Todrick Hall Says He's "Grateful" for Backlash Over Slavery-Era Musical "Midnight"

Todrick Hall’s off-Broadway musical“Midnight”is the hottest and most argued-about ticket in New York. Hall wrote, directed, created and stars in the show, which is set in the 19th-century American South and centers on Rail, an enslaved man who falls in love with a white plantation owner named Richard. Critics have slammed the premise as revisionist history, accusing Hall of exploiting Black trauma and turning slavery into fantasy. Hall isn’t dodging any of it. He told Page Six he’s“grateful that it has sparked any conversation,”adding that the divisions we live with today were seeded in that era and are still with us now.

The debate touches something bigger than theater: who gets to tell stories about slavery, and what happens when art takes liberties with history? Supporters say challenging work is supposed to provoke. Detractors say some subjects deserve more care than a love story can offer. Either way, the show is drawing packed houses at the Daryl Roth Theatre, so the controversy is also very much a business story.

Where do you land: is“Midnight”bold art that deserves to be heard, or a story that crosses a line? Sound off in the comments.