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Thursday, November 19, 2020
Actors' Equity study finds gradual, but improving diversity in the industry
Broadway News: The theater industry has hired more actors and stage managers of color in the past four years, but still falls short of reflecting the diversity of the country, according to a new study from Actors’ Equity.
What's the point of having an annual report if there isn't going to be significant change in the working conditions. I think what really needs to be talked about in the theater is how actors and stage managers are barely paid above a living wage for working far more than a normal person does. We have degrees for this, we're trained in this field, there is no reason why theater people shouldn't be paid a wage that is aligned with their esteem. That is the reason why POC aren't coming into or thriving in this business- for the most part, minorities can't afford to live in NYC off of daddy's money to "pursue their dreams". Its that type of double standard that makes the theater insufferable to work in. In order to achieve racial equality and equity, we as a business need to level the playing field, take the pain and the torture out of the business and replace them with tangible perks.
It is good to know that there is progress, but I would hardly say that this is anywhere near what this industry needs. There is still a hard inequity in our industry, that disproportionately effects people of color. Just because we can now say that we are up to 23.3% of union contracts for people of color over 15.3% five years ago and that we are closer to reaching gender parity with a 43.9% to 55% female to male ratio doesn’t mean that we can pat ourselves on the back. In fact, we shouldn’t be patting ourselves for an annual diversity report either. To be entirely honest, I actually have a bit of a point of conflict with diversity reports. To me, diversity reports partly feel like while they have the ability to do good and hold organizations accountable, they also are highly performative and a way for organizations to pat themselves on the back for mediocre efforts. Maybe this diversity report will lead to some sort of change, but at the end of the day, I still do have my suspicions.
I definitely agree with Shahzad's comment on the fact that the industry needs to start paying their workers livable wages and better. From personal experience, my parents have stayed hesitant on this career choice for the sole fact that they cannot provide for me when I am an adult, they do not have generations of wealth to rely on. I think the industry has to improve on many things that if they want to improve the diversity then they need to truly look at what motivates people. This industry is plagued with old white men and until they decide that there needs to be space for POC nothing will change. It is exhausting to have to constantly ask for a space on the table and then to be shut down every single time. I think actor's equity needs to stop celebrating these small changes in percentages and start making some big changes so the faces we see in the industry change. Without taking big steps towards solving this problem, we as an industry will never be an open space for POC.
This damn equity report makes me cry laughing. Looking at this as just a race and gender issue is exactly what I expect from this report and why people think they are doing the work just by reporting numbers? My mom has always been wary, like Akshatha said, of my career choice because of how white-dominated it is. Management has not taken too kindly to me as a black female, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon as I start my career. While I understand what this report is recognizing, it’s just simply not enough. The people at the top of the chain in theatre are still old ass rich ass white men who throw their money at whichever theatres and productions they want. Which furthers the reality that they pick what gets produced and who gets to be in those spots. I hope Actors Equity is going to make some real industry changes rather than just reporting they hired some BIPOC to look better.
4 comments:
What's the point of having an annual report if there isn't going to be significant change in the working conditions. I think what really needs to be talked about in the theater is how actors and stage managers are barely paid above a living wage for working far more than a normal person does. We have degrees for this, we're trained in this field, there is no reason why theater people shouldn't be paid a wage that is aligned with their esteem. That is the reason why POC aren't coming into or thriving in this business- for the most part, minorities can't afford to live in NYC off of daddy's money to "pursue their dreams". Its that type of double standard that makes the theater insufferable to work in. In order to achieve racial equality and equity, we as a business need to level the playing field, take the pain and the torture out of the business and replace them with tangible perks.
It is good to know that there is progress, but I would hardly say that this is anywhere near what this industry needs. There is still a hard inequity in our industry, that disproportionately effects people of color. Just because we can now say that we are up to 23.3% of union contracts for people of color over 15.3% five years ago and that we are closer to reaching gender parity with a 43.9% to 55% female to male ratio doesn’t mean that we can pat ourselves on the back. In fact, we shouldn’t be patting ourselves for an annual diversity report either. To be entirely honest, I actually have a bit of a point of conflict with diversity reports. To me, diversity reports partly feel like while they have the ability to do good and hold organizations accountable, they also are highly performative and a way for organizations to pat themselves on the back for mediocre efforts. Maybe this diversity report will lead to some sort of change, but at the end of the day, I still do have my suspicions.
I definitely agree with Shahzad's comment on the fact that the industry needs to start paying their workers livable wages and better. From personal experience, my parents have stayed hesitant on this career choice for the sole fact that they cannot provide for me when I am an adult, they do not have generations of wealth to rely on. I think the industry has to improve on many things that if they want to improve the diversity then they need to truly look at what motivates people. This industry is plagued with old white men and until they decide that there needs to be space for POC nothing will change. It is exhausting to have to constantly ask for a space on the table and then to be shut down every single time. I think actor's equity needs to stop celebrating these small changes in percentages and start making some big changes so the faces we see in the industry change. Without taking big steps towards solving this problem, we as an industry will never be an open space for POC.
This damn equity report makes me cry laughing. Looking at this as just a race and gender issue is exactly what I expect from this report and why people think they are doing the work just by reporting numbers? My mom has always been wary, like Akshatha said, of my career choice because of how white-dominated it is. Management has not taken too kindly to me as a black female, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon as I start my career. While I understand what this report is recognizing, it’s just simply not enough. The people at the top of the chain in theatre are still old ass rich ass white men who throw their money at whichever theatres and productions they want. Which furthers the reality that they pick what gets produced and who gets to be in those spots. I hope Actors Equity is going to make some real industry changes rather than just reporting they hired some BIPOC to look better.
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