The actress, who accused her former 'Glee' co-star of bad behavior on the set of the FOX series, claims that 'Broadway upholds whiteness' after Michele is tapped to replace Beanie Feldstein in the Broadway revival.
- Jul 12, 2022
AceShowbiz - Samantha Ware has spoken up following Lea Michele's casting in "Funny Girl". The actress, who accused her former "Glee" co-star of bullying her and others on the set of the FOX series, is upset that Michele landed a lead role in the Broadway revival despite the allegations.
Ware let her feelings be known through her Twitter account on Monday, July 11. Shortly after Michele's casting was announced, the 30-year-old tweeted, "Yes, I'm online today. Yes, I see y'all. Yes, I care. Yes, im affected. Yes, I'm human. Yes, I'm Black. Yes, I was abused. Yes, my dreams were tainted. Yes, Broadway upholds whiteness. Yes, Hollywood does the same. Yes, silence is complicity. Yes, I'm loud. Yes, I'd do it again."
In June 2020, Ware called out Michele for alleged poor treatment to her and other co-stars on the set of "Glee". She claimed that the Rachel Berry depicter made her tenure on the Ryan Murphy-created show a "living hell" after the latter expressed their support for the Black Lives Matter movement.
"She waited until the scene was over and she stopped in the middle of the stage and did a 'come here' gesture, like how a mother does to their child," she told Variety, adding that Michele threatened her job when she refused to come over. Ware further alleged that Michele said she would "s**t in my wig," among other traumatic microaggressions."
Michele later apologized to Ware and everyone she "hurt." The 35-year-old said in a statement at the time, "What matters is that I clearly acted in ways which hurt other people," insisting that her Black Lives Matter message was meant to "show of support for our friends and neighbors and communities of color during this really difficult time."
Ware's message arrived after it's announced that Michele would replace Beanie Feldstein, who has announced her early departure from "Funny Girl". Initially set to play Fanny Brice until September, Feldstein moved up her last show by two months. Her final curtain call will now be July 31.
"Playing Fanny Brice on Broadway has been a lifelong dream of mine, and doing so for the last few months has been a great joy and true honor," Feldstein wrote on Instagram. "Once the production decided to take the show in a different direction, I made the extremely difficult decision to step away sooner than anticipated," she continued.
Standby Julie Benko will take over the role until Michele steps in. The "Scream Queens" alum will begin her run on September 6, alongside Tovah Feldshuh who will be joining the cast as Mrs. Brice on the same date.
"I'm so incredibly honored to join this amazing cast and production and return to the stage playing Fanny Brice on Broadway," the "Spring Awakening" alum posted on Instagram on Monday. "See you September 6th. @funnygirlbwy #FUNNYGIRL."
