The Great Comet’s Denée Benton and Sweeney Todd’s Norm Lewis Have a Frank Chat About Race

Playbill: The discussion about opportunity and employment with regards to race is a long and controversial one in the history of theatre. Last year, the 2015-2016 Broadway season was seen as a banner year for diversity (in race, religion, physical ability etc), but many wondered if the display marked actual progress that would continue forward, or simply a fluke. The issue is not relegated to commercial New York theatre, of course. Recently, the debate garnered new fuel when a producer in Portland, Oregon was refused the rights to produce Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? due to his choice to cast a black actor in the featured role of Nick.