Creating Safer Spaces and Opportunities for Artists of Color in Theatre
By Monica Spencer
According to Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the purpose of theatre is to represent reality, holding a mirror up to virtue, to vice, and to the spirit of the times. But what happens when the mirror is turned toward the theatre itself?
According to the Actors’ Equity Association Diversity Report 2016-2019 Review, contracts going to people of color increased from 15.3% in the 2017 study to 23.3% in the current study. Contracts to black members represent 45.7% of that increase. The executive summary of the report acknowledges, however, that the increase, “…does not necessarily reflect improvement across the industry. For example, among production contracts, much of the increased representation of people of color can be attributed to multiple productions of Hamilton alone.”
The executive summary of the report also indicates that the increase in contracts to people of color still falls short of reflecting the demographics of the communities they serve. For example, the 2010 U.S. Census shows that 39.6% of Americans are of color. But from 2016-2019, only 21.5% of equity contracts nationally went to members of color.
Furthermore, these contracts continue to fall within certain job types that keep people of color from the spotlight. Chorus roles continue to be more racially diverse than principal roles in both plays and musicals alike.
According to Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the purpose of theatre is to represent reality, holding a mirror up to virtue, to vice, and to the spirit of the times. But what happens when the mirror is turned toward the theatre itself?
According to the Actors’ Equity Association Diversity Report 2016-2019 Review, contracts going to people of color increased from 15.3% in the 2017 study to 23.3% in the current study. Contracts to black members represent 45.7% of that increase. The executive summary of the report acknowledges, however, that the increase, “…does not necessarily reflect improvement across the industry. For example, among production contracts, much of the increased representation of people of color can be attributed to multiple productions of Hamilton alone.”
The executive summary of the report also indicates that the increase in contracts to people of color still falls short of reflecting the demographics of the communities they serve. For example, the 2010 U.S. Census shows that 39.6% of Americans are of color. But from 2016-2019, only 21.5% of equity contracts nationally went to members of color.
Furthermore, these contracts continue to fall within certain job types that keep people of color from the spotlight. Chorus roles continue to be more racially diverse than principal roles in both plays and musicals alike.
Character Types
Jen Leija, a Detroit-based actress, musician, and theatre director, has often found herself on the sidelines.
“There’s basically no room for people who are bi-racial or mixed race in theatre,” Leija said.
Leija discovered early on that talent doesn’t always matter.
“It’s really all about how you look and how you present. And the darker you are the more there is a conversation about whether you are matronly or whether are you a sassy character role,” Leija said.
Leija has spent the entirety of her theatre career struggling between those two character types and between races.
“When you are a woman of color in theatre you are told everywhere that you are wrong, that your body type is wrong, that your skin color is wrong,” Leija said.
Unfortunately for many biracial performers Leija’s experience is an all too familiar reality and one often learned at an early age.
Seattle-based performer Anna Urband can distinctly remember the first time she was told she was inadequate because of the color of her skin. “My high school theatre director told me I wasn’t black enough. I’ll never forget that,” Urband said.
Urband was the singular black student in her high school theatre program and when she got her first lead it was for the only black character that appeared in the show.
“It felt like the joy of finally receiving a lead was stolen from me. I didn’t get the part because of my hard work and talent. I got the part because of the color of my skin,” Urband said.
Being the only black student available to play a traditionally black character was a lot to process for Urband, but all of that was compounded when microaggressions toward the color of her skin began from the director and production team.
Jen Leija, a Detroit-based actress, musician, and theatre director, has often found herself on the sidelines.
“There’s basically no room for people who are bi-racial or mixed race in theatre,” Leija said.
Leija discovered early on that talent doesn’t always matter.
“It’s really all about how you look and how you present. And the darker you are the more there is a conversation about whether you are matronly or whether are you a sassy character role,” Leija said.
Leija has spent the entirety of her theatre career struggling between those two character types and between races.
“When you are a woman of color in theatre you are told everywhere that you are wrong, that your body type is wrong, that your skin color is wrong,” Leija said.
Unfortunately for many biracial performers Leija’s experience is an all too familiar reality and one often learned at an early age.
Seattle-based performer Anna Urband can distinctly remember the first time she was told she was inadequate because of the color of her skin. “My high school theatre director told me I wasn’t black enough. I’ll never forget that,” Urband said.
Urband was the singular black student in her high school theatre program and when she got her first lead it was for the only black character that appeared in the show.
“It felt like the joy of finally receiving a lead was stolen from me. I didn’t get the part because of my hard work and talent. I got the part because of the color of my skin,” Urband said.
Being the only black student available to play a traditionally black character was a lot to process for Urband, but all of that was compounded when microaggressions toward the color of her skin began from the director and production team.
Uncomfortable Role
“I was asked to wear darker make up and the director even offered to pay for me to go to the tanning salon so that I would read more black on stage. That really created a weird self-consciousness around being not black enough to play a role,” Urband said.
Because this was a competition show, the comments didn’t stop with the production team. After one of the performances the cast and crew gathered to receive feedback from the judges. In front of everyone a white judge singled out Urband to ask her if she was supposed to be black.
“That’s when I was like what the hell is going on here? I was a black person, in a role written for a black person, but the lens that was being looked through was from middle age and older white people. So, I was super uncomfortable playing that role even though I was the person that role was written for,” Urband said.
Urband experienced all of this at only 16 years old. And although she was incredibly uncomfortable, she never felt able to speak up.
“Sixteen is such a weird age to advocate for yourself. Also, in theatre, there’s all this pressure not to put up a stink. You don’t want future roles to be taken away from you if you complain,” Urband said.
Urband is now confident and comfortable speaking up when situations like this arise. But that experience certainly had a major impact on Urband as a young artist.
“Having that inherent feeling of otherness within the school population and theatre program shaped the way that I viewed myself and the roles that I thought that I was capable of playing or worthy of,” Urband said.
Forced Diversity
As you get older it doesn’t always get easier and that struggle of otherness is also felt by biracial producers creating events. Sage Cajigas is a multiracial, non-binary, New York City-based artist. Cajigas loves performing and producing, but often battles with the paleness of their skin.
“When contacting venues to book my performances a part of me doesn’t want to show my face. I would say in the emails that this is a POC [people of color] run event and I feel like having a pale person of color can kind of make you a shoehorn for forced diversity.”
Cajigas understands the privilege that comes with her lighter skin tone. “…but that’s why I think it’s important for people who are like me, who are part of already marginalized groups, to lift up those who are more marginalized by the world,” Cajigas said.
Cajigas started her own company that focuses on hiring and creating space for transgender, non-conforming, nonbinary, performers of color. The work of Cajigas is key in helping to make room for people of color in theatre. But it will take the work of more than one company to create systemic change for artists of color.
Solutions
Urband suggests that real change must be implemented from the top.
“The only way to create something wholeheartedly equitable is to put the people who have been most oppressed in the position of power. Because they are the only ones that can solve these problems in a way that is meaningful and actually makes sense for the community," Urband said.
Creating a space for black and brown performers and putting more people of color in leadership roles won’t solve all of the theatre’s diversity and inclusivity problems, but it certainly is a step in the right direction towards reflecting society’s full picture.
Source: https://www.actorsequity.org/news/PR/DandIReport2020/
“I was asked to wear darker make up and the director even offered to pay for me to go to the tanning salon so that I would read more black on stage. That really created a weird self-consciousness around being not black enough to play a role,” Urband said.
Because this was a competition show, the comments didn’t stop with the production team. After one of the performances the cast and crew gathered to receive feedback from the judges. In front of everyone a white judge singled out Urband to ask her if she was supposed to be black.
“That’s when I was like what the hell is going on here? I was a black person, in a role written for a black person, but the lens that was being looked through was from middle age and older white people. So, I was super uncomfortable playing that role even though I was the person that role was written for,” Urband said.
Urband experienced all of this at only 16 years old. And although she was incredibly uncomfortable, she never felt able to speak up.
“Sixteen is such a weird age to advocate for yourself. Also, in theatre, there’s all this pressure not to put up a stink. You don’t want future roles to be taken away from you if you complain,” Urband said.
Urband is now confident and comfortable speaking up when situations like this arise. But that experience certainly had a major impact on Urband as a young artist.
“Having that inherent feeling of otherness within the school population and theatre program shaped the way that I viewed myself and the roles that I thought that I was capable of playing or worthy of,” Urband said.
Forced Diversity
As you get older it doesn’t always get easier and that struggle of otherness is also felt by biracial producers creating events. Sage Cajigas is a multiracial, non-binary, New York City-based artist. Cajigas loves performing and producing, but often battles with the paleness of their skin.
“When contacting venues to book my performances a part of me doesn’t want to show my face. I would say in the emails that this is a POC [people of color] run event and I feel like having a pale person of color can kind of make you a shoehorn for forced diversity.”
Cajigas understands the privilege that comes with her lighter skin tone. “…but that’s why I think it’s important for people who are like me, who are part of already marginalized groups, to lift up those who are more marginalized by the world,” Cajigas said.
Cajigas started her own company that focuses on hiring and creating space for transgender, non-conforming, nonbinary, performers of color. The work of Cajigas is key in helping to make room for people of color in theatre. But it will take the work of more than one company to create systemic change for artists of color.
Solutions
Urband suggests that real change must be implemented from the top.
“The only way to create something wholeheartedly equitable is to put the people who have been most oppressed in the position of power. Because they are the only ones that can solve these problems in a way that is meaningful and actually makes sense for the community," Urband said.
Creating a space for black and brown performers and putting more people of color in leadership roles won’t solve all of the theatre’s diversity and inclusivity problems, but it certainly is a step in the right direction towards reflecting society’s full picture.
Source: https://www.actorsequity.org/news/PR/DandIReport2020/
Reflecting on the 2019-2020 Broadway Season
If we look at the last season before the coronavirus pandemic. The 2019-2020 Broadway season had 37 plays and musicals that were scheduled to open.
Out of the 37 shows, only four were written by artists of color and only one of the 37 shows was written by a female-identifying artist.
Of the four shows that were written by artists of color, only two were directed by artists of color, both of which were male-identifying.
These two productions are the only shows to feature a principal creative or design team that was predominantly of color.
Out of 37 shows, 33 of them had principal creative and/or design teams that featured two artists of color or fewer.
Out of the 37 shows, eight of them cast zero artists of color.
Out of the 37 shows, only four were written by artists of color and only one of the 37 shows was written by a female-identifying artist.
Of the four shows that were written by artists of color, only two were directed by artists of color, both of which were male-identifying.
These two productions are the only shows to feature a principal creative or design team that was predominantly of color.
Out of 37 shows, 33 of them had principal creative and/or design teams that featured two artists of color or fewer.
Out of the 37 shows, eight of them cast zero artists of color.
Meet Emilio Rodriguez
Emilio Rodriguez is the Artistic Director and Co-Founder of Black and Brown Theatre, a non-profit theatre company that works to create opportunities for theatre artists of color and the communities they are a part of through live performances, workshops, digital media, classes, and other events.
Click the video below for Rodriguez's experiences in theatre as a Latino man and member of the LGBTQ+ community.
Click the video below for Rodriguez's experiences in theatre as a Latino man and member of the LGBTQ+ community.
Equity and Inclusivity for Members of the LGBTQ+ Community
According to the Actors’ Equity Association Diversity Report 2016-2019 Review, in terms of gender, contracts that went to women did slightly increase, but the data shows that more contracts are still going to men.
The executive summary reports that, "Not only do women earn less than men, but transgender non-binary or gender-nonconforming members usually earn less than their cisgender peers in the same job categories on any given contract type."
The executive summary reports that, "Not only do women earn less than men, but transgender non-binary or gender-nonconforming members usually earn less than their cisgender peers in the same job categories on any given contract type."
Meet Emily Hadick
Emily Hadick is a musical theatre performer who identifies as a non-binary lesbian. Traditional binary roles and practices in the theatre world have left Emily questioning how they present in an audition setting and what roles they feel most comfortable with.
In the podcast episode below, Emily discusses traditional binary roles and practices in the theatre world, and focuses on the importance of representation, gender-blind casting, and creating safe environments for theatre artists.