Climate protestors disrupt 'An Enemy of the People' while Michael Imperioli stayed in character

Jeremy Strong and Michael Imperioli's performance in "An Enemy of the People" was disrupted by climate protestors during Thursday night's show in Broadway.

Activists from Extinction Rebellion stood up in the Circle in the Square theater and began shouting "No Broadway on a dead planet," "No theater on a dead planet" and "The water is coming for us" as they approached the stage, videos posted on social media and shared by the activist group show.

The moment occurred during a town hall scene in which one of the characters in the play asked if anyone objected to the proceedings. The play follows Dr. Thomas Stockmann (Strong), who sounds the alarm on a lethal bacteria in the town. However, his brother, Mayor Peter (Imperioli), ends up being his enemy in an attempt to silence the doctor's warnings.

"I object to the silencing of scientists. I am very, very sorry to interrupt your night and this amazing performance. I am a theater artist, I work in the theater professionally and I am throwing my career. … There is no Broadway on a dead planet," one of the protestors said, before Imperioli, in character shouted, "You need to leave. You're interrupting." At one point, the actor could be seen physically pushing a protestor out of the theater.

Strong also remained composed and appeared to also stay in character. "Let them speak," Strong said, adding "She's right" when a protestor warned about climate change.

USA TODAY has reached out to reps for Circle in the Square, Imperioli and Strong.

In a press release, Extinction Rebellion said they are "demanding the right to peacefully protest against the use of fossil fuels."

"This play highlights that climate activists are not the enemy. But why are we being treated as such? Non-violent climate protestors are being charged as if they have committed very violent acts. This is not sustainable and this is unacceptable," said Laura Robinson, a spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion.

Lydia Woolley, one of the activists at the protest Thursday, added, "We're not protesting the event itself; we are not protesting theater; we are not protesting the emissions that brought spectators to get here. That's not the point. We are here because we have to disrupt this public event as our last resort to draw public attention to the climate emergency we are facing today.

"Theater-as-usual won't be possible on a planet in which humanity fails to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius. If activists don’t disrupt these shows, dangerous weather will make it impossible for the show to go on," they add.

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"An Enemy of the People" is running on Broadway for a limited 16 weeks and will end mid-June. The play was originally written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen in 1882. This adaptation was written by Amy Herzog and directed by Sam Gold.