Theatre told of Jewish concerns months before character renamed

THE Royal Court theatre has admitted that concerns were raised about an antisemitic character’s name in its new play two months before it was changed.

The London theatre changed the name of a character in Al Smith’s play Rare Earth Mettle after being accused of “unconscious bias” and anti-semitism.

The play, about climate change and global capitalism, centres on a billionaire tech entrepreneur by the stereotypically Ashkenazi Jewish name of Herschel Fink. The character, who is not Jewish in the play, has since been renamed Henry Finn. However, in a newly published statement, the theatre confirmed that concerns had been raised by a Jewish director about the character’s name two months before any action was taken.

It said: “On Nov 8 the leadership of the Royal Court was informed that the name had been raised by a Jewish director in a workshop discussion held as part of the series ‘Directors: Working on New Plays’ in September 2021.

“We are in conversations with this director as we hold ourselves accountable for why this was not taken further, nor passed on to the writer. This specific event will form part of the board’s internal review.”

The play was previewed at the Royal Court from Nov 10 and opened to the press on Tuesday.

However, more than a week earlier, on Nov 5, the Royal Court was notified by members of the Jewish community that the use of this Ashkenazi Jewish name for a “Silicon Valley billionaire and CEO […] on a mission to save the world […] and make millions of dollars in the process” – risked perpetuating anti-semitic tropes.

As a result, the playwright changed the name and the Royal Court issued two statements of unreserved apology on Nov 6.

The Royal Court theatre was contacted for further comment but declined to respond.