Theater says South Jersey schools disrupted ‘School of Rock’ matinee by walking out over profanity

Haddon Township’s Ritz Theatre Company says faculty from two South Jersey schools disrupted a matinee performance of School of Rock when they escorted students out over content concerns.

Ritz spokesperson Robert Repici said teachers and parent chaperones from Hartford Upper Elementary School in Mount Laurel and Kellman Brown Academy in Voorhees “cornered Ritz staff in the lobby and shared their grievances about language” during an intermission Wednesday morning.

Soon after, Kellman Brown staff escorted their group of third-grade students from the theater. Then, minutes into the second act — right after a character uttered the word “B—” onstage — the contingent of fifth graders from Hartford Upper Elementary were led from the front row by their teachers and chaperones.

The audience exodus disrupted the matinee performance, said Repici, which was a special one for director Ernie Jewell: He was performing the lead role of Dewey Finn — a rollicking, rocking substitute teacher — for the first time.

Two Burlington County schools, which Repici declined to name, stayed for the remainder of the show.

The musical is a stage adaption of the 2003 feel-good family comedy School of Rock, in which Finn, played by Jack Black, transforms a class of middle school students into a bona-fide rock band ahead of a music competition. Twenty years later, the movie is considered a new classic, spawning a television show, talks of a sequel, and a musical from Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Like the movie, which is rated PG-13, the music adaption the Ritz Theatre Company put on contains cuss words. “School of Rock is recommended for ages eight and older and contains occasional strong language,” reads licensing materials for the show, which schools and youth groups are encouraged to perform.

Repici said he provided this content warning to both schools before the Wednesday performance and had conversations with faculty from both schools leading up to the field trips. He said he gave a Hartford Upper Elementary teacher specific examples of the language students could expect, such as “ass” and “douchebag.”

“Information was imparted upon them, and they ran with it,” said Repici.

Rachel Zivic, head of school at Kellman Brown Academy, confirmed that she spoke with Repici prior to the show.

“We fully respect the Ritz Company and the production,” said Zivic via email. “We simply felt that the language used in the production was not age appropriate for our third grade students. We did not perceive our decision to leave the show as controversial.”

Hartford Upper Elementary School did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The Ritz Theatre company issued a statement on Facebook on Thursday that condemned the schools’ decisions to leave.

“To disrupt a live performance in that fashion is a disservice to the cast and crew who all took the time to perform the show yesterday morning, to the front-of-house staff who volunteered to help out at The Ritz yesterday morning, and to the other school groups who were present (and stayed throughout) to enjoy the show yesterday morning,” said the statement.

“To the Hartford ‘Team Courage’ and Kellman Brown Academy students who were required to leave the show, we’re immensely sorry,” it went on. “To the many parents who have already expressed their displeasure over their children being removed from the show, we hear you and thank you wholeheartedly for your support.”

Repici said Ritz Theatre Company would not be offering either school refunds, but has invited the students’ families back for a remaining School of Rock performance, free of charge.

“At the end of the day, the most important element is getting those children back to see the show if they want to,” said Repici.

The Facebook post has accumulated hundreds of likes and shares. Comments have been overwhelmingly positive, with one user who identified herself as a parent of an impacted student saying she would take them up on the offer.

“Inviting these kids back with their families is so cool,” read another comment. “You never know which of these kids are going to fall in love with live theatre because of a show like this.”

Zivic, however, found the Ritz’s statement disingenuous, saying Kellman Brown’s students and teachers “made every effort to cause the least possible interruption.”

Repici said Ritz Theatre Company may consider putting more specific content warnings on their website.