Thursday, January 19, 2017
NYGASP "The Mikado" - Was it diverse enough?
OnStage: I have so many feelings regarding this show, especially because of the yellowfacing that usually takes place with this classic Gilbert and Sullivan piece. White people playing Japanese people. If you don't understand why that is wrong then we are going to have a problem, and you better watch your back. I have ninja stars.
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The Mikado is a show that has created controversy since its first performance in 1885. I have had first hand experience with this historic argument regarding one of Gilbert and Sullivan's most widely regarded operas. In the eighth grade at my performing arts summer camp, the directors announced that we would be tackling The Mikado.... Let me give you some backstory. As much as I loved growing up at this camp- they were always subject to a casting scandal (White girl playing Aida, Hispanic people in the Harlem Chorus of Ragtime). So for them to present the Mikado was not shocking but still equally morally wrong. This is a problem in a lot of educational, and I guess professional, theatre. Colorblind casting only works when it is not blatantly ignoring the plot of the show. The Mikado sets its stage in Japan - so you CANNOT have a white washed cast. Plain and simple.
The Mikado is a shit show. It's been a shit show ever since it opened because it was inherently racist and discriminatory since the night it opened. So, I think it's a little ridiculous to question whether it's "diverse enough." In high school I was extremely fortunate to be a part of Mikado in my sophomore year and it sucked (besides the fact that I only had one run cue and it was the most boring show of my life). This show, along with Miss Saigon (yet another shit show) in my senior year, were the cause of a huge argument and situation at my school that struck all 4,000 students in the building. The huge cast sizes in my school made it near impossible to cast exclusively Asian people and this caused a number of backlashes. Besides that, most of the issues came from the show being racist or sexist simply in its writing. Some of my Asian friends actually wrote letters to the administration about their concerns with the show and, even with a few protests, the admins ignored and denied their request to cancel the show because it had been in the process for a while now. Unfortunately there are times when true colorblind casting isn't possible and it creates an unpleasant performance but it's not something people can get away with today without consequences so hopefully in the future, not just at my high school but in the entire industry, producers can start to consider these things.
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