Bette's Dolly Cast Uninspired? — Page 3

@Steve C. - I think it's a little different because white and non-white actors do not have the same level of opportunity - yes, there are a smattering of plays and musicals designed for a Non-White cast (almost always specifically Black/African-American - the only ones that come to mind as being designed specifically or Hispanic actors and actresses would be West Side Story and In the Heights, and the only ones specifically for actors/actresses of Asian descent I can think of are Flower Drum Song, Miss Saigon, and Allegiance). However the vast majority of works tend to have originally had all-white or primarily-white casts, so when you have a chance where a role doesn't specifically HAVE to be White, then one should be encouraged to cast a non-white actor or actress since otherwise they aren't going to have as many opportunities for roles as white actors and actresses. This doesn't necessarily mean you should enforce that the role should be non-white - talent should be the big thing you look for above all - but it should certainly be encouraged.

As for whether Hello, Dolly! can be considered a show that HAS to have an all-white cast, it certainly doesn't, as has been already proven by the fact that professional All-Black versions of the show have been done and were pulled off fine. Non-White people were around in Turn of the Century America, and as said by others, this is already such an idealized, fantasy version of Turn of the Century America that nothing is lost by Non-White actors or actresses being in the roles. I don't necessarily think the show should be lambasted or boycotted or anything by choosing to cast all or mostly white actors and actresses in the primary roles, as they certainly might have just happened to cast the most talented people who auditioned, but I can definitely understand why people are disappointed that such a big show isn't a little more diverse in its casting, since it's going to be guaranteed to give anyone in it exposure as people will be buying tickets by the boatload in the first place just to see Bette Midler on stage.

Steve C. said: "In response to audience behavior, I don't think that will be a huge problem. When I saw "I'll Eat You Last", Bette got appropriate entrance applause and basically the laughs and applause from the play. Don't get me wrong; the audience loved her, but respectful.

As to the lack of color questions, I'm so stuck in the middle on this. People are going to say "Where's the diversity?" and that's a valid question, but then what do you say about "Color Purple" or other productions where color is very important? August Wilson plays, "Ain't Misbehavin", "Shuffle" ?? You would be ripped to shreds if you put Sierra Boggess in "Purple" or Sutton Foster in "Shuffle Along". However, having an Audra as "Dolly" would be great with audiences and I agree. That's why there was a Pearl Bailey led "Dolly"; also Diahhann Carroll was Norma Desmond in "Sunset Boulevard" after and during the runs of that show because it's written like that.

I think this is just one where you can't please everyone, all the time.



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The reason that The Color Purple or Shuffle Along require all-black cast is that the characters are intentionally written as ethnically specific, which means if you put Laura Benanti in the Color Purple the show itself won't make sense. Now is any character in Dolly specifically written for Caucasians, or does it have any line specifically indicating their ethnicity like Chris in Miss Saigon? I'm not familiar with the material, but judging from how people are reacting to the casting, it doesn't seem to be the case.

I agree with all of you guys and I completely understand. It's like I said, I'm stuck in the middle. When you have a show like Flower DS, or Color P, yes and yes: therefore when a production comes along like Dolly a POC should have been considered but for all we know, maybe many did audition that we are not aware of. It's very distressing to be so on the fence about this.

In a recent episode of the TheaterPeople podcast, Jose Llana spoke about the challenges that actors of color face and made some great comments regarding the state of casting today more eloquently than I ever could. I'd highly recommend giving it a listen.

LizzieCurry said: "qolbinau said: "It's Hello Dolly, not Hello Delores.

(just kidding). "

???

...I'm not even sure what you were attempting here.



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That's fine. For those that did get it: please note I am only joking of course. I have reserved a slot in my show calendar to see (hopefully) Audra, Queen L, Whoopi, or whoever is the alternate. I don't know if I'm in a minority, but Pearl Bailey's Dolly is the only one that gets serious listening from my perspective. Not to sound too racist or superlative, but I'd argue black women have the best voices on average of any demographic in the world. They should be rewarded as such with frequent casting on Broadway.

Owen22 said: "It also seems very un-PC to actually say, when referring to non-traditonal casting, that the POC actor is playing WHITE. They have not changed a character that, given said character's time, opportunities, and relationships, would be anything other than white (Audra's Lizzie in "110 in the Shade" comes to mind). But that rarely comes up when people defend color-blind casting. But it's all pretend, so why not say it?



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That's why I always do air quotes when using the term "white" role.

In today's world- color counting is getting ridiculous- some productions have a very diverse cast- some are totally African American- some are totally white- so what? Does every production on Broadway, every movie, every television show- do they all have to conform to some politically correct diversity equation NO- this has gone too far- maybe at some point the Dolly cast will get more diverse- and maybe not- don't see it if you don't want to- and if you do not like many of the productions that feature black casts-don't see that either.

Big Girls Don't Cry- and yes ALL lives matter- and I think Black Lives Matter is an offensive group name.

Updated On: 9/24/16 at 05:22 PM

If you're offended by BLM, then you obviously are missing the whole point of that movement...but that's a whole other topic.

I can't count how many shows I have seen where there have been a cast of majority white people (especially as principals). And don't get me started on some shows throwing in a sassy black lady to hit the riffs in the background of the group numbers. It would be refreshing to see more African Americans (and other minorities) cast in roles that aren't stereotypical and are integral to the plot. I was not expecting diverse casting from this show, but it would have been a nice surprise instead of sprinkling a few black people into the ensemble....but I digress. Yes, we are making strides in diverse casting but this is only the beginning.

BWAY Baby2 said: "Big Girls Don't Cry- and yes ALL lives matter- and I think Black Lives Matter is an offensive group name."



What is offensive is that police continue to kills a disproportionate percentage of African-Americans in what appear to be questionable confrontations.

Count me in as one who is thrilled with the casting (just saw Taylor Trensch this summer as Tyler Clementi in POSTER BOY, he was great and will be a great Barnaby, assuming he can dance), but also sort of shocked that there is NO diversity at all. That is so wrong in 2016, particularly when we have Trump and his kind to contend with. In the 60s a big deal was made when Pearl Bailey and company came to do the all-black version; have we really not moved forward at all? Colorblind casting should be the rule today, not the exception. This sends the wrong message to the rest of the country, imo.

jayinchelsea said: "Count me in as one who is thrilled with the casting (just saw Taylor Trensch this summer as Tyler Clementi in POSTER BOY, he was great and will be a great Barnaby, assuming he can dance), but also sort of shocked that there is NO diversity at all. That is so wrong in 2016, particularly when we have Trump and his kind to contend with. In the 60s a big deal was made when Pearl Bailey and company came to do the all-black version; have we really not moved forward at all? Colorblind casting should be the rule today, not the exception. This sends the wrong message to the rest of the country, imo.



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I'm going to agree with what bway baby2 said before this. I don't think we need to pinpoint when people of color aren't cast in a show. They probably hired who they thought was best for the show, and they shouldn't have to hire specific people just because they want to fill a quota. If they turned someone down specifically for being black then you can complain about that. But I think the cast is going to be great, I'm happy with their choices. And some of the biggest names on Broadway right now (Audra and Cynthia) are black so it's not like Broadway is trying to keep it white.