Patti LuPone resigns from Actors' Equity, doesn't see herself returning to the stage 'for a long time'

Send in the clowns because Patti LuPone has apparently left the "circus" that she calls Broadway.

On Monday morning, the Tony winner tweeted, "Quite a week on Broadway, seeing my name being bandied about. Gave up my Equity card; no longer part of that circus. Figure it out."

In a statement shared with EW, which her representative said would be her final word on the matter, LuPone confirmed her resignation from the American stage actors' union, Actors' Equity. "When the run of Company ended this past July, I knew I wouldn't be on stage for a very long time," she said. "And at that point I made the decision to resign from Equity."

LuPone's tweet appeared to be referencing a recent controversy surrounding Hadestown star Lillias White (Hermes). During a performance, White repeatedly chastised an audience member whom she believed to be using an illegal recording device. The device in question was actually a captioning assist being used by an audience member with hearing loss.

Hadestown producers and Jujamcyn Theaters apologized for the incident, and eventually the audience member, Samantha Coleman, was prompted to make a social media post urging users to stop harassing White for her mistake.

Brinkhoff/Moegenburg Patti LuPone resigns from Actors' Equity, doesn't see herself returning to the stage 'for a long time'

Many compared White's erroneous callout to LuPone's own past experiences dressing down audience members for their improper behavior. LuPone famously halted a production of Gypsy in 2009 to criticize an audience member who was repeatedly taking photographs with a flash camera.

More recently, LuPone found herself becoming a meme with her takedown of a mask-less audience member during a post-show Company talkback. Her retort to the viewer, who was in defiance of COVID safety guidelines, that "Chris Harper pays my salary," became an iconic moment in LuPone's career, even earning a direct nod as she thanked the producer in her 2022 Tony award acceptance speech.

Many were quick to point out the stark differences between the backlash against White for her error and the praise of LuPone's own vociferous defense of the theatrical experience — but apparently, the icon did not appreciate her name being brought into the situation in any regard.

LuPone is truly the stuff of Broadway legend. She's won three Tony awards — the aforementioned 2022 win for Company, as well as a 2008 win for Gypsy and a 1980 victory for her star-marking turn as the eponymous role in Evita.

With eight Tony award nominations to her name, LuPone not only created the role of Evita, but she was Fantine in the original London cast of Les Miserables, as well as Norma Desmond in the original London production of the musical adaptation of Sunset Boulevard.

The actress has appeared in everything from buzzy revivals such as Gypsy, Company, Anything Goes, and Sweeney Todd to original works like Evita, Sunset Boulevard, The Robber Bridegroom, Les Miserables, and War Paint.

LuPone is also an active presence on screen, with a host of film and TV credits to her name. Most recently, she's enjoyed a close working relationship with Ryan Murphy and his productions, including in Hollywood, Pose, American Horror Story: Coven and the upcoming American Horror Story: NYC.

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