Who Tells Their Story? How Broadway's Diversity Conversation Leaves Out Asian-Americans

Great find, thanks for sharing. Hopefully the Tony Awards continue their diversity efforts this year as well and don't just stop at Hamilton.

You don't have to qualify this with "yes it's from Buzzfeed." Their journalism, particularly the heavily reported longform, is frequently fantastic and sometimes even exquisite. This writer has demonstrated time and again that his contribution to arts journalism is unique and frankly important (and no I am not him). This piece, for example! And this article is not an exception to a rule. Do your research before throwing around careless language.

TFMH18 said: "You don't have to qualify this with "yes it's from Buzzfeed." Their journalism, particularly the heavily reported longform, is frequently fantastic and sometimes even exquisite. This writer has demonstrated time and again that his contribution to arts journalism is unique and frankly important (and no I am not him). This piece, for example! And this article is not an exception to a rule. Do your research before throwing around careless language."



Stop clutching those pearls, sweetheart. The OP was smart in adding that caveat. Many, many people disregard Buzzfeed by default as they are universally known only for click-bait ranking lists and lame celebrity gossip/humor; not informative, well-crafted pieces by respected journalists. That said, this is a great writeup and enjoyable read. Thanks to the OP for sharing.

Great article and an important topic. Thanks for sharing.

It's a sad issue that extends beyond Broadway. There are regional theatres who would simply not be casting Asian actors unless had programmed Miss Saigon into their season. And while the African-American and Latinx theatre presence is quite strong, with prominent playwrights, actors, directors, it feels like the Asian-American theatre community is only ever just "developing." Even in the far more expansive and diverse off-Broadway scene, there will be only a few works that focus on Asian-American characters a season- seasons that have three times as many shows as Broadway.

MikeInTheDistrict said: "As an Asian American (albeit, South Asian, which the article admittedly doesn't focus on), this hits close to home.

I have a South Asian friend who recently became a regular cast member on a popular cable show. He told me something very interesting. He says that television is probably the entry point of choice for a lot of Asian American actors nowadays. The gatekeepers in the New York theatre scene tend to be older and more conservative, and many often hold dated, racist conceptions of Asians. Television is much more diffuse nowadays, and there are more young people creating, writing, directing, producing, casting, and scheduling shows everywhere from Comedy Central to Netflix (the major broadcast networks like CBS and NBC tend to be a bit more staid). There are more and more Millennials behind the scenes in the TV world, and this opens up doors for minority actors that may not necessary be open on Broadway.

And, when I thought about it, it seems to hold true. I mean, I can think of a handful of high profile South Asian actors on television offhand (Aziz Ansari, Mindy Kaling, Aasif Mandvi, Kunal Nayyar, Avan Joglia), whereas I can't think of a single one working on Broadway."

Nehal Joshi just joined School of Rock, but you're right -- TV seems to be much friendlier to this type of thing, especially when it comes to South Asian visibility compared to East Asians.

And here's another fan of Master of None!