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“Artistic Freedom”: The Lie We Use To Defend The Indefensible
“Leap into the Void,” Yves Klein (photographed by Harry Shunk), 1960 When I write about diversity in representational media (theatre, film, TV, video games), often the white anger (and there is always...
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Theatre Resistance Plan, 2017 – 2020
Pete Seeger’s banjo There is no more powerful tool for changing ideas, shifting cultural zeitgeist, and resisting authoritarianism than art. While theatre is not the biggest bat artists wield, our...
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The Albee Controversy: Throwing the Baby Out With the Racist Bathwater
A young Edward Albee (1928 – 2016). Source: University of Houston Digital Library. For the, oh, seven of you out there who haven’t yet heard, the Albee estate denied the rights to a production of...
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Julius Caesar: Suddenly Controversial
A marble bust of Julius Caesar dating from the 1st century CE The Public Theatre is staging Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar as part of its annual Shakespeare in the Park, and hauling out that most overdone...
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Do Black Lives Matter at Your Theatre? In Your Films?
Philando Castile in a yearbook photo. He worked as a nutrition services assistant for the Saint Paul Public School District. I had intended to write about the Philando Castile verdict. Philando Castile...
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Disability, Expectations, and Disruption in The Glass Menagerie
Phoebe Fico as Laura and Karen Aldridge as Amanda in Cal Shakes’ The Glass Menagerie. Photo by Cheshire Isaacs. It was an honor to be invited to view a rehearsal of California Shakespeare Theater’s...
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The “Playwright’s Intent” and the Dangers of the “Purist”
It’s always exasperating to see people scolding directors for “desecrating” a canonical play or a canonical playwright’s “intent” because they cast actors of color, cast a disabled actor, or removed...
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“Why Do You Have to Make Everything Political?”
Quote from the artist Ai Weiwei (source: @aiweiwei_art) “Why do you have to make everything political?” This is a common question my fellow white people like to ask when someone offers a cultural...
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Representation Matters: People with Disabilities Are Done Being Your Inspiration
Photo of a version of the American flag with the stars configured to look like the symbol for disability. (Photo credit: money.cnn.com) We need a long, hard examination of the way we’re...
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Acting with Autism
I invited actor and playwright Cameron McNary to write a guest blog about being a theatremaker who’s on the Autism Spectrum. I wish I had read this piece 20 years ago. Every theatremaker should read...
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