by Caitlin Berg. @caitlinberg (Instagram), @caitlinhberg (Twitter).
NEW YORK, NY - Fun Home mastermind Allison Bechdel announced today, in the wake of lackluster Funny Girl reviews (none of which critiqued Beanie Feldstein’s performance without comparing her to Barbra Streisand), a new version of her Bechdel Test for theatre reviewers. To pass, all a critic has to do is review an actress without comparing her to another actress who has played the same role.
“It’s easier to pass than my original test,” said Bechdel, who recently bought The New York Times’ Jesse Green an all-expenses paid, month-long trip to the Bahamas so that he couldn’t review POTUS. “But, honestly, I don’t expect it to be passed as often as that test. Have you seen how many straight, white men review theatre?”
Upon researching every theatre review ever published, The Broadway Beat is sad to announce that this test has literally never been passed.