On Friday, November 18th, America's future Vice President Mike Pence and his family headed to the Richard Rodgers Theatre to see Hamilton: An American Musical. I don't really know what he was expecting walking into the theatre, but the outcome was nothing short of historic.
Hamilton's ticket prices have been through the roof ever since the musical made it's way to Broadway back in July of 2015 because of it's brilliant approach to American history, as well as it's use of hip hop and rap within the musical theatre community. The cast is made up of and celebrates several different races, cultures, sexualities, religions, etc. and is consistently praised for doing so. I mean, rightfully so- whether you like the show or not, you cannot deny that the diversity of this cast and the message it portrays is absolutely monumental and has paved the way for the future of theatre. So what I'm not understanding is- why did Mike Pence, who has outwardly claimed he is unsupportive of the LGTBQ+ community and has no respect for races other than his own, decide to see this show? And more importantly, what the hell did he expect? The majority of the people inside of the Richard Rodgers Theatre are currently having their rights threatened by him, and he was shocked when the cast spoke directly to him after the show in front of their audience about the fear and anxiety fluctuating throughout our country.
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My favorite part (sarcasm intended, because this is ridiculous and I hate it), is when Donald Trump, our next 'President' made a public statement about the situation by tweeting about it- claiming that Pence was 'harassed.' Okay, folks, let's talk about harassment. A cast of artists who fear for the rights of their family, their friends and themselves and publicly speaking about it is not harassment. Not once did they call Pence derogatory names nor did they ever threaten him. In fact, they told the audience to stop booing him and sincerely thanked him for coming to the show. That is not harassment. Harassment is publicly mocking someone with a disability. Harassment is calling women "fat slobs" and several other terrible names. Harassment is having to go on trial for raping a 13 year old. Harassment is telling a young woman that you're 'excited for Trump to be president' so that you could touch her inappropriately (I'd link you to this one, but unfortunately this is something that has happened to me and a few of my friends). Harassment is not expression, harassment is making another human being, or a group of such, feel attacked, pressured, and intimidated. Don't agree with me? Take it up with the New Oxford American Dictionary, bitch.
Articles and news outlets have been reporting since the night of the show that Pence "actually liked" the show. That's cool, I'm glad. He spent enough money on it. That doesn't change the fact that just his presence made people feel threatened. This is the future of our country, people.
So what do we take from this weekend of rioting in the theatre? Well, I think it's safe to assume that Pence probably won't be seeing another show anytime soon, which is a shame because I really do think that theatre has the power to encourage individuals to be more accepting and open. But for real, from this, we agree to fight. We agree to make our art even bolder than it was yesterday, but not nearly as bold as it will be tomorrow. We agree to love who we want to love and to accept one another for doing the same. We agree to make each other feel safe and protected. The time is now.
"History is happening in Manhattan and we just happen to be in the greatest city in the world."
