Dave Chappelle’s Minneapolis show canceled amid transphobic comments – Deadline

Dave Chappelle He may have received an Emmy nomination last week for his controversy the closest Private, but today the comedian was kicked out of one of the most popular venues in Minneapolis for his often wounded stance on the transgender community.

Just hours before award winner Mark Twain hit the stage on Minnesota’s First Avenue, organizers pulled the plug on a show that ran out completely. Citing a backlash against Chappelle’s perceived anti-transgender remarks, First Avenue management canceled his protest performance at the venue and moved it to nearby Varsity Theatre.

Here’s what First Avenue said earlier today:

Shortly thereafter, Varsity Theater took to Twitter on Wednesday to promote the change of venues:

Attention Dave Chappelle fans! The show scheduled for tonight on First Ave has now been moved to Varsity Theatre. Your tickets from First Ave will be honored. Doors open at 8pm and we highly recommend arriving early.

This event will be a phone-free experience. pic.twitter.com/khrphPmqZo

– VarsityTheater (@varsitytheater) 20 July 2022

Representatives for Chappelle, who was previously scheduled to perform two more shows at Varsity tomorrow and July 22, did not respond to a request for comment on the First Avenue cancellation deadline. Tickets for the first Chapel Street concert were released suddenly on July 18 and collected within minutes for the 1,550-room main room capacity facility.

For those who live under a rock or need a lesson in cultural anthropology, First Avenue is the hugely featured club. PrinceCreator purple rain A film from 1984. Although First Avenue has not been officially declared a historic landmark, as many believe, the venue celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2020. Over the course of his career, Chappelle has performed at the venue time and time again.

Although Chappelle the closest Attracted fierce repercussions and even some Netflix firing employees and resignations Due to protests over his attacks on the transgender community, Academy Television voters still feel fit to award a special Emmy nomination on July 12 In the category of Special Premium Variations (pre-registered).

in what’s in a name? special chest On Netflix last monthChappelle showed little understanding of the pain he might be causing. Actually, call the closest A masterpiece.” Citing a meeting with disgruntled students at the Duke Ellington School of Art in Washington, D.C., where Chappelle himself finished high school, the comedian dismissed their concerns about his material and his view on transgender rights as mere “talking points” lacking insight into a nuance in art. .

“The more I said I couldn’t say something, the more urgent it was for me to say it,” Chappelle said in the 40-minute speech about naming the school’s theater. “And it has nothing to do with what you say I can’t say. It has to do with my right, my freedom and artistic expression.”