Phylicia Rashad to take over as Violet Weston — Page 3

Wait a second. Elizabeth Ashley is older than Rashad.
Ashley turns 70 this year and Rashad just turned 60. Does that work?.... This ought to be very very interesting...

I just can't see Rashad saying that dialogue or dropping those F-Bombs.

I've only seen Phylicia Rashad on stage once--in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof--and I thought she was the best part of that production.

I've never seen August: Osage County, so I can't really judge her suitability for the role. But I'm not sure that her being African-American is that much of an issue.

Would it matter that Gertrude was black if Hamlet was white? I don't think so. Similarly, I think you could have a black Linda, even though Willy Loman, Biff and Happy were all white. Unless a character's ethnicity is an itegral part of the play (and it may be--as I said, I haven't seen Osage, although the touring production is coming here in the fall, I think), I think the quality of the actor is more important.

Also, from the producers' perspective, she's a 'name' star and will probably attract some people to that play.

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Updated On: 3/6/09 at 06:43 AM

Canmark... Violet has 3 white sisters & 5 white children. How can you overlook that?

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It is intriguing to think that Letts approved this casting as a test of his own work. If this play can overcome inter-racial casting, it is even stronger than I believe it to be. But the fact that (in my opinion) Rashad is not a good black actress muddies the question a lot.

I don't find the play hateful - but there is a lot of room for interpretation. The characters are damaged and damaging but they do connect with each other from time to time. So much of what they do is pre-emptive and primitive - strike before being struck.

I definitely am in agreement with those who have said that there are cases where color-blind casting works and cases where it doesn't. IMHO if it adds the potential for unintended subtext (which this does and at least one understudy call sheet I saw would), I don't think it should be done. Nothing against any actor or actress.

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I loved that aspect of 110 in the Shade.

I plan on going to see her in the show with a totally open mind.

Hey, we have had women that clearly look in their 40's playing 19-year-old Mimi in RENT. Anything can happen.

I thought it worked seamlessly in 110 IN THE SHADE.

If people are able to suspend disbelief that the people up on stage are breaking into song and dance every few minutes, there's no reason why they can't look past the colors of the actors' skin and just see human beings, as a family, in a show like 110 IN THE SHADE where race isn't an issue in the story being told.

The line that Violet has about Native Americans being no more native than she is, is a line that is going to have to be changed, otherwise it's not going to make any sense. I'm surprised Letts would be willing to change the text of his Pulitzer prize winning script.

Another line that isn't going to work as well the way it is currently written is, "There's a Indian in my house!" It is going to draw notice to the fact that Violet is the only African-American in her house, and not make as much sense.

Those two lines do really help draw the character of Violet, and get some of the biggest laughs in the play. It should be interesting to see how they will be handled.

I don't, however, think that believability of a family with different skin colors should be an issue in a play, unless it is specifically noted in the text that they are of the same skin color.

Violet's racist nature is going to have to be changed somehow, though.

It should be interesting to see how it plays out.

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Updated On: 3/6/09 at 01:37 PM

Plum, to be fair, Bernarda Alba and Violet Weston are both "terrifying matriarchs" in completely different ways.

True enough. But I still can't see Rashad in this role - she's excellent when she's in her magisterial wheelhouse, but I don't think Violet falls in that zone. And I'm happy about the race-blind casting.

So it doesn't matter what the race of the actress playing Johnna is?

The purpose of her character is to bring out race issues and views of Violet.

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I was a little jared at first, but then after I started thinking about it, Why couldn't it work? I'm all for color blind casting, so the fact that she's black and their white doesn't really bother me. Race shouldn't really matter in this case (seeing that race isn't the main focus of the story.) For those of you who have to struggle to suspend disbelief, it's simple, Violet will be biracial for Ms. Rashad's stint. I just hope that she digs deep to play the role, and not fall back on her typical performances. I'm sure she'll be quite good.

Updated On: 3/6/09 at 06:05 PM

There are black racists...

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I would like to see her as Sofia!

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