When the mob came and got her and dragged her from the jail,
Madam,
They strung her from the old willow cross the way.
And the moment before she died,
She lifted up her lovely head and cried,
Madam.
Miss Otis regrets she’s unable to lunch today.
Cole Porter wrote “Miss Otis Regrets” in 1934… it’s been widely recorded and performed for decades since. Fascinating lyrics that juxtapose a blood thirsty mob bent on revenge with an upper crust matron who murders her lover. The violence/mannered society thang.
We don’t really need to dig deep lately, perhaps scratch the surface with a fingernail, to find similarities.. Republicans who smile and blather on about law and order while not really minding….
The interesting thing about the coupmob is they felt they had the right to overthrow a government that precariously belongs to the people..they were taking their due.. snatching what was owed to them.
Righting a wrong. Building a better tomorrow for themselves.
We liberal peeps have made it our mission to combat what has politely been called semi-fascism. This madness. With all our might we are seeking accountability and justice.
Miss Otis regrets to inform you this is sadly similar…
The madness on the flip side of the MAGAverse has chewed it’s way into the corporate soul of commercial theater and regrettably resulted in an empty seat at lunch.
“With great embarrassment and apologies, I’m asking you both to please back out of interpreting the show for us on Sunday, April 24,” Carling wrote. “I don’t see any other way out of this. It seems like the best solution.”
TDF director Lisa Carling
So, two white ASL interpreters were booted from their job signing “Lion King” because they are:
“Keith Wann, though an amazing ASL performer, is not a black person and therefore should not be representing Lion King,” she declared.
Evidently Keith is not…
OK, time to unpack.
I have long been fascinated by sign language interpreters at shows I’ve been in… sometimes honestly they’re more interesting than what’s happening onstage. I wind up watching them instead of the peeps I’m in a scene with. They are truly artists and I can’t imagine the thrill it is for a hearing impaired person to experience live theater so expressively.
The Theater Development Fund.. TDF… is the multi million dollar not for profit that oversees not only ASL interpreters, but the TKTS booth and a whole bunch of other theater outreach programs.
TDF is a not-for-profit organization that has been dedicated to bringing the power of the performing arts to everyone since 1968.
Their mission statement
TDF is heavily funded by grants and donations and, like every major Broadway show, was bestowed with millions of dollars in PPP loans during the pandemic.
So, how does a tax payer funded organization that’s been around since the 1960’s become undeniably racist?
How does the director of TDF not see “anyway out of this” and find the “best solution” is to fire contracted employees solely based on the color of their skin?
I’ve been asking myself that question, and it seems to me the answer lies in that polite society paradox Cole Porter so eloquently described.
The outward facing mish mosh of what is evidently a more just theater… a new world that is (more) racially diverse, where actors can take off for weddings and get mental health stipends if the shows they’re in are challenging(?) and get paid for babysitters while they give a 75% performance.. has it’s roots in a shitload of anger.
If you ask me, not terribly justified anger all the way around.
But anger.
Almost universally, the object of scorn is WAT.
What?!
I have been waiting patiently for my White American Theater membership card in the mail.
But I guess I belong. And I get bonus membership points for being gay. Yay.
The truth is whatever this is has been proudly adopted by theater corporations across the country, who are both desperate and I think a bit afraid to argue the finer points of what is garden variety homophobia and misogyny cloaked in racial justice.
If you need more anger, and have a moment…
https://tonyapinkins.medium.com/open-letter-to-jesse-green-of-the-new-york-times-5f897fb8448b
I guess Jesse Green must have gotten his WAT card… and, just as WAT, what?! is founded on whatWAT I would generously describe as anecdotal homophobia, the Tony award winning actress who wrote this decided to jump on the back of a blind and deaf disabled woman to make her pitch for equality.
The dogma is having real consequences across the theater industry… especially in Actors Equity. The last email I received from the “convention” stated marginalized members(who’s not?) had to clean up “messes” while concentrating on getting work for themselves:
We then welcomed Carmen Morgan and Nicole Brewer to convention. They are both activists and advocates at the forefront of creating a more just and inclusive theatre industry. They talked about how creation can be messy – and creators, especially creators of color, can be tasked with cleaning up other people’s messes at the same time we are trying to create our own work. That’s true of creative work in the theatre, and it’s true of the union work we do to make the industry better. It was a thrilling session, crackling with the energy of two smart women bringing their minds together. After they set the stage, the conversation expanded to include delegates, and we had a fruitful conversation about creating a culture of accountability in the union and in the theatre industry.
Actors Equity Convention
“Just”, “inclusive” and “mess” are left undefined.
But accountability sounds rather ominous to me..
We are now to the point where accountability means you lose your job if your skin happens to be white.
Perhaps now would be a good time to mention that the ASL interpreters are signing for actors playing animals.
Like cartoon animals.
Anyhoo, let’s take a moment for that to sink in.
Ok, we are now firing people based on the color of their skin who are portraying cartoon characters.
I think that may be a hard sell to the vast majority of ticket buyers. But, they are undoubtedly the last consideration in the equation.
It’s still hard for me to believe this stuff is real. On both sides of the extreme. I never thought I would see Republicans storm the Capitol and shit on the floor.. and I never thought I would see white sign language interpreters fired for being white while portraying cartoon characters so hearing impaired people could enjoy a show.
It’s just fucking lunacy to me.
What I’m sure of is more people in theater should have the backs of these fellow artists… regardless of the consequences.
Who were the interpreters fired on behalf of? The disabled community? Or, the Mob?
I think we all know the answer to that.
Miss Otis regrets she's unable to lunch today,
Madam, Miss Otis regrets she's unable to lunch today,
She's sorry to be delayed,
But last evening down in lovers lane she strayed,
Madam, Miss Otis regrets she's unable to lunch today.
When She woke up and found that her dream of love was gone,
Madam, She ran to the man who had led her so far astray,
And from under her velvet gown,
She drew a gun and shot her lover down,
Madam, Miss Otis regrets she's unable to lunch to day.
When the Mob came and got her and dragged her from the jail,
Madam, they strung her upon the willow across the way,
And the moment before she died,
She lifted up her lovely head and cried,
Madam, Miss Otis regrets she's unable to lunch today.
Robert DuSold 
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