Karen Olivo, a Tony nominated star of “Moulin Rouge! The Musical,” said on Wednesday that she would not be returning to the show’s cast if the Broadway performances resume.
She made the announcement in a five-minute Instagram video. “I could easily go back to the show and make a lot of money,” she said, “but I still couldn’t really control what I brought into the world and what I see in this space. our industry is that everyone is scared, and no one really does many of the things that need to be done. ”
She specifically referred to the powerful producer Scott Rudin, who has long been described as insulting to staffers, most recently in a detailed April 7 article in The Hollywood Reporter. Rudin is not a producer of “Moulin Rouge!” And Olivo has not worked with him, but she has spoken out about her concerns about general practices in the industry.
“The silence about Scott Rudin: unacceptable,” she said in the video. “That should be a no-brainer.”
She challenged colleagues to give their opinion. “Those of you who say you are afraid – what are you afraid of?” she said. “Shouldn’t you be more afraid not to say something and get more people hurt?”
In a phone call later Wednesday, Olivo said the lack of a broader response to The Hollywood Reporter’s story “broke me open” and added to her sense that “Broadway isn’t where I want to be.”
A Rudin spokesman said he would have no comment.
Olivo, 44, started her Broadway career as an understudy in ‘Rent’. She broke into the original cast of the Lin-Manuel Miranda musical ‘In the Heights’ and won a Tony Award in 2009 by playing Anita in a revival of ‘West Side Story’.
She has left the industry before. In 2013 she moved to Madison, Wisconsin, where she and her husband have a home and are raising two children together. She has lived there since Broadway closed last spring.
Olivo has taught virtually at her alma mater, the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati, and said she remained committed to helping aspiring artists develop. During the pandemic, she and another actor, Eden Espinosa, also formed an advocacy group, Afect, which aims to bring greater financial transparency to the theater industry.
In a December interview, Olivo expressed concern about whether Broadway would evolve after its closure and whether she would return to it. “I hope everyone is working to change the industry and not just trying to come back so we can refill our coffers,” she said.
“Social justice is actually more important than the sparkling diamond,” she said in Wednesday’s video, referring to her “Moulin Rouge!” character, Satine, who is referenced in the musical. “Building a better industry for my students is more important than putting money in my pockets.”
In the telephone interview, Olivo added, “I’m going to make art with the people who I think are in line with my integrity, who want to do it right, and if those people don’t come, I’ll make it myself.”
The “Moulin Rouge!” producers said in a statement that the show is “forever indebted to Karen Olivo’s artistry, passion and craftsmanship in creating the role of Satine onstage. We applaud and support Karen’s advocacy for a safe, diverse and equitable theater industry for everyone to create. “
Earlier this week, three entertainment industry unions issued a statement calling for “harassment-free workplaces” prompted by the Hollywood Reporter story, but no reference is made to it.
“No employee should be subject to bullying or harassment, whether member of a union or not,” said the statement by the presidents of SAG-AFTRA, the Actors’ Equity Association and the American Federation of Musicians Local 802.