New York Times Theater Critic Apologizes for Offending 'Transgender and Nonbinary Communities'

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New York Times theater critic Ben Brantley apologized for his review of the broadway show “Head Over Heels,” featuring the first openly trans woman to play a leading role on Broadway.

“I feel horrible about having offended transgender and nonbinary communities,” he said in a statement posted to the New York Times Communications Twitter account on Friday.

“I was trying to reflect the light tone of the show, as well as a plot point in which one character learns to acknowledge another not as ‘she’ but as ‘they,'” he said. “This unfortunately read as more flippant than I would ever have intended, especially with regard to a performance that marks a historical first. I am deeply sorry.”

Also Read: The Nation Apologizes for Publishing 'Ableist' Poem About the 'Invisibility of Homelessness'

Here is Ben Brantley's response to the conversation surrounding his review of "Head Over Heels" https://t.co/48Xr2xgOjK. We are updating the review to reflect some of our readers' concerns now. pic.twitter.com/3SjcC1qAuk

— NYTimes Communications (@NYTimesPR) July 27, 2018

A Times statement accompanied Brantley’s apology. It said the paper would edit the piece to reflect reader concerns. A review of the Internet archives shows that among the changes were taking the term “nonbinary” out of quotation marks.

Brantley’s original review “purposefully misgenders a non-binary character, played by trans actress Peppermint (the first openly trans woman to play a principal role on Broadway) – writing “Dametas (Tom Alan Robbins), the King’s viceroy and father of Mopsa, finds himself strangely drawn to her – I mean them,” wrote Alan Henry of Broadway World. Henry added that early in his review, “Brantley seems to invalidate an entire gender identity, writing ‘And its dichotomous nature matches the didactic thrust of a show that celebrates the importance of not being (and pardon me, for trotting out what’s starting to feel like the decade’s most overused word) binary.'”

A key plot point in the show is that Peppermint’s character uses the pronouns they/them.

After an edit, the broader thrust of the review still remained cool toward the performance.

“‘Head Over Heels,’ which opened on Thursday night at the Hudson Theater, feels as timid and awkward as the new kid on the first day of school,” said Brantley — whose pronouncements about Broadway are closely followed by the city’s theater community.

Brantley’s statement was only the latest in a weekend of walkbacks for remarks deemed insensitive by aggrieved communities. Around the same time, editors at The Nation issued a lengthy statement of contrition for publishing a poem about homelessness they later deemed “ableist.”

Omarosa's 11 Biggest Feuds, From 'The Apprentice' to the Trump White House (Photos)

White House aide Omarosa Manigault-Newman exited the Trump administration in 2017, and some reports said she had to be "physically dragged and escorted" off the premises. It's hardly the first time the "Apprentice" alum has gotten into a high-profile disagreement since coming into the public eye over a decade ago.
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During her first appearance on "The Apprentice" in 2004, Manigault-Newman frequently bragged about her experience working with then-Vice President Al Gore. However, it was later reported that she cycled through four positions in two years before finally being asked to leave altogether.
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Manigault-Newman became one of the original reality TV villains with her instantly iconic performance on "The Apprentice's" debut season. She clashed with nearly every other cast member that season, but perhaps her most memorable moment came when she accused fellow contestant Ereka Vetrini of racism over the phrase "the pot calling the kettle black."
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Not one to let her 15 minutes expire, Manigault-Newman spun her star-making turn on "The Apprentice" into lasting reality TV notoriety. When she appeared on the fifth season of VH1's "The Surreal Life," she found herself under the knife -- literally -- of Janice Dickinson. The mock-threat sent Manigault-Newman over the edge, leading her to call Dickinson "a crackhead" and threatening to hit her "in the mouth."
VH1
When Manigault-Newman returned to the Trump boardroom for "The Celebrity Apprentice" in 2008, she found a new enemy in the prickly British TV personality Piers Morgan. Their feud persists even until today, but it began when Morgan pinpointed her as the biggest liability among the women and refused to pronounce her name correctly.
NBC
Radio personality-turned-daytime TV star Wendy Williams hosted Manigault-Newman on her fledgling talk show in 2008 to promote her book, "The Bitch Switch." That interview quickly devolved into a series of snide comments about each other's looks and a full-blown argument about whether or not Manigault-Newman is a good representative for the black community.
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Her third and final "Apprentice" appearance was in the show's "All-Stars" season in 2013, when she again clashed with Morgan, who was brought back to judge the contestants as a past winner. But it was La Toya Jackson who took the brunt of her anger when the singer dared to try and tell her what to do during one of the weekly challenges.
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Manigault-Newman and "Real Housewives of New York" star Bethenny Frankel held animosity for each other for years, but the pair tried to turn their beef into ratings when the "Apprentice" alum appeared on Frankel's daytime talk show in 2013. Manigault-Newman slammed Frankel as "mediocre," saying she'd had an easier path to fame and success because of her race.
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Michael Clarke Duncan's family hired a lawyer in 2013 to investigate the late actor's decision to rewrite his will to make Manigault-Newman, his then-fiancee, his main beneficiary a year before his death. The "Green Mile" star's sister also took issue with Manigault-Newman's decision to sell some of his belongings without their knowledge.
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Shortly after taking on her position as a communications official in the Trump White House, Manigault-Newman made headlines for a verbal altercation with veteran reporter -- and former friend -- April Ryan. Witnesses said the two got into a heated argument outside the Oval Office, and Ryan later said Manigault-Newman claimed to have "dossiers" of damaging information about a number of reporters.
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Manigault-Newman returned to her reality TV roots after leaving the Trump administration, entering the "Big Brother" house for the CBS competition show's first celebrity edition. One of her first acts as a born-again TV star was to tearfully warn that the country's "not going to be okay" with Trump in office. The White House fired back at a press briefing, boasting about how many times Manigault-Newman was fired on "The Apprentice."
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While promoting her book "Unhinged" on NBC's "Meet the Press," Manigault-Newman played a recording of White House Chief of Staff John Kelly firing her. She also hinted at the existence of other recordings, including of Trump himself. The president has fired back, repeatedly calling his former aide a "lowlife."
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The reality TV villain has made more than her fair share of enemies over the years

White House aide Omarosa Manigault-Newman exited the Trump administration in 2017, and some reports said she had to be "physically dragged and escorted" off the premises. It's hardly the first time the "Apprentice" alum has gotten into a high-profile disagreement since coming into the public eye over a decade ago.

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