Profile for Blactor

The Play that Goes Wrong.

GavestonePS said:And if one is a person of color who faces daily disrespect from shop clerks, bus drivers and police officers, perhaps it isn't so easy to recognize that THIS ONE TIME it isn't about skin color.Actually, I'm getting REALLY sick and tired of random POCs speaking on behalf of all other POCs. Even the usage of "POC" is offensive, reducing entire demographics and subcultures composed of countless unique individuals to a vaguely racist acronym--honestly, how is "People of Color" th...

Ridiculous, nonsense "article" by an entitled, self-righteous twit.So you went to the theatre and experienced some rude old people. So what. Happens to the best of us. Our ancestors fought through slavery, the Civil War, Reconstruction, and Jim Crow, and here you are b*tching because some lady GAVE you a ticket and took exception to your responses to a show. And how ironic is it, her complaining about privilege, when she is an award-winning writer, who has received grants for her writing, and...

promisespromises2 said: You are extremely ignorant, and I feel sorry for you.Ok, Master, who has more to offer in this discussion--you, or an African-American performer who has spent more than 30 years interacting with and living among and performing before people from his own demographic? Who is more ignorant, some guy insulting me on a message board, or a guy who's observed exactly the kind of behavior that is being discussed for DECADES? Sorry if it offends your sensibilities, and I know w...

Yes, different cultures do react to theatre in different ways. On the whole, serious theater-going is NOT a part of Black American culture, unless a touring "Chitlin' Circuit" show comes to town. They simply don't have years of experience and education as far as etiquette. Of course, I stress that this is speaking in generalities (although it should be quite obvious).As a performer it is a double-edged sword. Sometimes a majority Black audience can invigorate a show, as the instant feedback a...

I know it offends our Liberal and Progressive sensibilities, Evic is absolutely right:The Black population, generally, does not go to the theater regularly, and thus is unfamiliar with theatre etiquette. It isn't racist to point it out, and reflexively labeling such commentary as "racist" is a surefire way to make sure that nothing ever gets done about it. I applaud Iluvtheatertrash for actually standing up to this woman and saying something, because most people wouldn't. And I'm willing to b...

Stepping in as yet another defender of Whizzer--easily one of the most astute commenters here. If you disagree with Whizzer's assessment, and it hurts your feelings, so what--no point in penning a novella and shouting at the world about it. Just state your case and don't try to police someone else's opinions. Or urge them to use "less caustic language". This is a public forum, not grade school.

Eric: Although I hate to compare apples to oranges, there were a couple of moments in the Streetcar film that REALLY stood out to me in Vivian Leigh's performance (and I wanna preface it by saying that I was really turned off by Leigh at first, but she won me over eventually and by the end she left me devastated): 1) In the scene where they're waiting for Mitch, who will never show, Stanley makes a remark about Blanche taking forever in the bathroom, and Blanche replies with "I apologized thr...

Having only seen the film, and having read the script a long time ago, I was excited to see this acclaimed production thanks to NTLive's screening. I guess I'm in the minority that wasn't blown away by the production; I don't quite understand why so many superlatives are being heaped upon it. I thought it was solid, solid work, but it seemed a stronger directorial hand may have been needed. Being both a former southerner and a HUGE X-Files fan, I was initially in awe of Gillain Anderson's cha...

Newintown, As someone who used to listen to a LOT of hip-hop (I find it pretty boring these days), I see where you're coming from in terms of the label of Producer vs. Composer. As has been stated already, typically in the Hip-Hop world the "Producer" is understood as the person that COMPOSED the beat/track that the lyricist is rhyming over. Any while it's true that many hip-hop producers don't have a background in composing, or even music theory (not that that has stopped song-writers in oth...

Matt, I would say the same thing about many of the posters here!

JR, Not sure if this is what you're implying, but NO actor would leave a series regular role on a network television show to work on Broadway. It's drastically reduced visibility and--more importantly--a VERY drastically reduced salary. It's more likely that she just wasn't right for it, at the end of the day. They're testing actors for the role right now as I type this. This kind of thing happens all the time during pilot season. I also think it's interesting that posters at the Hollywood we...

Play Esq-- The original NYT review didn't care for her either. Thought the show was brilliant but savaged the lead actress. I don't know if her career ever recovered from it. I like her just fine on the recording, but that could be more a testament to the brilliance of Kander & Ebb than anything else.

I wouldn't say Brando's skill and stage presence was what imbalanced the original Streetcar production; he was still a young actor at the time and Elia Kazan had to work with him just to get him to project to the back of the house. Funny enough I just read the original NYT review the other day, which gushed over Tandy and barely mentioned Brando. From what I've read, what Brando did was generate a lot of laughs as Stanley, and audiences began to pay more attention to and SYMPATHIZE WITH him, ...

I don't think any actor is going to win a Tony for playing Walter Lee, simply because this play is about the women, each of whom are KILLER roles for good actors. Poitier's autobiography is interesting in that he talks about the conflict between himself and Claudia Mcneil, because Poitier thought the play was about Walter while McNeil believed it was about Lena. I dunno if it's about Lena specifically, but IMO the women are far more compelling in this play than Walter Lee is.

Also it's worth noting that in the film, Jafar uses magic to continually force the Sultan to do his bidding. Was this element not in the stage show?

This thread is hilarious on so many levels. Bruce Lee is a figure that is close to my heart, so I probably went in knowing more about him than the average audience member--certainly more than the average NY theatre-goer. The audience I saw the show with freaking loved it, and I think this show will do very well, especially assuming that they iron out the wrinkles in what looks to be a generous preview process. The staff I spoke to (Signature, on a side note, has EXTREMELY friendly people work...

Dave19: I'm a young black person. Firstly, I must applaud you for airing your views on the Race Problem. Many white Americans aren't anywhere near as candid. That said: the last thing that I--or anyone that looks like me--needs, is "advice" from someone who, by accident of birth, will never, ever walk a day in my shoes. To presume, even jokingly, that you, and you alone, have the answer to this society's ills is not only condescending in the extreme, it is also presumptuous and accomplishes n...

Growl, "Soon" may mean two years from now, or 25 years from now, but there is a growing awareness of the need for, and absence of, inclusion. Younger staff that are in assistant admin positions at theatres recognize the gaps in programming, and will rise to prominence, creating opportunities for the savvy but under-represented artists they are building connections with right now. The roadblock is that the people who can make the most change as far as diversity is concerned are the least quali...

What I want--and what I know is coming, maybe not this year, but soon--is a surge of theatre created by non-white artists (that actually gets PRODUCED) that breathes some much-needed life into the increasingly antiquated and socioculturally benign thing we call "American Theatre". I want Asian, Black, Latino, and Indigenous actors to be used for more than just diversifying Broadway ensembles. I want them to be given better material than sh*tty jukebox musicals and frivolous revues, so that th...