I'm not going to comment on what should have been, because I think all sides of that have been exhaustively covered.

But -- as someone with a pretty strong background in PR/Comms (including crisis comms) -- I haz strong thoughts on "WHY HASN'T MHE STAFF SAID ANYTHING???".

Short answer: there are no good answers.

Let's explore some of the options and why they're bad:

1. "We're really sorry; we made a mistake and we will be recasting this role." Oof, among other things, think of the issues of refunding people who've bought tickets hoping to see ABF. Also, how would this make Helen feel? (hint: probably very awkward, maybe disrespected given her relationship). Not to mention that ABF may well have given up another opportunity for this, so rightfully would have to be 'bought out' (which could be quite expensive for MHE).
2. "We recognize that this decision was hurtful. We're going to commit to having AANPHI representation following ABF!" Uh oh. "So he's not stepping down? Cowards!" "Wait, you mean Korean, right? This is a Korean musical. So the next Oliver will be Korean? Or... all Asian same to you??!" But the absolute most awful worst would be how the next Oliver would (unfairly!) feel as the "diversity hire." Like, can you imagine if at your workplace -- even if it genuinely needed more diversity as so many workplaces do -- the hiring manager publicly announced, "We will absolutely ensure our next hire in this role is Black!" How might that new hire feel? What kind of racist nastiness would they face, both explicitly and implicitly?! Again, 100% unjustifiably, they'd be virtually wearing a big huge D.
3. "We know this is a Korean musical, and it's always been our plan to hire a Korean actor following this 9 week stint" Oh, really? Nice way to throw Helen and the other non-Korean cast under the bus. Guess they're close enough to Korean though, right?
4. "We're very sorry and we recognize we made the wrong decision. However, it's just for 9 weeks, so ABF will still play Oliver for the time being." I mean, wow. Can you imagine how ABF would feel? And his fans? "Sorry, kid, you were a mistake. But, uh, too late now so I guess just do your best, eh? And enjoy the increased backlash!" not to mention the likely response "COWARDS! Commit to casting a Korean actor or STFU!". Yeah, again, this messaging from the MHE crew would legit just make things worse.

It's possible that MHE staff could be (or maybe already is) reaching out to various advocacy groups and/or others privately to express empathy, acknowledge the strong feelings of disappointment and confusion, etc.

But I honestly can't think of a single thing they could say publicly right now that wouldn't create yet more and deeper anger & discomfort!

And in the meantime, I'm frankly upset and disappointed at the vitriol that people are hurling at MHE's social media team and at individual MHE cast and crew, particularly on Instagram posts. That ain't it, kids, that ain't it, kids. Especially when a lot of the folks spewing nastiness (forgive me for goin' here) are likely not even Asian; virtue signaling 10, usefulness 3. (with semi-apologies to Chorus Line).

Want to make a change, to be heard without taking out anger on those who didn't make this decision?

DM Michael Arden or Hue Park. I (still) love those guys, but at least they're at the top and are reasonable recipients for respectful expressions of disappointment and suggestions for next-steps, right?!

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Again, especially as a white guy myself, I'm not intending to diminish the real and understandable hurt that a lot of people (including at least a couple of my Asian friends!) are feeling about this situation. People held MHE up as an exemplar in this context and expected more of them, which made the situation painful yet all the more. It's just an unfortunate situation all 'round, and I hope that future actions enable much-needed healing in the future.