Earlier this week, a video and subsequent screenshots depicting a nude scene from a revival of the play Take Me Out were shared online and went viral. Take Me Out follows Darren Lemming (played by Jesse Williams), a biracial, Black baseball player who faces fallout and attacks on all fronts when he comes out as gay. The nude scene has Darren, in the showers, confronting a new player on the team, Shane (played by Michael Oberholtzer), who’s been openly homophobic and racist to him.
Many company members (the cast) expressed nervousness about performing a play with full-frontal nudity. About a week before these images came online, Williams told Bare Magazine, “I knew the whole process was going to be daunting and scary … plus there is literal nudity in the show, which adds a whole other level of vulnerability.”
Fellow leading castmate Patrick Adams told NY Daily News his gut reaction was, “I’m not going to do that. There’s no way I’m gonna be naked on stage in my Broadway debut.” However, like others, he was moved by the script and was willing to be vulnerable for this story.
As an added precaution and part of a growing trend among theaters (of all types), The Hayes Theater (owned by play producers The Second Stage Theater) implemented a phone-free policy. All phones from guests are supposed to be locked up in a Yondr bag. They stay on the guests’ persons but remain unavailable during the performance. Still, someone skirted this and decided to share the video of the actors nude online anyways.
An ongoing, embarrassing online response
Truthfully, whether the actors were nervous or not is irrelevant because it was wrong regardless. Much of the initial response from the internet was making comments about the performers’ bodies, both in intimidation and thirsting over them. While there was no sex on stage, and this was a public performance, that doesn’t remove the need for consent with these images. Those who recored them and shared them online violated both actors. When the actors agreed to perform in that vulnerable scene, they had in mind a certain amount of enclosed people per performance and not the whole internet.
Similarly, when an actor decides their boundaries regarding nudity and sex, or when people choose to share nude images and videos, lines are drawn, and crossing those lines is disgusting. The fault lies with the violators (and crowds supporting them) and not the victims, let alone sharing it online as a joke. Because they are men, and Williams has long been hailed as a Hollywood sex symbol like a few other men on Grey’s Anatomy, many might have thought (incorrectly) that this was not that bad. Their gender doesn’t make it a free for all.
In an effort to disregard expectations of decency, some have tried to argue that this incident will mean more ticket sales, but that is not an excuse. And now, whatever concerns the actors had about people coming just to see them in that scene are likely heightened. Others have cited Williams’ supposed casual response in an effort to downplay the harm in sharing these images, but he has not directly talked about the “leak,” just the scenes, as part of the press circuit. Also, there were multiple people in that video, not just Williams.
Backlash to nudity
Some, including many in the theater community, have condemned this violation of trust. This person not only went past that, but The Second Stage Theater said:
We are appalled that this policy has been violated and unauthorised footage of our acting company has been posted. It is deeply unfortunate that one audience member chose to disrespect the production, their fellow audience members and, most importantly, the cast in this manner. Taking naked pictures of anyone without their consent is highly objectionable, and can have severe legal consequences. posting it on the internet is a gross and unacceptable violation of trust between the actor and the audience forged in the theater community. We are actively prsing takedown requests and ask that no one particpates in the distribution of these images.
Additionally, Second Stage is looking to add real-time infrared cameras and bring in more usher staff to protect the performers.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Actors’ Equity Association president Kate Shindle said, “As actors, we regularly agree to be vulnerable on stage in order to tell difficult and challenging stories. […] This does not mean that we agree to have those vulnerable moments widely shared by anyone who feels like sneaking a recording device into the theater.” Take Me Out director Scott Ellis (of Modern Family) previously stated that they went through every method possible to minimize discomfort so that the actors could do their job. In addition to phone lockboxes, this included wearing bathing suits and heavy prep work with choreographers during the locker scenes.
In a play about race, sexuality, masculinity, friendship, and more, it’s really telling that the person behind all this was taken out of it all by two nude bodies. If you happen to see the video or an image on your timeline, please report it and don’t engage with press outlets embedding those images in articles.
(via Twitter, image: screencap)
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