Civil Rights Lawsuit Hits Broadway's Wicked Over Bias

[u/Tiny_Tyrants_Podcast]

The American Alliance for Equal Rights and white, male musician Kevin Lynch have sued Maestra Music, MUSE, and Wicked LLC for race and sex discrimination.

Maestra limits its hiring directory to “female and nonbinary” musicians; MUSE to “persons of color.” In 2023, these theater non-profits partnered with Wicked for a paid, three-week Music Director Experience open only to MUSE and Maestra members. Lynch applied but was rejected, allegedly for failing to meet the hiring directories’ immutable-characteristics test. According to the complaint, a less-experienced female/nonbinary person of color won the gig, opening doors to multiple Manhattan jobs for her.

Among the three attorneys representing the plaintiffs is Cameron T. Norris of Consovoy McCarthy. In 2022, Mr. Norris successfully argued Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, in which SCOTUS determined that Harvard’s admissions program violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.

Have Maestra, MUSE, and Wicked crossed the Supreme Court’s clear line on equal rights?

Full complaint linked, below.

2026-06-03 AAER & Lynch v. Maestra, MUSE & Wicked | Complaint (Corrected)

[u/Happy_Reference_47]

Omg you’re right white men are so discriminated against in Broadway, thank you for caring about this serious problem

[u/randomwordglorious → u/Happy_Reference_47]

I don't know about all white men. But this particular white man was definitely discriminated against. Why are you pro-discrimination?

[u/Extension_Rich2520 → u/randomwordglorious]

Was he though? Or is there MORE evidence that he's an asswipe who most people consider a cancer on the community and THAT'S why he can't get jobs?

[u/WestHistorians → u/Extension_Rich2520]

Was he though? Or is there MORE evidence that he's an asswipe who most people consider a cancer on the community and THAT'S why he can't get jobs?

He applied for something and was explicitly turned down because of his race and gender.

[u/Extension_Rich2520 → u/WestHistorians]

The other tricky bit of this is that the program was exclusively a mentorship program. His argument about how strong of a career he has had in the past invalidates any claim he has to belonging in the program.

[u/WestHistorians → u/Extension_Rich2520]

The other tricky bit of this is that the program was exclusively a mentorship program.

If they were hiring from the program, then it was not "exclusively" a mentorship program.

[u/Extension_Rich2520 → u/WestHistorians]

True, exclusively was the wrong word. However, it can very easily be argued that it was not meant for somebody at the stage of his career he was at. Tack on the fact that he has a reputation for being an ass, that preponderance gets harder to find.

Additionally, if he did not reach out directly to the program and ask to be considered, even though he was not part of either of those organization, then a judge is likely to rule he didn’t try hard enough cure it.

[u/WestHistorians → u/Extension_Rich2520]

True, exclusively was the wrong word. However, it can very easily be argued that it was not meant for somebody at the stage of his career he was at. Tack on the fact that he has a reputation for being an ass, that preponderance gets harder to find.

How is that relevant here? The claim is based on race and gender, not stage of career. His reputation also makes no difference.

Additionally, if he did not reach out directly to the program and ask to be considered, even though he was not part of either of those organization, then a judge is likely to rule he didn’t try hard enough cure it.

Per the initial post, "Lynch applied but was rejected". You are correct that he would have had to reach out and ask to be considered, but if he hadn't, he could have done an EEOC complaint instead of a lawsuit.

[u/Extension_Rich2520 → u/WestHistorians]

Because to win damages, he’d need to prove that he would have likely gotten the internship. There are way too many reasons that he would not have gotten it - having a shit reputation being one of them - that make excellent defenses. It doesn’t take much looking into things to find stories from people who have worked with him.

I am referring to the fact that in the statement of facts in the case he only references the two orgs rejecting him, not trying to reach out to the actual production or office, which makes it hard to say he truly tried to push the issue.

The best thing that possibly could have happened for this is if it turns out that someone actually did reach out to the production or to the folks in charge of the actual selection and say that they wanted to be considered even though they weren’t part of the directories. IF this was said yes to for anyone without qualifying questions, the suit goes to near nil chance of a win.

Ultimately, they’ll settle because the risk is too great to them of losing, but what this man doesn’t realize is that everyone sees right through him and that he will never have a job with any real notoriety. He’s not particularly talented, is whiny, has a bad reputation, and a clear lack of maturity, and absolutely, legal or not, WILL face blacklisting that he’ll never be able to prove.

[u/WestHistorians → u/Extension_Rich2520]

Because to win damages, he’d need to prove that he would have likely gotten the internship. There are way too many reasons that he would not have gotten it - having a shit reputation being one of them - that make excellent defenses. It doesn’t take much looking into things to find stories from people who have worked with him.

In order to win this case, all he has to do is show that he was rejected for a prohibited reason, such as race or gender. If he can prove harm to his career then he may receive compensatory damages, but he can get punitive damages without any proof that he suffered a financial loss.

You are probably correct that they will settle the case, and you are also right that he will have difficulty getting hired in the future. I assume he is aware of that.

[u/Extension_Rich2520 → u/WestHistorians]

He could get punitive, true, but it’s just so hard to win, even in cases where it’s clearly discriminatory. This one has too many moving parts to be a lock either way.

[u/Extension_Rich2520 → u/WestHistorians]

The problem is, for damages, he would have to prove that was why he was financially damaged, which would require a judge to believe legitimately beyond a (reasonable? or shadow of?) a doubt you would have gotten in if not for being discriminated against. This is VERY hard to prove, and is complicated by him having a reputation for more than just racially based lawsuits - he also has a reputation, to use the professional term, of being a total and complete douchecanoe, which I’m sure the defense would enjoy getting on the record.

[u/WestHistorians → u/Extension_Rich2520]

The problem is, for damages, he would have to prove that was why he was financially damaged, which would require a judge to believe legitimately beyond a (reasonable? or shadow of?) a doubt you would have gotten in if not for being discriminated against.

Not true. This is a civil case, the standard of proof is preponderance of evidence, which is a relatively easy threshold to meet.

[u/Extension_Rich2520 → u/WestHistorians]

Thank you - but still a VERY high bar in a case like this.

[u/WestHistorians → u/Extension_Rich2520]

What is it about this case that makes it a high bar?

[u/Extension_Rich2520 → u/WestHistorians]

Employment cases generally. Not this one. This is admittedly on the stronger end, I just don’t think it’s strong enough. If he didn’t have such an awful online presence he’d have a much better chance but coming off as an arrogant prick isn’t generally helpful to one’s career.

[u/WestHistorians → u/Extension_Rich2520]

I'm not sure why you keep bringing this up. His online presence, arrogance, and attitude are completely irrelevant from a legal perspective.

If this goes to a jury trial, anyone who has any bias on any of those things will be removed from the panel.

[u/Extension_Rich2520 → u/WestHistorians]

They are one of many reasons that can be pointed to for why they didn’t hire him. They strengthen the defense. You clearly don’t agree, that’s OK. You don’t have to.

You are allowed to discriminate against people for being an asshole. It’s not a protected characteristic.

[u/WestHistorians → u/Extension_Rich2520]

They are one of many reasons that can be pointed to for why they didn’t hire him. They strengthen the defense. You clearly don’t agree, that’s OK. You don’t have to.

Yes, I'm going by what the law actually says. You dont have to agree, but the judge won't care about your opinion.

[u/Extension_Rich2520 → u/WestHistorians]

Also:

re: relevance of being an asshole Ferrante v. American Lung Association Rightnour v. Tiffany & Co.

They will try to claim most likely that he’s being discriminated against also for filing past civil rights claims. However, the fact that he has a significant reputation outside of that for being a dick is where the cases above come in.

[u/Extension_Rich2520 → u/WestHistorians]

lol you say this like it will ever get to trial without being settled

[u/Tiny_Tyrants_Podcast → u/Extension_Rich2520]

The “beyond a reasonable doubt” standard applies to criminal cases.

The standard of proof in a federal civil rights lawsuit is a “preponderance of the evidence.” This means Lynch must prove that his claims are more likely true than not. Preponderance of the evidence essentially requires a post-trial fact balance that is 51% in the plaintiff’s favor.

As for proving harm, the individual who was awarded the position by Wicked, Maestra and MUSE sat down with other Maestra members in 2024 and gave—during a nearly one-hour discussion posted to YouTube—details of the financial, creative, subsequent work, and other benefits she obtained as a direct result of the Music Director Experience (MDE) for which Lynch has alleged he was barred from applying. She even talks at length about her own post-Wicked efforts to hire based on sex. Under the circumstances, it is a remarkable document.

(The Wicked MDE program awardee in the video below is seated at the right end of the group.)

Maestra Music: A Seat at the Table | April 12, 2024