Les Mis Loses Gay Kiss

Following complaints, a same-sex kiss scene in a Singapore production of the musical “Les Miserables” has been removed.

According to Yahoo News Singapore, the country’s Media Development Authority has said it will be “taking action against this breach of licensing conditions.”

The punishment could be as light as a warning letter or as heavy as a fine. The MDA claims that the kiss, which takes place between two male characters during the song “Beggars at the Feast,” was not indicated in the script submitted “for classification.”

Originally, the MDA had rated the performance “General,” meaning it was approved for all audiences, but if the scene remained as it is, then the rating would be changed to “Advisory.” In order to avoid the classification, the producers removed the scene after the June 3 performance.

The MDA was alerted to the scene by a Facebook user who claimed that the “gay kiss” was “never in the original production, but now it’s been included here.”

The user urged others to complain to the MDA as well. Later, MediaCorp VizPro, the organizer of the production, responded to the story by saying that the kiss was “intended to be comic,” but that the company had “took action and worked with the producers to adapt the scene.”