A leading theatre has apologised “unreservedly” after their use of a Jewish name for an unscrupulous billionaire character sparked outrage.
In a statement, the Royal Court Theatre said naming the lead character ‘Hershel Fink’ was a “mistake” that “shouldn’t have happened,” and they were grateful to those who alerted them to their use of, “an antisemitic stereotype”.
They said writer Al Smith has decided to change the character’s name to ‘Henry Finn’.
The move marked a shift from the theatre’s initial response, which claimed the character was not Jewish and there was no reference to his being Jewish in the play.
The theatre said: “We acknowledge that this is an example of unconscious bias and we will reflect deeply on how this has happened in the coming days.”
Comedian David Baddiel questioned how anyone could fail to realise the character’s name was Jewish, saying on Twitter: “Apparently [the Royal Court Theatre] claim they didn’t realise ‘Hershel Fink’ was a Jewish name. Hmm. Somehow it just sounded so right for a world conquering billionaire.”
Actor Olivia Mace said: “It isn’t that the name is antisemitic. The name is just Jewish. But the character with that name resembles a negative Jewish stereotype.
“That wasn’t unconsciously done. This makes the play antisemitic. So, unfortunately, just calling him John isn’t going to undo that.”
‘Hershel Fink’ was set to appear in Rare Earth Mettle, an account of a Silicon Valley billionaire - seemingly based on Elon Musk - travelling to a Bolivian salt flat to loot the South American nation’s natural resources.
Billed as “a brutally comic exploration of risk, delusion and power,” many questioned why the Tesla CEO inspired protagonist had a Jewish name at all.
Director Adam Lenson said: “Casually making a silicon valley billionaire Jewish perpetuates antisemitic stereotypes and will cause ideological harm.”
Al Smith was previously nominated as most promising playwright at the Evening Standard Theatre awards for his play Harrogate.
He said Rare Earth Mettle was intended to tackle racism as a theme, along with the challenges facing ecology and the global economy.
The Royal Court said it would: “reflect on the process that enabled the name to remain and what is missing in our systems that would have mitigated this unnecessary harm.
