Posted: 5/26/15 at 2:58pm
Yes, but I am committed to anti-racist work, the first step of which is to own my own racism.
Fair enough. I highly question the kind of work you can do or the type of impact you can have, however, if you're spending nearly every minute on an online message board.
Digital activism??? #FictionalLivesMatterOnBroadwayWorld.com
Posted: 5/26/15 at 3:02pm
You're on a slippery slope criticizing someone for taking part on a message board in a post on a message board.
For one thing, when I speak on panels I also no longer agree to do so if it's yet another all white panel.
Small streps can lead to big changes.
But you wouldn't know.
Updated On: 5/26/15 at 03:02 PM
Posted: 5/26/15 at 3:58pm
I think that nowadays people are so touchy and afraid of being not politically correct that they actually discriminate black people by casting them. Let me explain that. I feel that in every show nowadays they cast a few black people, while it is clear that there are other people out there who sing or play the role better. So the only reason they get cast is because they are black. A few years ago they had cast a black guy as Javert in les Miserables in London. His acting and singing wasn't good to say the least, I could not understand the casting at all. Other than the fact that he was black. To make it even weirder, for some reason they did not want the only black guy in the show to play a bad guy, so the same week, all of a sudden a black Enjolras got cast to perform alongside the Javert, but his singing and acting was even more off than the Javert. I also think he didn't last very long in the role. I am positive that he would not have gotten the role if he wasn't black. So why would the casting people and the performers want this? Who is happy with this kind of "forced" casting?
The list is endless, I also thought Norm Lewis was quite miscast as Phantom, vocally. I also see it in movies a lot.
Updated On: 5/26/15 at 03:58 PM
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:06pm
I feel that in every show nowadays they cast a few black people, while it is clear that there are other people out there who sing or play the role better.
So when you say "people" you mean "white people"? And you feel that happens "in every show"?
Interesting.
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:07pm
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:08pm
I am now wayyyyyy more conscious of when I am seeing yet another all white cast. And that is because my consciousness has been raised. It makes me enjoy a show a little less if it's yet another all-white cast when there's no reason for it to be.
Updated On: 5/26/15 at 04:08 PM
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:15pm
"So when you say "people" you mean "white people"? And you feel that happens "in every show"?
Interesting."
No, when I say "people" I mean all races. Just more talented people/vocally or acting wise more suitable for the role, regardless of color.
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:16pm
"I am now wayyyyyy more conscious of when I am seeing yet another all white cast. And that is because my consciousness has been raised. It makes me enjoy a show a little less if it's yet another all-white cast when there's no reason for it to be."
So what's your point? That they should cast people just because they are black and nothing else? That's racist.
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:17pm
So do you think of more talented people of color to replace the less talented people of color who you presume have been cast even though they are not right for the part or do you think of more talented white people?
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:21pm
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:21pm
"Audiences who want to see someone onstage who looks like them."
Strange. I want to see the best people for a role. The black Javert and Enjolras I saw were vocally and acting-wise not good at all. It was a pity.
I do know some caucasian girls who would be perfect for the role of Rachel Marron in the bodyguard though. I wonder why they did not pass the audition. Just as I wonder why the 2 actors for Javert and Enjolras were considered the best of all the thousands who auditioned, while they were clearly not.
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:24pm
"Strange. I want to see the best people for a role."
Not strange at all, if you are a person of color and seeing someone onstage in a show is basically still a novelty.
Once again, Dave, you are living in a delusional world.
Updated On: 5/26/15 at 04:24 PM
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:25pm
But why is it you specify "black people" when complaining about getting cast and "people" when you talk about white people?
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:25pm
"So do you think of more talented people of color to replace the less talented people of color who you presume have been cast even though they are not right for the part or do you think of more talented white people?"
It's all about talent. For example I love Audra McDonald in the film Annie. She was perfect. I could understand that she beat everyone at the audition. Unfortunately many times this is not the case.
It's a shame that people continue racist thinking. Like you.
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:25pm
"A few years ago the had cast a black guy as Javert in les Miserables in London. His acting and singing wasn't good to say the least."
Neither is your grammar.
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:27pm
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:28pm
It's ok, you guys! Dave19 isn't racist; some of his most-played songs in iTunes are sung by Audra.
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:29pm
Where do people go to school that they have learned so many different, conflicting definitions of "racism"? Is the topic covered at all?
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:30pm
Except, unless you were part of that casting process (which I highly doubt) you have no idea if anyone else was more suited for the role. That's just an assumption, not fact in any way.
And saying that someone was only cast in a non-race specific role because they aren't white is racist.
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:30pm
""Strange. I want to see the best people for a role."
Not strange at all, if you are a person of color and seeing someone onstage in a show is basically still a novelty.
Once again, Dave, you are living in a delusional world."
People who think like that and are actually happy with a low quality performance but accept it because the artist is of their origin live in a delusional world en have a serious problem with self worth. That attitude keeps racism in tact, because all they do is think in race.
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:32pm
"
"A few years ago they had cast a black guy as Javert in les Miserables in London. His acting and singing wasn't good to say the least."
Neither is your grammar.
"
How many languages do you speak?
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:32pm
Is it at all possible that those who cast the parts actually thought those performers were good, and they simply weren't to your particular taste?
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:33pm
"Racist thinking? You mean like, "I didn't think the black guy was very good, he must have only gotten the role because he's black"? "
Why is looking at talent racist? Accepting a low quality performance based on other reasons indicates more of a race issue.
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:36pm
"Where do people go to school that they have learned so many different, conflicting definitions of "racism"? Is the topic covered at all?"
Didn't you know? Focussing on race instead of the person is always racist. Not only the negative things. So only one definition. You never realized that?
You might think that you are noble when you speak good about a bad performance because the performer is of a certain race, but in fact you are doing the opposite.
Updated On: 5/26/15 at 04:36 PM
Posted: 5/26/15 at 4:38pm
"People who think like that and are actually happy with a low quality performance but accept it because the artist is of their origin live in a delusional world en have a serious problem with self worth. That attitude keeps racism in tact, because all they do is think in race."
Here's a new word for you to learn: representation.
You seem to think racism is gone, that we live in a post-racial world. We. Do. Not.
Not when the culture is inherently skewed by centuries of racist thought. It doesn't just go away because someone decides, "I don't see race anymore. I don't have to confront the race problems inherent in my life, art, and country anymore because I am now removed from that."
Which is exactly what you think you're doing. But you're not. Because you have made it very plain you very often think actors of color have not earned their roles based on their merits.
Updated On: 5/26/15 at 04:38 PM
