Do you think more Asians will be on Broadway?

[eatlasagna]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 5:01pm

didn't quite know how to phrase that... but whenever I see a show, I always get excited when I see an Asian person in the cast (I'm Filipino)... i was saddened when Miss Saigon started to shut down the tours and the Broadway company because it meant less recognition for Asian American actors to shine in lead roles... shows like Miss Saigon, Flower Drum Song and Pacific Overtures and maybe the King and I (it's just weird to me when I see that show and see white kids playing Asian kids but eh, that's not the point) don't come around too often...

so basically... what do you guys think of the Asian talent out there and do you ever see them getting cast more non-traditionally or having more Asian themed shows out there? just want to hear your views... thanks....

[neomystyk29]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 5:06pm

Im interested in this thread too. Im Filipino too.

[Sumofallthings]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 5:15pm

Not until Jonathan Pryce dies.

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 5:26pm

I think there are more really talented Asian actors in the business today than there have been ever before and I seem to see more of them cast in ensembles and featured roles that was the case 30+ years ago. I remember someone affiliated with the recent revival of Pacific Overtures (Sondheim, maybe?) saying how difficult it was in 1975 to find experienced, well-trained, Asian musical theatre actors for the cast who could handle the score, but how in 2005 for the revival they had no such trouble. There are dozens, hundreds even of gifted Asian performers who can do anything from Sondheim to Shakespeare and they seem to be getting cast in mainstream roles more than ever before. Mind you, things still aren't perfect, but they're better than they were and it seems like opportunities will only increase in the future.

[Born2cthelightsofbway]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 5:29pm

To be honest, I do not think that the ethnicity of someone should matter when playing a role on broadway, like there has been a black belle, so why shouldn't a christine or millie be asian? I think that we should all have eqyal oppurtunities! If someone can sing or dance or act, then that is all that should matter!

[neomystyk29]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 5:30pm

AMEN Born... unless of course the role is race specific.

[muscle23ftl]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 5:37pm

i dont know if its an appropiate comment...but i went to see "bombay dreams" twice and im not asian. i thought the dancers were outstanding.

[WickedGeek28]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 5:45pm

people are people, i dont feel that race should cause someone to not get a role or get a role, well except pacific overtures and saigon

[Dreamcatcher]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 5:47pm

I agree with Born's comment, unless its a race specific role (like Aida or something), then I don't think ethnicity should matter. While it is true that you see more Asians on Broadway today then you would have before, I certainly hope this continues to increase and more Asians (as well as other minorities) are seen and accepted in differents shows on and off broadway. I, myself, am fully Korean therefore my physical features are a very strong representation of my ethnicity and it is my hope that by the time I am old enough to start auditioning for shows on and off broadway, I won't be looked over or given a hard time about it because I don't look caucasian. What matters is the actor or actress's talent as a singer/actor/dancer and not what they look like.

[Aigoo]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 5:49pm

Of course, minorities will never have the same opportunities as Caucasians in this near future because the specific physicality that minorities present (skin color, facial features...etc) makes them less flexible to play different roles. Of course, in a perfect world, it wouldn't matter, and Asians wouldn't have to worry at all about their ethnic looks interfering with a chance to play a certain role. I'm Asian, as well, and my heart skips a beat whenever I see a Korean-American performer on Broadway because it gives me hope. But I've come to accept that fact that casting agents/directors/people are starting to become a little more "swingy" on the race of the character.

I don't know...we'll see. Hopefully, we might have some major "breakthroughs" in the future.

[Dreamcatcher]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 5:55pm

Yeah I suppose its true, the bottom line is that in theatre, physical attribunes are a major part of who gets cast and who doesn't, especially when it comes to major Broadway shows. Again, color blind casting has become more prominent recently but coming into the world of theatre as a minority will always prove to be harder then going in as a person who is caucasian or has "white" features.

[TennesseeTwang]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 6:02pm

I could be wrong about this, but it appears that the New York stage is more open to non-traditional casting than films or television.

And why shouldn't this be the case? As someone said uprthread, roles like Belle in Beauty and the Beast and Elphaba in Wicked can be played by any talented singing actress.

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 6:08pm

Look, I think most people agree that race and ethnicity should not prevent anyone from being cast in a role he/she is qualified to play. That's not the issue and wasn't the initial question. The fact is that not too long ago, Asian (and Black and Latino) actors were rarely cast in major roles on Broadway unless the role specifically required a certain ethnic group (Flower Drum Song, King & I, Carmen Jones, The Wiz).

Baayork Lee (the original Connie in A Chorus Line) has spoken in interviews about the incredibly limited opportunities she had as an Asian Broadway performer in the 60s and 70s. Although she was an extraordinary dancer, few directors or choreographers would hire her, partly due to her height (she's pretty short) and partly due to her ethnicity. She played lots of Asian children and was in both King and I and Flower Drum Song. It wasn't until Michael Bennett (whom she met while they both were chorus dancers in a show) started hiring her that she began to work regularly on Broadway (she did 5 shows for him). Bennett didn't care about ethnicity, he cared about getting the best dancers he could regardless -- not everyone shared that philosophy.

Nonwhites had a very tough time of it until very very recently (I've heard black dancers talk about how no show ever hired darker skinned black dancers -- if you wanted to work on Broadway, you'd better be light enough to blend in with the white dancers; this remained true until the 70s). Remember the huge controversy over the casting of Jonathan Pryce as the Eurasian engineer in Miss Saigon? Cameron MacIntosh actually had the unmitigated gall to say that there were no Asian actors in America or Great Britain talented enough to play the role, so they had to go with Pryce. And this was less than 15 years ago. Attitudes like that are really at the root of this discussion we're having. And those attitudes are still very much out there -- but they're decreasing and more and more opportunities are opening up for performers of all colors.

[Aigoo]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 6:12pm

Margo, that's what really saddens me...attitudes like that.

My old orchestra director (who was also the head of Drama) notified me on this when I told her of my interest of going into Musical Theatre, how everything is very "look-based" for your job. Ideally, it would be nice to pay no heed to the race of a performer, or how they look, however, in doing so, many discussions would arise about how this performer doesn't suit this role, or how they don't look this certain part.

I've come to understand that there are some roles that I could never play due to how I look, but there are others that others couldn't play as well, due to how THEY look. That's sort of a catch-22 in theatre: literally, opportunities for everyone, but they aren't universal.

[bwaylyric]

Posted: 7/11/05 at 12:07am

Thank God for Chip Tolentino!

[Dreamcatcher]

Posted: 7/11/05 at 12:15am

Indeed, attitudes like that really make me shake my head. And everything I wanted to say has already been said so I'll leave it at that.

[surefinewhatever]

Posted: 7/11/05 at 12:28am

I'm Filipino too and I think it would be great to start seeing more Asians in good roles on Broadway. In addition to the fact that there previously weren't really a lot of roles for Asians, maybe another reason that there aren't alot of Asians on Broadway is because before, most Asians were either immigrants or first generation Asians. A lot of Asian immigrants, especially those unfamiliar w/ American culture, expect there kids to become doctors, engineers, architects, etc., most don't encourage them to pursue theatre. But now, as there are now more Asian generations exploring other possibilities, more are pursuing theatre careers, so hopefully we'll start seeing alot more Asians on Broadway.

[Aigoo]

Posted: 7/11/05 at 12:32am

Surefine, I know what you mean. My mom would probably be much more comfortable with me going into some engineering or law program, but I feel I've always been different from mainstream things.

We've really come to this sort of understanding now, though, because she supports it a lot more than she did before, I think she was just scared because it's not a field she knows a lot about. I'm starting to sort of "teach" her more about it, however. We've both sort of reached a compromise hthat I can do whatever I want as long as I keep my grades up and hit all those "main" schools (NYU, Ivies, Stanford, etc.)

[surefinewhatever]

Posted: 7/11/05 at 12:40am

Aigoo. .. . .You're lucky that your mom is so encouraging of it and that you became interested in theatre early on. My parents are Asian immigrants and didn't really know much about theatre, so I wasn't introduced to it early enough and never really developed an interest. I only recently became interested in theatre, and now its kind of too late to pursue it. lol. .. .I'm going for a career in medicine (but i really do have a genuine interest in it)

[Aigoo]

Posted: 7/11/05 at 12:45am

Yeah, compared to other girls who have been singing since they were 4 and dancing since they were in their mom's stomach, etc...I have an EXTREMELY late start...but I think if I work hard enough, I'll get what I want.

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 7/11/05 at 12:48am

It would also be beneficial, if there were more Asian and Black and Latino producers, directors and playwrights. Aside from August Wilson (acclaimed and award-winning, but rarely successful commercially), George C. Wolfe (who upholds the Public's ethos of non-traditional casting whenever possible), Suzan-Lori Parks (who's Pultizer-winning "Topdog/Underdog" did manage to break even on Broadway) and David Henry Hwang (once a promising playwright -- with the Tony-winning M. Butterfly -- he now seemingly only devotes his energies to writing or rewriting musical books), there are very few people of color are in positions of power and authority on Broadway where they can create, direct or produce plays and musicals which could give more opportunities to nonwhite performers.

Updated On: 7/11/05 at 12:48 AM

[surefinewhatever]

Posted: 7/11/05 at 12:48am

Good luck. . . . .

[surefinewhatever]

Posted: 7/11/05 at 12:53am

I was just thinking . . has anyone ever read "The Woman Warrior"? If that was evermade into a play and went on to succeed on Broadway. . .. it would open up a lot of opportunities for female Asian actresses. The book is about the difficulties of being a first generation Asian girl and trying to live up to your parents' "Asian" expectations but at the same time breaking free from those same types. Basically its about having to live in both the "Asian" and "American" world.

[Aigoo]

Posted: 7/11/05 at 12:54am

Sounds interesting. I'll look into it.

Updated On: 7/11/05 at 12:54 AM

[Dextrous Existence]

Posted: 7/11/05 at 12:56am

-"The bottom line is that in theatre, physical attribunes are a major part of who gets cast and who doesn't, especially when it comes to major Broadway shows."

YES, many casting directors cast actors that physically fit the roles they're seeking. BUT, I would NEVER ever exclude or limit myself from ANY audition JUST BECAUSE what they had on Broadway has to be everywhere else as well. Sure, Broadway is wonderful; it's a goal that most actors try to reach in their careers. BUT until then, when auditioning for college shows, professional theatre, high school stuff...don't shorten your theatrical lifetime experience by excluding yourself from roles you saw on Broadway that were performed by someone of another race.

In actuality, yes, Broadway shows do have those characters that specifically ask for a certain race. But really...in those shows, how many characters does that require?! Really. In most cases...not that many. Back to the topic, I look at it this way: If you think that asians on Broadway seem to be somewhat of a rarity; well, wouldn't that make it even more worthwhile to audition for Broadway shows, knowing that you'll stick out among all the other races? In most shows, it's not about the race, it's about the talent.