Patti LuPone Furious as Turkey Bars LGBTQ+ Cruise Ship: ‘We’re Still Sailing’

Patti LuPone is speaking out after an LGBTQ+ cruise she’s headlining was blocked from docking in Turkey. The Tony-winning performer posted on Instagram that Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady, set to sail from July 5 to July 15, was denied entry solely because of the passengers on board. “A ship full of gay men. And me. Denied entry to Turkey simply because of who is on board,” she wrote. “I am furious, but I am sailing, as the ship will make other ports of call.”

The cruise, organized by Atlantis Events, was supposed to visit Istanbul along with Mykonos, Santorini, Dubrovnik, and Venice. Rich Campbell, Atlantis’ president and CEO, told CNN he was stunned. “It’s pretty stunning, to be honest. The reasoning behind it is that it’s a gay group,” he said. “It’s very concerning when a country decides they can pick and choose which tourists are allowed in and which are not.” Campbell noted this marks the first time in 36 years the company has been told it can’t berth because of who its guests are.

LuPone, who will still perform for the 2,500 passengers on the revised itinerary, said the passengers “deserve so much better than this.” The cruise was originally pitched as “an epic all-gay voyage from Athens to Venice,” with stops at some of the Mediterranean’s most famous ports. For now, the show goes on, just without Turkey on the map.