaining an above-average GPA at her public high school was a "unique journey." Besides playing Erica, Ferguson had roles in the films "The Oath" and "The Curse of Bridge Hollow" (another Netflix joint). She's also had voice roles in animated series "Hamster & Gretel" and "My Dad the Bounty Hunter." Now she's done with school and has more time to focus on her career, we expect Ferguson will appear in more scene-stealing roles. 13. Charlie Heaton Heaton, 31, plays Jonathan Byers, Will's devoted older brother who will do anything to help Will and his mom. He was 22 when the show began, playing a high school sophomore. The British actor hasn't done much outside the show. He was in the calamitous final 20th Century Fox "X-Men" movie, " The New Mutants," in 2020, which essentially doesn't exist. He also stared in the indie movie "No Future," which never had a wide release, and "The Souvenir Part II," which was critically beloved but not a big box-office hit. On the TV front, he only appeared in an episode of the 2020 anthology series "Soulmate." And while he has 5.3 million followers on Instagram, that number doesn't compare to some of the follower counts of his fellow cast members. We'd argue that Heaton's biggest claim to fame is his real-life relationship with Natalia Dyer, his on-screen love interest. 12. Natalia Dyer Speaking of Dyer, 30, she's next up on the list. She plays Nancy Wheeler, Mike's older sister with an investigative streak. Nancy was also involved in a love triangle with her first love, Steve, and Jonathan. She eventually picked Jonathan, but some moments in season four made it seem like a possible "Stancy" reunion is in the cards. Dyer, who was 21 when the show began, has the edge on her boyfriend, Heaton. She's appeared in multiple short films during her "Stranger Things" tenure, and had supporting roles in films like "Velvet Buzzsaw" and "Things Heard & Seen" (both Netflix films). She also had a lead role in the coming-of-age indie "Yes, God, Yes," released in 2020. But it's been five years, and she hasn't been able to parlay that into more leading roles. In 2023, she starred in the first season of the Peacock series "Based on a True Story" alongside Chris Messina and Kaley Cuoco. 11. Eduardo Franco Franco joined the cast in the fourth season of "Stranger Things" as Argyle, Jonathan's stoner best friend in California. Before even joining the show, 30-year-old Franco was well on his way to becoming a zillennial "that guy" — he's had recognizable roles in projects like " Booksmart," "Superintelligence," "Self Reliance," "American Vandal," and "Y2K" just last year. Franco also has had successful voice roles. He starred in "Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken," and has been playing DJ Catnip on the hit children's show "Gabby's Dollhouse" since 2021. A feature-length "Gabby's Dollhouse" film is set to premiere this year, with Franco reprising his role. His social media is what takes him down a bit, with 533,000 followers on Instagram. 10. Dacre Montgomery Montgomery was 23 years old when he joined "Stranger Things" in season two as Max's older stepbrother, Billy Hargrove, who made it his personal mission to bully Max, her friends, and even Steve. Now 30, Montgomery has been steadily working, but hasn't gotten his true big break. The same year he joined "Stranger Things," he starred in the ill-conceived "Power Rangers" movie as the Red Ranger. Since then, he had a small role in "Elvis" and starred in the underrated 2020 rom-com "The Broken Hearts Gallery." However, Montgomery has big things coming soon. He has three movies on the docket: "Faces of Death," which costars Barbie Ferreira, Josie Totah, Charli XCX, and Jermaine Fowler; "Dead Man's Wire," which will be directed by Gus Van Sant and costars Bill Skarsgård, Colman Domingo, Myha'la, and Cary Elwes; and "The Engagement Party" which will also be Montgomery's directorial debut. But since those projects haven't come out yet, he can't be too high on this list. 9. Noah Schnapp Schnapp, 20, has played Will Byers, who was originally taken to the Upside Down (a dark parallel universe) in the show's first episode, since he was 12. Pre-"Stranger Things," Schnapp had a small role in "Bridge of Spies" and played Charlie Brown in "The Peanuts Movie." Since playing Will, Schnapp had a small role in "Hubie Halloween" (a Netflix movie) and starred in the indie film "Waiting for Anya," both in 2020. In the five years since, he's had just one other role, appearing in the 2023 thriller "The Tutor," which was a flop critically and financially. There's a reason for his slowdown in work, though — since 2022, he's attended the University of Pennsylvania. He's also leveraged his fame to become a business owner (he started the company TBH, which is a healthier alternative to spreads like Nutella) and YouTuber. He has 4.56 million subscribers on the site, even though he hasn't posted in years. He also has a huge Instagram presence, with 21.4 million followers. Schnapp has mainly been in headlines for his views on the Israel-Hamas conflict. Per Entertainment Weekly, after he made posts supporting Zionism in 2023, some fans called for a boycott of season five (which was then in production) or for Schnapp to be fired. In a January 2024 TikTok post, he said, "I feel like my thoughts and beliefs have been so far misconstrued from anything even close to what I believe." He continued, "I think anyone with any ounce of humanity would hope for an end to the hostility on both sides." 8. Caleb McLaughlin McLaughlin has played Lucas Sinclair, the more levelheaded and skeptical member of the core group, since season one, when he was 15. Now 23, McLaughlin has arguably undergone the biggest transformation — he even has a beard! Like many of his costars, McLaughlin has continued to work with Netflix. He appeared in "High Flying Bird" (directed by Steven Soderbergh), "Concrete Cowboy," and "The Deliverance," all Netflix originals. He had a role in the 2023 biblical comedy "The Book of Clarence," which was a box-office flop but critically well-liked. He also played former NBA player and current college coach Dru Joyce III in "Shooting Stars," a Peacock film about a young LeBron James. "Stranger Things" isn't the only TV show he's done, either. He played Ricky Bell in the BET miniseries "The New Edition Story," and has had voice roles in "Summer Camp Island," "Ultra City Smiths," and "The Boys Presents: Diabolical." 7. Gaten Matarazzo Matarazzo, 22, plays the lovably geeky Dustin Henderson, who formed a bond with older kids Steve and Eddie. He was 14 when the show began airing. Matarazzo has since built himself a very well-rounded career. In addition to his movie roles ("Honor Society," "My Father's Dragon," "Please Don't Destroy: The Treasure of Foggy Mountain" and the upcoming "Animal Farm" remake) and theater roles ("Into the Woods," "Parade," and the original cast of the "Sweeney Todd" revival), Matarazzo has also made himself a TV personality; he executive-produced and hosted the Netflix hidden-camera series "Prank Encounters." 6. Maya Hawke Hawke, 26, joined the show in season three in 2019, when she was 21. She plays Robin Buckley, originally Steve's coworker at Scoops Ahoy, but soon she becomes his best friend. She's also one of the show's two canonically queer characters, alongside Will. Technically, Hawke has been famous since birth, as her parents are Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman. But 2019 was her breakout year, as she joined "Stranger Things" and appeared in "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood." Like the rest of her costars, Hawke has a good relationship with Netflix. She starred in "Fear Street Part One: 1994," "Do Revenge," and "Maestro," all on the streamer. Besides that, Hawke appeared in the Wes Anderson film "Asteroid City" and the highest-grossing film of 2024, " Inside Out 2." She voiced a new emotion, Anxiety. Next year will be a big one, though. Hawke was announced to be joining the cast of " The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping" as Wiress, originally played by Amanda Plummer in "Catching Fire." Hawke has a music career, as well. She's released three albums: "Blush" (2020), "Moss" (2022), and "Chaos Angel" (2024). She's set to resume her world tour for "Chaos Angel" this summer. 5. Finn Wolfhard Wolfhard, 22, is the show's lead character, Mike Wheeler. He's the one who decides to go looking for Will after he goes missing and forms a special bond with the mysterious girl they meet in the woods. We know the most about his home life, as his sister Nancy is a main character, and we've met his parents and younger sister, as well. He began playing Mike when he was 13 years old. Wolfhard has two successful franchises to his name. He played young Richie in 2017's " It" (which made $704 million) and 2019's " It Chapter Two" (which made $473 million). He also appeared in " Ghostbusters: Afterlife" and "Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire," which each made around $200 million worldwide. In 2024, he had a small role in "Saturday Night," and this year, he appeared in the A24 film "The Legend of Ochi." His directorial debut, "Hell of a Summer," premiered this April and made back its budget, per The Numbers. Wolfhard has also become a successful voice actor. He voiced Pugsley in the animated "Addams Family" movie, which also made around $200 million (though he was recast for the 2021 sequel), and voiced Candlewick in 2021's " Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio," which went on to win best animated feature at the Academy Awards. It's a wonder that Wolfhard also has time for a career as a musician. From 2017 to 2019, he was the lead singer of the band Calpurnia. He then joined the band The Aubreys, which released its debut album in 2021. On June 6, Wolfhard will release his debut solo album called "Happy Birthday." He's going on a mini-tour to support it during the month. 4. Joe Keery At last, we've come to Keery, aka Steve " The Hair" Harrington. Steve began the show as one of the mean popular kids, but has gone through a heartwarming transformation to become a fan favorite. Also, remember that baseball bat with the nails in it? Swoon. Keery was 24 when the show started airing, and now he's 33, the oldest of the main "kids" cast. His career has taken off since then. He was the lead of the 2020 black comedy/horror film "Spree," starred in "Free Guy" and "Pavements," and has an upcoming film co-starring Liam Neeson, Lesley Manville, and Vanessa Redgrave called "Cold Storage." He also had a main role in the fifth season of the anthology series " Fargo." But where Keery's edge lies is his music. While his costars have semi-successful musical careers, Keery (as his alter ego Djo) has had real success. His song "End of Beginning" was a bona fide hit in 2024, peaking at No. 11 on the Hot 100 chart, and received Billboard Music Award and Brit Award nominations. His 2025 album, "The Crux," peaked at No. 10 on the US Rock chart and No. 50 on the Billboard 200. The song "Charlie's Garden " is dedicated to his "Stranger Things" costar and friend Charlie Heaton. While Keery doesn't have a personal Instagram, he does have one as Djo, which has 1.4 million followers. He'll be touring through October 2025. 3. Sadie Sink Sink, 23, joined "Stranger Things" in season two as Max Mayfield, the new kid in Hawkins and a tomboy able to keep up with Mike and his friends, when she was 14. She eventually develops a close friendship with Eleven and begins dating Lucas in season three. Max was one of the biggest parts of season four. A pivotal scene in which she escapes the Upside Down helped bring the 1985 Kate Bush song " Running Up That Hill" back to the top of the charts, peaking at No. 3 on the Hot 100. Since joining "Stranger Things," Sink starred in the two Netflix horror films: "Fear Street 1978" and "Fear Street 1666." She also starred in the 2022 Oscar-winning film "The Whale," which earned her a Critics' Choice Award nomination. She began starring in the Broadway play "John Proctor Is the Villain" in 2025, which earned her a Tony Award nomination for best actress in a play. Sink is rumored to have an undisclosed role in the 2026 film "Spider-Man: Brand New Day," per Deadline. Now, we can't talk about Sink without mentioning her role as, essentially, the Taylor Swift self-insert role in " All Too Well: The Short Film," the music video for the 10-minute version of "All Too Well." If Swift picks you to play a fictional version of herself, you know you've made it. 2. Joseph Quinn If you were on TikTok in the summer of 2022, it was impossible to miss the sound of Quinn's voice screaming for Chrissy to wake up. Quinn, 31, joined the cast in season four as a high school (super) senior named Eddie Munson, a heavy-metal-loving, Dungeons-and-Dragons-playing sweetie who bonds with Dustin. Quinn's this high on the list because, in the three years since he was on the show, his career has soared. Since last year, he's been in "A Quiet Place: Day One" (a hit), " Gladiator II" (another hit), " Warfare," and will play none other than the Human Torch in " The Fantastic Four: First Steps" in July. And that's not all. In addition to reprising his role in "Avengers: Doomsday," he was announced to be playing George Harrison in Sam Mendes' four-part Beatles movie extravaganza. Quinn has 5.6 million followers on Instagram — not bad for someone who only joined the app in 2022 to promote "Stranger Things." 1. Millie Bobby Brown We haven't really mentioned Eleven (as played by Brown) in this ranking, because it's hard to explain her character without sounding a bit out there. But here we go: Eleven is a young girl who escaped from a secret government lab after discovering she has immense psychic powers. Brown, 21, was easily the breakout star of the show. During Halloween 2016, that pink dress, blonde wig, fake nosebleed, and Eggo box were unavoidable. Brown was just 12 when "Stranger Things" premiered, and received back-to-back Emmy nominations before she was 16. Since then, she's appeared in "Godzilla: King of the Monsters" ($387 million worldwide) and "Godzilla vs. Kong" ($470 million worldwide). She's also starred and produced in four Netflix movies (" Enola Holmes," "Enola Holmes 2," "Damsel" and " The Electric State" — three of which were huge hits) and has another "Enola" film on the way. She's proven herself to be a savvy businesswoman. She was reportedly paid $10 million for " Enola Holmes 2," and Brown has founded three successful companies: Florence by Mills Beauty, Florence by Mills Coffee, and Florence by Mills Fashion. Her beauty brand is available at Ulta, while her coffee is on shelves at Walmart. Brown also proved just how famous she was when she married Jake Bongiovi (son of Jon Bon Jovi) in 2024 and their wedding made dozens of headlines. And in case all that hasn't convinced you, Brown is far and away the most followed person from the cast, with a staggering 63.8 million followers on Instagram.
Yahoo
31 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Week of events in Reading will celebrate Juneteenth
Several events spanning more than a week will honor the Juneteenth holiday this year in Reading. Juneteenth, celebrated annually on June 19, marks the date on which slavery came to an end in the United States. It commemorates that date in 1865 — two years after President Abraham Lincoln 'freed' the slaves with the Emancipation Proclamation — when Union soldiers led by Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas bearing the message that all enslaved people were now free. The slaves in Galveston were the last remaining in the U.S. In Reading, the holiday will be celebrated with a host of events running between June 10 and June 19. The theme of this year's celebration is 'Across the Diaspora: Unity, Liberation and the Global Ties That Bind Us.' The Juneteenth events include: • Film Screenings — The film 'Juneteenth: Faith and Freedom' will be shown at the Reading Public Museum at 1 p.m. on June 10 and at 2 p.m. on June 11. • Youth introduction to Juneteenth — Will be held at the Pendora Park Olivet Boys & Girls Club at 2 p.m. on June 12. • Flag raising ceremony — Will be held at Reading City Park beginning at noon on June 13. • Kickoff reception — Will be held at the Berks History Center, 940 Centre Avenue, starting at 2 p.m. on June 13. • Community family barbecue — Will take place at the Berks Lodge #47, 237 Walnut St., from noon to 6 p.m. on June 14th. • Closing celebration — Will be held June 15 at Holy Trinity Church of God, 130 W. Buttonwood St., starting at 10:15 a.m. • Free day at the Reading Public Museum — Free admission to the Reading Public Museum and Planetarium will be offered on June 19. Community members are also encouraged support Black-owned local businesses throughout June.
