Patti LuPoneisn't keeping the drama between her and Broadway veteranAudra McDonaldon the stage. In aninterview with The New Yorker, published May 26, LuPone said McDonald is "not a friend," sharing that they had a rift long ago. She declined to elaborate further. When asked about McDonald's supportive reaction to a social media post accusing LuPone of racial microaggressions, LuPone said, "That's typical of Audra." McDonald and LuPone have worked together several times, including costarring in the concert version of "Sweeney Todd" in 2000 and LA Opera's 2007 production of "Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny." McDonald is currently starring in "Gypsy" as Rose, a role that LuPone won a Tony for playing nearly two decades ago. "When I asked what she had thought of McDonald's current production of 'Gypsy,' she stared at me, in silence, for fifteen seconds," New Yorker writer Michael Schulman writes. "Then she turned to the window and sighed, 'What a beautiful day.'" LuPone also didn't mince words about recent drama with other Broadway productions, perhaps prompting the title of the New Yorker piece: "Patti LuPone is Done with Broadway." LuPone co-starred with Mia Farrow in"The Roommate" last year, which she said she left having "washed my hands of a couple of people in the business." During this production, she contacted the team behind "Hell's Kitchen" (which played next door to "The Roommate") about the sound bleeding through the walls. She later sent flowers as a thank-you to the crew. But it didn't go unnoticed to the public: Inone viral video, LuPone refused to sign a Hell's Kitchen playbill, saying, "they're too loud." "Hell's Kitchen" actorKecia Lewiscalled out LuPone inan Instagram videoin November, saying LuPone's comments and actions were "racially microaggressive." "Ms. LuPone, these actions, in my opinion, are bullying. They're offensive. They are racially microaggressive. They're rude," Lewis said in her Instagram video. "They're rooted in privilege and these actions also lack a sense of community and leadership for someone as yourself who has been in the business as long as you have." Lewis also said that LuPon's comments could impact not just artists in the show, but also audiences. "In our industry, language holds power and shapes perception, often in ways that we may not immediately realize. Referring to a predominantly Black Broadway show as 'loud' can unintentionally reinforce harmful stereotypes and it also feels dismissive of the artistry and the voices that are being celebrated on stage," Lewis said. In her interview with The New Yorker, LuPone defended her position, saying noise problems are "not unusual" on Broadway. She also slammed Lewis for referring to herself as a "veteran" Broadway actor. Lewis has been in 10 Broadway shows and LuPone has been in 28. "Here's the problem. She calls herself a veteran? Let's find out how many Broadway shows Kecia Lewis has done, because she doesn't know what the f— she's talking about," LuPone said. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Patti LuPone says Audra McDonald is 'not a friend' in interview
