Theater news alert! Jewish actor Andrew Barth Feldman is making his return to Broadway this fall, taking over the lead role in Tony Award-winning musical “Maybe Happy Ending.” This means he’ll be starring opposite his real-life girlfriend, Helen J. Shen.
The last time Feldman was on Broadway, he was 17 years old and taking on the role of Evan Hansen in “Dear Evan Hansen.” Apparently, Feldman first caught the eye of the “Maybe Happy Ending” team when he read for Oliver in Shen’s first self-tape audition for the role.
“I am so in love with this show and with Helen J. Shen,” the 23-year-old Feldman said yesterday. “I’ve been a plus-one on this Broadway journey from the beginning, and this brilliant team and beautiful company have already become such a big part of my life. That they trust me with this role, and are giving me the ridiculous gift of sharing it with Helen, is an honor beyond words.”
Meanwhile, Shen shared a photo of the pair on her Instagram, obliquely referencing the news. “side by side from the start my love,” she wrote.
When Feldman spoke with Hey Alma in the spring, he described getting to work Off-Broadway in the show “We Had a World” at the same time as Shen was taking on her first Broadway role in “Maybe Happy Ending” as “perfect” and “kind of a dream.” “It’s been really fun to get to support her in this process and also be doing my own thing that is really fulfilling to be in,” he shared.
Despite how frankly adorable it is that Feldman and Shen will be starring opposite one another, the news has also been met with some justifiable criticism.
“Maybe Happy Ending” tells the story of two discarded “Helperbots” (robots which, you guessed it, help humans) in the near future in Seoul. It’s a beautiful show about Oliver (originated by Darren Criss) and Claire (Shen), who meet and embark on a journey together of discovery, wonder and love. And fans and critics alike have lauded it as a pinnacle of Asian representation on Broadway. The musical was conceived of by South Korean lyricist Hue Park, who also wrote the lyrics, and it premiered in South Korea in 2016 before making it’s way to Broadway. In playing Oliver, Darren Criss became the first Asian American actor to win the Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical.
Particularly for Asian Broadway fans, Andrew Barth Feldman, who is not Asian, taking over the role of Oliver is a step backward. “To be clear, this is not about Andrew Barth Feldman’s talent,” theater writer Chris Peterson, who is himself Korean, wrote yesterday. “He’s more than capable. I truly believe he’ll deliver a performance filled with emotional truth. But this conversation is not about skill. It’s about space.”
“Representation is not just about what is technically allowed. It is about what is emotionally resonant and culturally necessary,” he went on. “The idea that Oliver is a universal role, that he can be played by anyone because the story is metaphorical, is a luxury that only gets applied after a performer of color makes it successful.”
It’s a tenor of conversation that is not unfamiliar to the Jewish community, which for the last nearly 10 years has discussed at length who can and should (or should not) play Jewish characters. On Jewish representation, Feldman shared with Hey Alma that it was “wonderful” to be playing his first explicitly and deeply explored Jewish role when he was in Off-Broadway’s “We Had a World” this past spring. He expressed interest in establishing himself as a Jewish character actor as his career goes on, saying, “It’s all very authentic. It’s all very true to who I am.”
For now, neither Feldman nor Shen nor anyone from the “Maybe Happy Ending” team has addressed the discourse. What’s more, Feldman won’t take over the role until September, so it’s yet to be seen how his interpretation will be received when he’s actually onstage. But once Feldman’s nine-week run in the show is over, perhaps Hapa Jewish Broadway star Zachary Noah Piser can take on the role of Oliver. In terms of this conversation around casting, that might be the real happy ending.
