Patti Lupone Is Furious After Cruise Ship 'Full of Gay Men' Gets Banned
Legendary actress Patti Lupone is speaking out after an LGBTQ+ cruise that she was scheduled to perform on was allegedly banned from Turkey.
Lupone, 77, took to Instagram on Friday, July 3, to share how "shocked" she was when Virgin Voyages' Scarlet Lady was denied entry. (The singer was scheduled to perform from July 5 to July 15.)
"A ship - a magnificent ship - full of gay men. And me. Denied entry to Turkey simply because of who is on board," she wrote. "I am furious, but I am sailing, as the ship will make other ports of call."
Lupone continued, "I am ready to perform for all the wonderful men on this Atlantis cruise, who deserve so much better than this."
Virgin Voyages and Turkey's Ministry of Culture and Tourism have not addressed Lupone's post yet. The president and CEO of Atlantis Events, meanwhile, addressed in an interview with CNN how the "Athens to Venice" cruise will no longer be stopping in Kuşadası because "a gay group" is on board.
"It's pretty stunning, to be honest," Rich Campbell told the outlet on Friday. "It's very concerning to me when a country decides they can pick and choose which tourists are allowed in and which are not."
Campbell claimed this is the first time in 36 years that the company was "actively told we may not berth here because of who we are."
Authorities in Turkey's Aydın responded that there was "absolutely no possibility of the group in question visiting our province for an event of this nature," according to CNN. They also claimed that the ship was chartered by groups "known for behaviors incompatible with the fabric of our society and moral values."
The "Athens to Venice" cruise is a 10-day excursion that is described as "an epic all-gay voyage from Athens to Venice to the Mediterranean's most iconic destinations - Mykonos, Santorini, Istanbul, Dubrovnik, and more."
Atlantis Events' Instagram page for the trip promised that the cruise will "dazzle 2500 guys with stellar entertainment, the world's best parties, and awesome experiences aboard Virgin's Scarlet Lady."
The cruise is now planning to stop in Egypt and Crete instead of Turkey. Campbell, meanwhile, clarified that his company has no intention of acting like a "political organization."
"We are not there for anything except to spend money, have a good time, take tours and be incredibly respectful to every culture we visit," he concluded.
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This story was originally published July 3, 2026 at 12:15 PM.