Stanford Students Respond With DID WE OFFEND YOU? Cabaret After 'ANDREW JACKSON' Cancellation

According to an article on Slate, Stanford University students responded to the cancellation of their production of the satirical musical BLOODY, BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON with a cabaret called DID WE OFFEND YOU? The new show premiered last weekend to a sold-out audience and featured controversial tunes from musicals including RENT, THE PRODUCERS and, of course, 'ANDREW JACKSON'.

Sammi Cannold, artistic director of At the Fountain Theatricals, commented on what the original production of the musical would have looked like, saying, "The director had a really clear take on the show and how it would bring history to light in a new way. But members of the Native American community on campus voiced their concerns about some of the issues in the show, and various conversations between ourselves and the community ensued. We determined that the production would isolate certain members of campus and we didn't want to do that."

Cannold added: "The concerns from the community were about both the show's satirical commentary on the issue of Native American genocide and the historical inaccuracies that could be inferred from the story."

Ashley Harris, the Stanford American Indian Organization's co-chair, said: "While we realize that satire and art can definitely raise productive questions around Jackson's legacy, we had a lot of reservations about the satirization of genocide, suicide, and alcoholism, which are topics that still have a very real legacy in many of our communities."

Due to these concerns, At the Fountain Theatricals and the creative team attempted to offer ways to make the musical's message clear to audiences while improving the portrayal of Native Americans in the piece, even going so far as to fund "a separate musical from a Native American perspective." No agreement was reached and BLOODY, BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON was cancelled, but allegedly, neither group is angry about the decision.

Commenting on the final decision, Cannold said: "We canceled it because we didn't want to hurt anyone or inspire protests that would have a negative effect on the actors attached to the production. I think we were dismayed that another outcome wasn't possible because that might have led to a more concrete understanding of the issues. It could have been a conversation about Andrew Jackson's legacy and the terrible things he did. He's portrayed as a buffoon. But it did give us this other opportunity to explore censorship and controversial art instead."

BLOODY, BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON faced criticism during its Broadway run in 2010 and in a Minneapolis production last summer for its "glorification" of Andrew Jackson's participation in the Indian Removal Act.

The point of the musical is to draw attention to Jackson's injustices through satire. With music and lyrics by Michael Friedman and book by Alex Timbers, BLOODY, BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON is a comedic historical rock musical about the founding of the Democratic Party that redefines Jackson, America's seventh President, as a rock star.

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