The Broadway musical KPOP is closing due to poor box office returns after 17 standard performances after 44 previews.
The production, which includes K-pop stars such as Luna and BoHyung leading a cast of young performers, is set to hold its final show Sunday at the Circle in the Square Theater, Deadline reported.
Last week, the musical grossed $126,493 with an average low price of $32, filling 72% of the spots on the site.
The Last: The Broadway musical KPOP is closing due to poor box office returns after 17 standard performances after 44 previews. The show was photographed at an October preview
KPOP began previews on October 13, with its official opening date on November 27.
KPOP producers are offering 200 free tickets to AAPI community members and children for Sunday’s show, which will include a post-music panel with AAPI theater artists such as Tony David Award-winning playwright M. Butterfly Henry Hwang , Korean playwright Hansol Jung, performer Pun Bandhu and KPOP composer Helen Park.
Organizations such as AAPAC (Asian American Performers Action Coalition), Gold House, the Ma-Yi Theater Company, and TAAF (The Asian American Foundation) sponsor the show.
The musical, which was directed by Teddy Bergman, features a cast including Julia Abueva, Major Curda, Jinwoo Jung, Jiho Kang, Amy Keum, James Kho, Marina Kondo, Eddy Lee, Joshua Lee, Jully Lee, Lina Rose Lee, Timothy H Lee, Abraham Lim, Min, Kate Mina Lin, Aubie Merrylees, Patrick Park, Zachary Noah Piser, Kevin Woo and John Yi.
Cast members of KPOP are seen at the end of a performance of the musical at the Circle in the Square Theater in November
South Korean singer Luna is seen performing in the musical, as a number of cast members are K-pop stars in Korea
Park presided over musical production and arrangements and worked with Max Vernon on music and lyrics, with Jennifer Weber on choreography.
KPOP producers said they were proud to be the first Broadway production to feature Korean stories written by Korean artists while marking the Broadway debut of 18 original AAPI cast members.
The shutdown comes as news producers accused The New York Times of publishing a “racist” review that implicated “white supremacy”.
New York Times theater critic Jesse Green was accused in an open letter of racism in his negative review of the production and demanded an apology.
The letter, written by KPOP producers Tim Forbes and Joey Parnes, claimed “astonishment” at the Times’ occasional racism and cultural insensitivity.
Most notably, the producers attacked the critic for describing the musical’s bright lights as “strabismus-inducing” – a “particularly egregious example” of cultural insensitivity, they said.
Green also suggested in his review that he had trouble understanding significant parts of the musical that were in Korean. The producers criticized this comment and argued that the Korean dialogue still made sense in its context.
New York Times theater critic Jesse Green (L) was accused in an open letter of racism in his negative review of the production and demanded an apology from producer Joey Parnes (R)
“Is a Broadway show only good if it’s centered and exclusively for a white English-speaking audience?” they wrote.
Throughout the letter, they claimed that Green’s negativity toward the show was rooted in a general distaste for Korean culture and music, but in his review he said that an Off Broadway version of the same comedy music in 2017 was “far superior”.
In a response to the letter, The Times stood by the review saying, “We have seen the open letter written about KPOP’s review by the Times and quickly convened a discussion between the editors and the members of our standards department.”
“This group agreed that Jesse’s criticism was fair. More importantly, we totally disagree with the argument that Jesse’s review is somehow racist.
KPOP, which opened in November, tells the story of three KPOP groups, all managed by a major label, coming together to hold a concert that will introduce them to an American audience.
It features established KPOP artists – a point the producers made in their letter after Green said in his Times review: “If you’re not a fan, you may feel drained by the aggressive mimicry of the performance style. K-pop.”
“He collectively characterizes the style of performance as ‘aggressive mimicry’ – another ill-chosen, racially insensitive and ultimately ignorant expression. Four of the cast members are true K-pop idols in Korea. They ‘imitate’ nothing,’ the producers wrote.
KPOP, which opened in November, tells the story of three KPOP groups, all managed by a major label, coming together to hold a concert that will introduce them to an American audience.
One of the show’s stars, Abraham Lin, took to Instagram to express his disappointment at Green’s criticism.
“When you say squinty eye…you can find better words,” Lin said in the video.
“If you’re not an Asian American who was made fun of for your squinting or slanting eyes, I’m sorry, I don’t want to hear from you right now. You can sit down,” he added. he.
Viewers of the musical who read Green’s review also took to social media to offer their own thoughts.
On Facebook, a user suggested that the Korean parts of the musical made sense in context
Another comment attacked the Times for its lack of diversity
Many readers in the NYT comments section supported Green’s criticism
A Facebook user agreed with the producers that there was enough context that without speaking Korean it was still possible to follow what was going on.
Another criticized The Times for its lack of diversity. “They used to have a public defender who could research and report allegations of their reporting and editing failures, but I think they got rid of that role,” they said.
Many in the comments section of The Times supported Green. “That an actor’s response to a mild criticism is to accuse the critic of bigotry and bias is honestly concerning. These are serious accusations to make against someone just because they didn’t like your show.
Part 1 of 2 – KPOP producers Tim Forbes and Joey Parnes published an open letter criticizing The Times review
Part 2 of 2 – KPOP producers Tim Forbes and Joey Parnes published an open letter criticizing The Times review
