The tragic Romeo and Juliet story involves two rival gangs in New York City — the white Jets and the Sharks, who are Puerto Rican.
Friday, October 05, 2018
Kent State cancels ‘West Side Story’ over casting complaints
The tragic Romeo and Juliet story involves two rival gangs in New York City — the white Jets and the Sharks, who are Puerto Rican.
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You wouldn’t do Hairspray with an all white cast, so why the hell are you doing West Side Story with an all white cast? Just do Romeo and Juliet if it’s that important to you. I’m glad that this university went ahead and stopped the production and I’m glad that these students spoke up. Maybe there is a case to be made about having to have non-Latinx people performing these roles in a high school production in Japan, but if you have Latinx people in your program don’t put on a show that gives them a chance to shine and then not let them shine! Season selection should really be based on your casting pool not what would be “fun” to do. If your casting pool doesn’t match the show, or you’re not going to honor pretty clear things like “Maria is from Puerto Rico” then maybe that’s the wrong show for you. Brava to the students who stood up, and to the faculty for listening. Maybe next time the faculty can be a bit more self-aware from the start.
We are at a time in history where recognizing the importance of diversity is especially vital to creating a society that moves forward. If we narrow it down to this issue in the world of theatre, recognizing the importance of diversity means letting Latinx people play Latinx characters. West Side Story has never been a show meant to be played by white actors, yet time and time again, this is how it is cast. It is so frustrating that Kent State would choose to produce this show and not consider the casting in a way that makes sense. Entertainment already looks over actors of color every chance it gets. White people are still cast in POC roles even when the show is literally about non-white cultures and people. It hurts my heart that the Kent State theatre department wouldn’t let Latinx people tell a story about people of cultures similar to their own, and now because of their inconsiderate casting choices, this story will not be told at all.
How about something better? We, as a society, just don’t do West Side Story. I worked on West Side Story this summer, and had to put with a month of rehearsal and 28 performances of a show that insulted everything that I am. It has amazing music, it has amazing dance numbers and it is a good seller. But it is insulting. In addition to feeling insulted while working this show, I had a huge conflict with understanding why were non- latinx, dark americans casted in Shark roles, like African Americans, and Italians. They’re not white, but not latinx either. Yes, not casting white people in latinx roles is an advancement, but assuming all latinx are the same is just as bad. I get the point of having the Latinx community represent their roles, but quite frankly, a Guatemalan or a Mexican doesn’t have the same baggage that a Puerto Rican will. Baggage that is vital to the presentation of the play.
This is honestly a bit ridiculous. I don’t understand why so many school theatres try to put certain shows on when A) they don’t have the cast for it or B) when they do have the cast for it but they completely ignore factors, like race, that are important to the plot/integrity of the show. My director in high school was so convinced that we should do Hairspray my senior year, even though we literally had three people of color in our theatre program at the time. She was convinced “we could find more people or just double up on some role” as if either of those things were appropriate. There are SO MANY SHOWS out there, it’s really simple: if you don’t have the cast for a show, pick another show. I promise there’s another one out there, and honestly, it’s probably a better one. I do not understand why this is still an issue.
Growing up West Side Story was a beloved musical. I would have loved to work on it, but in my community, putting on the show would have been close to impossible. We did not have the diverse student body. I am majorly disappointed in the staff at Kent State for their casting decisions. In 2018, these “mistakes” should not be a thing. When selecting a show this should be a major deciding factor: do I have enough minority actors to play these characters? If the answer is no: don’t do the show, it's as simple as that. What's even more heartbreaking is at Kent State it sounds like they did have the diverse student body and then refused to include it. That being said, it takes extreme courage to admit such a large error in judgement. Kent State should be an example for so many schools out there still making these mistakes.
Seeing this article made me roll my eyes the same way I do when I see a colorblind casting of shows like Hairspray. Being an Ohio native, I’ve been around Kent State University’s theatre program before. For its diverse student population, choosing such a fixed racially cast show like West Side Story, this was a huge regression for Kent State. While it is very important to note that the cancellation of the show was the right thing to do in this situation, more action should be taken against the casting team. As Miranda said, why choose the show if you don’t think you have the talent to fill these roles? It’s getting pretty ridiculous. Many theatres produce classic shows like this all the time and the limited roles that performers of color receive in these shows are why this is so disappointing. They also talked about the town hall meeting they had that brought this issue into the light. That does make me appreciate the efforts theatre schools are putting forth, like CMU, to listen to what the students have to say about decisions that are being made and affecting their experience and education.
Good ‘ol West Side Story. Honestly, as a Latinx person in the arts, I have a love/hate relationship with this show. On the one hand, it’s one of the few popular musicals with a large latinx ensemble, and certainly the only ‘classic’ musical with a latinx ensemble. And in that way, it’s a huge driver in employment and representation. But on the other hand, this show, written by white guys, is largely about being white. Does this show really want to be the piece of art latinx people are represented in? Does this really speak to the latinx experience in a deep and meaningful way? Maybe the answer to that is yes, but it feels like it’s really a no. I always think of it like this. If a theatre company claimed a diverse season by choosing to do West Side Story, and no other diverse show in the season, would I buy it? I don’t think I would. But either way, Kent State should get itself together and cast some Latinx.
As always, I'm just amazed that this is even still a problem. If you don't have enough latinx students to do West Side Story, don't do West Side Story. Also get a more diverse casting pool. Don't try to do a show so deeply rooted in race relations without accurate racial casting. Also, West Side Story is the show that pretty much every latinx person in theatre references as the first time they saw themselves represented onstage or onscreen. The show is enormously culturally iconic, and it is so so stupid to try to rip the show apart in that way. I am all here for "colorblind casting" (even though it doesn't actually exist), except when a show is literally about race or race relations. Just cast the characters as they are written.
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