The situation in Shubert Alley on Saturday afternoon got quite out of hand.
As actress Bernadette Peters took the stage in the Theater District between 44th and 45th Streets to advertise her pet adoption charity Broadway Barksthe annual event was interrupted by angry Humane Society protesters shouting “animal cruelty.”
“Excuse Me,” the Tony Award-winning star of shows like “Gypsy” and “Hello, Dolly!” yelled back.
“You reduce the chance that the animals are adopted here!”
A spectator in the packed crowd told The Post it was “a commotion”, and video shows attendees yelling “go away!” screaming, while intruders with megaphones are dragged away by guards.
Co-founded by Peters and Mary Tyler Moore in 1998, the organization’s website says it was created to “promote shelter animal adoption.” The Humane Society, meanwhile, calls itself “the most effective animal protection organization in the country.”
As banners were hoisted and snatched, Sutton Foster, the star of ‘Music Man’, stood on stage grinning with her pup. Her opponents Hugh Jackman and Billy Crystal from ‘Mr. Saturday Night” also made appearances.