What if you were not allowed to do the things that make you happy? That is a problem happening in theatres all over the world. Through acting, directing, or designing people are able to express themselves in a way that words cannot describe. It is a place where supposedly everyone is welcomed; no matter your gender or race. That has not always been the case and it is something that the community still struggles with. Working in theatre is one of the oldest professions on the planet. As far as historians know theatre has been around since cavemen roamed the earth. There is not too much evidence to support that theory, but there is proof that shows that Tribal Africans used performances to pass down their history (Hill & Hatch, 2003, p. 1).
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For a long time there were not even plays with nonwhite people in it. Then when they started writing parts for other races they were mainly playing the servant. It was not until the twentieth century that there were even plays written that called for an all African American cast. At first it was mainly white playwrights writing short plays about blacks fight for freedom from slavery (Hill & Hatch, 2003, p. 17). Then African Americans started to write plays about their culture and how they felt in the world. Culture can be defined as “… the values, shared meanings, social norms, customs, rituals, symbols, art and artifacts, ways of perceiving the world…” (King, 2003, p. 67). From African American writers the world was given classics like Fences and A Raisin in the Sun. It showed audiences the struggle African Americans were going through and how relatable it was to families of other races. This made a big impact in theatre, because of the success of African American playwrights it inspired other ethnicities to start writing plays about their …show more content…
Andra Frye, a director, said, “Historically black actors were lucky to be seen in black roles, let alone ‘white’ roles”(Pao, 2010, p. 142). When casting people also have to think about how this decision will affect the audience. People may get offended if they see someone of a different race playing a white role. With low audience attendance that means less profit. Less profit means workers not getting paid and thus causing the theatre to go bankrupt. So in order not to offended anyone and to stay true to the playwright it would be best to give roles to the correct
For a long time there were not even plays with nonwhite people in it. Then when they started writing parts for other races they were mainly playing the servant. It was not until the twentieth century that there were even plays written that called for an all African American cast. At first it was mainly white playwrights writing short plays about blacks fight for freedom from slavery (Hill & Hatch, 2003, p. 17). Then African Americans started to write plays about their culture and how they felt in the world. Culture can be defined as “… the values, shared meanings, social norms, customs, rituals, symbols, art and artifacts, ways of perceiving the world…” (King, 2003, p. 67). From African American writers the world was given classics like Fences and A Raisin in the Sun. It showed audiences the struggle African Americans were going through and how relatable it was to families of other races. This made a big impact in theatre, because of the success of African American playwrights it inspired other ethnicities to start writing plays about their …show more content…
Andra Frye, a director, said, “Historically black actors were lucky to be seen in black roles, let alone ‘white’ roles”(Pao, 2010, p. 142). When casting people also have to think about how this decision will affect the audience. People may get offended if they see someone of a different race playing a white role. With low audience attendance that means less profit. Less profit means workers not getting paid and thus causing the theatre to go bankrupt. So in order not to offended anyone and to stay true to the playwright it would be best to give roles to the correct