She is in good “Company”.
Broadway bigwigs back Patti LuPone after she was caught on camera punching an unmasked spectator Tuesday night.
The 73-year-old stage icon yelled at the bare-faced sponsor after a performance of his hit musical “Company,” with the foul mouthed footage subsequently going viral on social media.
The explosive incident divided the internet, with some pundits claiming the veteran artist was “Abrupt,” “Vulgar” Y “Disrespectful.”
But on Wednesday, LuPone doubled down and received support from the producers of her play.
In a tweet shared with Official Twitter page of the “Company”the production shared a GIF that showed LuPone gesturing towards her face as she spoke the words, “Wear a mask.”
The Broadway League, which represents the owners of 41 Broadway venues, requires all patrons to wear a face covering at shows. The policy will be reviewed next month.
Meanwhile, in a later statement, the musical’s lead producer, Chris Harper, said the entire production is “supporting” the star.
“Throughout her storied career, Patti has always had an unbreakable bond with the audience, taking her role as seriously as her own,” Harper stated, according to Deadline.
“She is also a fierce advocate for the entire theatrical workforce. We stand with Patti and support her efforts to keep our entire community, from patrons to ushers, from cast to stage crew, safe and healthy so we can keep Broadway open,” she added.
LuPone’s tirade came during a comment session held after the performance of “Company” on Tuesday night.
“Put the mask over your nose, that’s why you’re in the theater,” LuPone could be heard lecturing the bare-faced customer in the now-viral video posted on Twitter.
The two-time Tony winner, who battled COVID-19 in February, subsequently exploited: “That is the rule. If you don’t want to follow the rule, f—k off!”
The audience was heard to erupt in applause, as LuPone continued, “Who do you think you are? That you don’t respect the people sitting around you?”
But the unmasked woman in the audience wasn’t taking LuPone’s reprimand lightly, and she could be heard yelling, “I pay your salary!”
Bulls – – you! Chris Harper pays my salary!” the Broadway icon roared in response.
Representatives for LuPone declined The Post’s request for comment.
Meanwhile, it’s not the first time LuPone has let her temper get the best of her while onstage, beginning with an infamous reprimand she gave a photo sponsor in 2009 at a performance of the critically acclaimed “Gypsy.” Stephen Sondheim.
In 2015, LuPone approached a theater goer who was texting in the middle of a performance of the play “Shows for Days” and grabbed his cell phone out of his hands.
The stage legend later told Playbill, “We work hard on stage to create a world that is being totally destroyed by a few rude, self-absorbed, inconsiderate audience members who are controlled by their phones.”
LuPone has developed a reputation as a Broadway diva over the decades, even threatening to quit the 2002 comedy “Noises Off” after reportedly having a “heartbreaking hysterics.”
In 1994, Andrew Lloyd Webber fired her from his production of “Sunset Boulevard”.
LuPone subsequently sued Webber for $1 million and used the funds to build a swimming pool on his Connecticut property.
The sassy star named it: “The Andrew Lloyd Webber Memorial Pool.”
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