Weird interruption of Ray Bradbury play

SciFi dimensions reports that some crank posing as an “undercover investigator” shut down a performance of Ray Bradbury's play Dandelion Wine, with Bradbury himself in attendance.

According to the brief item, the self-described investigator cited an "obscure California law requiring a State of California licensed teacher to be present at all performances with young actors."

If any Boing Boing readers were there, I'd love to get your take on what happened.

When this reporter approached the official for a photo-interview to explain why he had shut down the performance, he threatened to confiscate this reporter’s camera on the claim that he worked as an undercover police officer; however, when asked by this reporter to produce a badge or other official identification, “Egan” refused.

Link

[#1 posted by jimh , October 22, 2007 4:24 PM]

Why weren't the real police called before the performance was canceled? Did this guy have a badge and a taser?

[#2 posted by funeralpudding , October 22, 2007 4:27 PM]

Did the director ask for ID? Or at least ask if there were any teachers in the audience?

[#3 posted by David B. , October 22, 2007 4:36 PM]

I hope SOMEBODY got a picture of the guy. Under California law it's a felony to impersonate an officer of the law or an agent of a state agency - and that's not obscure or little known.

I'll just bet you it was a member or a shop steward from one of the stage unions.

They should take a photo of the guy or a description to the Pasadena Police Department immediately.

What's really amazing is the guy pulled this shit and then hung around long enough for people to talk to him.

David B.

[#4 posted by Dan , October 22, 2007 4:49 PM]

I think Bradbury himself could quite easily fill the teacher requirement.

[#5 posted by Billistic , October 22, 2007 5:31 PM]

Are you sure this guy isn't being ironic?

[#6 posted by Michael Brutsch , October 23, 2007 6:54 AM]

This entire story is suspiciously short on details. The previous comments raise several issues which you'd think any crowd smart enough to contain Ray Bradbury would have noticed. I'm almost ready to call shenanigans on this...

[#7 posted by albedo , October 23, 2007 6:58 AM]

I read recently, in a global warming denier's website, that, by law, Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth wasn't allowed to be viewed by English school kids unless there was a teacher present (in fact that applies for all movies expounding a "partisan political" thesis). This interruption may be a conflation of this with this man's warped reality on that day. I'd say the interrupter was insane, or an asshole.

[#8 posted by reznicek111 , October 23, 2007 2:05 PM]

As JIMH said, wouldn't the theater officials call actual police to get the scoop before going so far as shutting down the performance? Then, consider this little tidbit from the story:

"The play’s director, Alan Neal Hubbs, later suggested to this reporter that the play’s cancellation might have more to do with Mr. Egan’s finding an excuse to shut down the performance due to his previously having been denied free tickets to the play."

Doesn't this statement suggest "Egan" might be a known quantity to the folks running the show? Strange. I suspect some theater-within-theater going on here.

[#9 posted by Samuel Tinianow , October 23, 2007 4:10 PM]

As Mr. Bradbury knows, we've never had a problem with censorship in this country. All our problems come from TV and minorities.