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Milagro Theatre, Portland’s premier Latino arts and culture center, has pulled a March run of shows of The Macbeths, citing remarks by its co-creator and star Mary McDonald-Lewis that disparaged gender transitions.
“Milagro does not support, condone, or tolerate discrimination, hate speech or violence against the LGBTQIAA+ community, nor do we support those who do,” said theater management in a Feb. 21 statement. “Recently, it was brought to our attention by community members that one of the upcoming third-party rentals in our theatre space was led by an individual whose views do not align with our mission or values.”
The statement goes on to say that Milagro is updating its rental procedures to add background checks and a clause to contracts about abiding by the theater’s mission and values.
Mary McDonald-Lewis is a board member of Portland’s local Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists union. She is an established voice actor, dialect coach, and the voice of OnStar, General Motors’ navigation system. Her bio on X introduces her as “heterodox adult human female” and much of her feed is dedicated to trans issues and free speech. McDonald-Lewis has disparaged they/them pronouns and gender transitions, and posted a photo of a trans woman with the words “not a real woman” above it.
The Macbeths was not a production created by Milagro Theatre; rather, it’s a rental of its stage by McDonald-Lewis and the play’s co-creator Doren Elias. It was supposed to run March 6-16 and be a “reconsideration of the original, with dagger-point focus on the passionate, ambitious, bloody love affair between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.”
When reached by phone for comment on the cancellation of her show, McDonald-Lewis said the story is not over.
“I would only say I’m really excited to see where Doren Elias, my co-creator, is going to take it next,” she says. “I’m super excited. It’s going to be fantastic.”
She did not elaborate on her controversial social media comments, but did post a statement addressed to the Portland theater community on online message board Pdxbackstage distancing herself from Milagro Theatre and The Macbeths. The play was to be produced by the Red S Theater company.
Milagro Theatre and the cast and crew of The Macbeths “are all 100% courageously committed to the protection of all marginalized people,” McDonald-Lewis writes. “They have demonstrated this powerfully by asking me to leave the show and the company, and to dissolve the company itself. I am happy to comply.”