Last night my wife and I went to see The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, a wonderful play based on a wonderful book, at the Barrymore Theater. It was a big night out for us; we have two young kids and don’t get as much culture as we used to.

So we were disappointed to learn that the two most important parts in the play—that of Christopher Boone, the autistic boy at the heart of the story, and his father—were to be played by understudies. Particularly disappointing was the news that Alex Sharp, who plays Christopher, would not be performing; when that was announced just before the curtain rose, the entire audience gasped in surprise and disappointment. He’s been getting amazing reviews, and, no offense to his understudy, he’s clearly the star of the show.

So this morning I called Telecharge to say, I went to see a play last night where the two biggest roles were played by understudies. That doesn’t seem right. Can you do anything about it?

They asked me to write an email. I did. I explained that Alex Sharp was a big reason we’d gone to see the play, that the Times’ Ben Brantley had singled Sharp out for praise, and that it really did make a difference to us that we saw a performance that was not what I had bought tickets for. And even though they were relatively cheap seats, at $100 a ticket, the seats weren’t that cheap. I didn’t ask for a refund, I just said, if there’s anything you can do to redress the situation, I’d appreciate it.

A few hours later, a guy from Telecharge wrote back. He said that he’d spoken to the theater and that the producers considered the two actors equal. Because they could and did both play the part, the understudy was not, in fact, an understudy. Therefore, too bad.

This is when I started to get cranky.

I wrote back to the man, pointing out that the idea that both actors were considered equal and Alex Sharp did not have top billing was pure bunk. The Playbill write-up speaks of Alex Sharp’s Broadway debut and features an interview with Sharp titled “How Alexander Sharp was Plucked from Obscurity to Star on Broadway“; it does not mention his understudy. Every single review of the play mentions Sharp; none mention the understudy. The play’s website features an extensive gallery of images from the show. Every single one features Alex Sharp as Christopher; none feature the understudy. Broadway.com has a video: “Watch Alex Sharp Solve the Curious Case of the Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.” Judging from its reaction to the loudspeaker announcement that Sharp would not be performing, the audience as a whole was expecting him.

I asked if he could connect me to the people at the theater, so that I could talk with them.

I have not yet heard back.

This raises an interesting issue. Yes, theater is a human art, and human beings can’t always go on stage. They get sick, they lose their voice, whatever.

But if you are heavily promoting a play based on the performance of one young actor, and people buy tickets in large part to see that performance, and without warning he does not appear in the play, are theatergoers not owed a refund if they want one?

I think they are—or, to be more precise, we are. If the star of the play can not perform for some reason, well, I hope he feels better soon. But that does not mean that I should suffer for lack of his art.

I’ll let you know how it turns out….but I’m not optimistic.