"Godspell" actress Morgan James ignited a firestorm on twitter this week after she tweeted a scathing review of Into the Woods at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park. The Stephen Sondheim/James Lapine musical -- directed by Timothy Sheader -- stars Hollywood actress Amy Adams and Donna Murphy. Following the first preview of the production James tweeted:
“HOW can you **** up Into the Woods?? I fear musicianship is dead in musical theatre. And acting, for that matter. #horrified”
James’ tweet was deleted shortly after, but it did not stop fellow Broadway performers from responding directly to her statement. Broadway actor Matt Doyle responded:
Really don't like seeing Broadway actors trashing other shows on twitter. Have a little tact. We're all in this together.
— Matt Doyle (@MattfDoyle) July 25, 2012
Composer and lyricist Scott Alan echoed Doyle’s sentiments: “people read your tweets & you need to be apart of this industry & be respectful & feel honored to be working in it...it disgusts me to see performers judging art. Theatre is already judged by so many. WE are the ones who need to SUPPORT.”
Morgan James has since apologized for her original tweet:
A discussion started on the online site Broadwayworld has drawn more than 150 comments on the topic. Responses range from disgust to sympathy.
Earlier this year, "Phantom of the Opera" star Sofia Escobar took offense when a 48-year-old housewife insulted her on Twitter, writing that she couldn't stand the actress.
Escobar responded with, “It's ok cause I can't stand you either ;) x," and launched a discussion on cyberbulling. "“My job doesn't make me super human and respect goes down well no matter what profession people have," Escobar tweeted. "And I won't be insulted and not stand up for myself. Just because im a performer it doesn't give you a free pass to bullying.”
Into the Woods Twitter Firestorm
CORRECTION:A previous version of this article spelled Scott Alan's name incorrectly. It has since been fixed to reflect the true spelling.