Content Warning: Homophobia, Homophobic Slurs
Dolly Parton's latest musical, Here You Come Again, has hit stages in the United States and the United Kingdom, and some supposed Parton fans have not been happy.
The show stars Steven Webb as Kevin, a struggling comedian and a diehard fan of Dolly Parton, and Tricia Paoluccio as Dolly Parton, sometimes as a dream-state figure and sometimes as the real-life Dolly Parton.
In addition to featuring an all-new story of Kevin and Dolly, the musical includes some Dolly Parton fan favorites, such as "I Will Always Love You," "Jolene," and "9 to 5."
While touring, though, Webb was shocked by the reception of the musical.
"The amount of audience members we have had to eject from our shows due to homophobia is insane."
"It is insane! Just this week in Manchester alone."
"Last night, we had to eject someone who was shouting out slurs."
In one situation, the musical had to be totally paused with the curtain going down while the disruption was resolved.
"On Wednesday, we had to stop the whole show. We had to do an entire show stop and leave the stage, because a woman was so disgusted that there was a gay character on stage."
"She was shouting out, and then all the audience was shouting at her, and there was this massive ruckus."
"Eventually, she was ejected, and we could start again, but we were stopped for 15 or 20 minutes. It was crazy."
Webb was alarmed by how widely spread the homophobia was.
"It's happening in nearly every city, literally. It just blows my mind."
"This is a Dolly Parton musical, first of all. It's just me and Dolly Parton on stage, my character and Dolly Parton."
"London was the worst, which is crazy to me. I remember one guy who was shouting the F-slur. He was shouting, 'I'm not here to watch some f**king [f-slur] talk about his boyfriend! I just want to see Dolly Parton!'"
"The amount of people, it really just opened my eyes. We live in such a bubble in this industry, but traveling the country and seeing how many people literally cannot bear to see a gay person depicted on stage is wild."
While critiquing the homophobic outbursts, Webb points out:
"It's amazing to me, because it's a Dolly Parton musical. It's going to be a little bit gay."
"But also, read the synopsis."
"Also, again, it's Dolly Parton, it's a musical, and it's a Dolly Parton musical!"
And Webb is not wrong. Looking at the synopsis for the musical comedy, the story follows a diehard Dolly Parton fan who is "on the wrong side of age 40" and who has to move back into his parents' house during the pandemic. The character is portrayed as artistic, gay, and dreaming of finding his place in the world and the art scene.
For someone to show up at Here You Come Again expecting to "just see Dolly Parton" sounds like someone did not do any research about the show they had purchased tickets for.
You can watch Webb's video here:
Supporters of Steven Webb were flabbergasted by what homophobic "fans" were expecting to see.
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Since Webb shared his video, the production team behind the Here You Come Again musical released a statement:
"In light of homophobic comments and abuse directed at our company, the producers of 'Here You Come Again' condemn this abhorrent behavior in the strongest way."
"Individuals making such comments are not welcome at our show. They have been, and will be, ejected from the theater immediately."
"We stand against all forms of prejudice and are extremely proud of the inclusivity and respect which 'Here You Come Again' celebrates."
While there's nothing wrong with being a diehard Dolly Parton fan, it's important to note that a musical involving Dolly will contain other story elements, songs, and characters.
Given Dolly's inclusive nature, it seems it should be especially expected of one of her shows!
She most certainly wouldn't want a whole show to have to be stopped just because of someone's hateful comments.
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