Photo by Eva Rinaldi via Flickr
Guests at the 92nd Street Y — one of New York’s most prominent cultural hubs — were witness to more than just scintillating conversation at an A-list panel earlier this week.
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On Monday evening, Drew Barrymore (whose eponymous talk show was recently crowned the fastest growing talk show on TV, FYI) interviewed actress, singer and TikTok sensation Reneé Rapp. The dialogue (a part of the Recanati-Kaplan Talks series) was cut short, as security removed a heckler who stormed the stage.
While the two discussed Rapp’s forthcoming album Snow Angel, a man who identified himself as Chad Michael Busto approached — repeatedly exclaiming Barrymore’s name and stating, “You know who I am. I need to see you at some point while I’m in New York.” Rapp swiftly put her arm around Barrymore (a move praised all over social media), escorting her off the stage — and venue staff promptly removed the intruder in question. Police didn’t respond to the incident, and no arrests were made.
Moments later, the two returned, acknowledged the unsavory experience and continued their chat. The video circulated rapidly, thanks in part to viral Twitter account PopCrave, with many identifying Busto as a “stalker.” According to various reports, Busto has a lengthy rap sheet — including indecent exposure, disorderly conduct and allegedly stalking actress Amber Heard. Despite the amateur reporting, his identity remains unconfirmed by major outlets.
A stalker rushed the stage on Drew Barrymore while she was interviewing Reneé Rapp. 😳 pic.twitter.com/yjAcPHc1qS
— tv freak (@schizokenic) August 22, 2023
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Originally founded in 1874 as the Young Men’s Hebrew Association, the 92nd Street Y — located at East 92nd Street and Lexington Avenue — has played host to luminaries like Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Billy Joel and Ira Glass. Its famed nursery school can cost up to $42,500 per school year. Getting in has been a source of scandal among New York’s elite, with a Wall Street power player once dabbling in insider training to secure his twins admission.
Stalkergate is the latest in a series of live events gone awry. In December 2022, a performance of Broadway’s Death of a Salesman revival was disrupted by a disorderly person. Meanwhile, a slew of recent concerts were halted due to aggressive fans hurling odd items onstage.
Since NYC remains in denial about such terrifying and often harmful incidents, and even
refuses to add such incidents to their statistics to make NY appear much safer than it really
is–there’s only 1 solution which would, at least, allow such presentations to contnue: That is, putting a protective shield in front of the stage of the performer,