The Broadway legend’s camp confirms the transcontinental nation has officially lost its exclusive window to host the floating production of Virgin Voyages' Scarlet Lady.
In a massive shake-up to the international maritime rollout, Patti LuPone has officially pulled her 2,000-passenger gay cruise from Turkey, citing ongoing creative differences with the Islamic government’s geopolitical stance. Sources close to the production confirm the Virgin Voyages vessel Scarlet Lady was denied port entry earlier this week, prompting LuPone’s reps to immediately sever ties with the nation and revoke its territorial rights to the floating cabaret.
The abrupt cancellation deals a devastating blow to Turkey’s Q3 theatrical tracking, as the sovereign state completely loses its highly anticipated first-look at the three-time Tony winner belting Sondheim to a captive audience of shirtless men. Insiders report that cruise executives spent forty-eight hours in tense negotiations with Turkish border authorities, attempting to salvage the deal before LuPone personally intervened from the ship's bridge to formally blacklist the entire country from the tour.
You simply cannot expect a star of Patti’s caliber to perform in a territory that refuses to honor a basic 2,000-homosexual rider.
With the Turkish market officially closed, the $450 million oceanic production is actively seeking a new distribution window. A publicist for the voyage noted that despite the high-profile venue dispute, the cruise’s onboard box office remains entirely unaffected, and LuPone is currently shopping the engagement to alternative Aegean territories with more favorable talent relations.