Many of us in the world of theater have heard about the recent Hamilton casting call incident. In basic terms, the hit musical posted an open call on its own website which read,
“Nonwhite men and women, ages 20s to 30s, for Broadway and upcoming tours.”
I have to say, the language is pretty exclusive. Not only that – it may be in violation of The New York City Human Rights Law. Actually, I’m pretty sure it is.
I’ve heard many Black and Asian American colleagues of mine talk about how they would be perfect for a role – dramatically and/or vocally, but they just can’t do it. They, ultimately, begin speaking in terms of “I wish” when referencing these roles. They do this not because they don’t have the talent, but because they know that it’s unlikely to find a casting director willing to break “the rules.” With that being said, the responses of the media and my fellow actors have been extremely telling of where we are as an art form. Now, I am no musical theater wiz (no pun intended), but being in the performance industry for more than 10 years has taught me a few things.
If you are a person of color, and you’re not particularly racially ambiguous, your options become exceptionally limited. In fact, if the role isn’t specified for your race, you probably won’t get it. You kind of have to fight the system’s implied White person syndrome, where every character without a specified race becomes White. That’s just the way it is, and as an actor you have to come to terms with that or find another craft. Theater seems to be one of the few places in our working culture where there is this unspoken, unwritten level of socially acceptable discrimination. We write it off as “we have to respect the writer’s vision” or “we need to keep it believable.” I get that, but isn’t that applicable to the "Hamilton" situation? Wasn’t Lin-Manuel Garcia’s vision to see a non-Caucasian cast play these roles? To create opportunity where needed?
As I checked in with social media it become increasingly clear to me that there were mixed emotions about the casting call. I get it, and I keep saying that, but I want to send a message to everyone in opposition of the casting call.
President and Executive director of the Actors’ Equity Association shared my sentiment when in they said’
“The real issue is that in 2016, there are still far too few roles for non-Caucasian actors.”
I don’t think people get that. We need more opportunities! We need shows like "Hamilton" because directors have been casting White people as Egyptians for decades. We need shows like Hamilton because it has become acceptable to ask your actors to do yellow face before thinking about casting an actual Asian person in an opera. We need more shows like Hamilton because Marsha P. Johnson was a Black-trans woman and not a White-cisgender male and the Native American Tonto in "The Lone Ranger" should have been an actual Native American actor instead of Johnny Depp.
Because of this lack of work people of color have sort of been reduced to playing incomplete characters. These characters, if you can call them that, have names, they have personality – but they become a caricatures or shadows of people. They have no families – you have no idea where they came from. You don’t know where they live, what they like to do. They are the help. They are the Latino housekeepers and landscapers; angry Black women or nannies and fetishized Asian girls or nerds. They are the Indian taxi drivers and store clerks. They are one-with-nature Native Americans and gangster Black men.
I know that, in 2016, we can’t get beyond the implied White person because even when Black people play fictitious characters there is a media uproar. We couldn’t see Idris Elba as James Bond because he was “too street.” We couldn’t see John Boyega as a black storm trooper because it was “anti-White propaganda.” We couldn’t see Noma Dumezweni as Hermione Granger because “brown eyes, bushy brown hair, and an air of obnoxious self-confidence” implies White girl to some. We need to face the fact that not showing people of color in live theater and film sends the message that those stories don't exist, don't matter, or they would be told better by White actors.
I’m waiting for the day where shows like Aziz Ansari’s "Master of None" won’t be seen as groundbreaking and fresh for telling the stories of people of color in dynamic ways. I’ll be waiting for the day where decentralizing the implied White person in all forms of theater and film is the norm. Until then, I’ll support shows like "Hamilton."
