Production staff statement regarding casting decisions for the 2018 Spring Production of Avenue Q
Vince Carney Community Theatre (VCCT) recently announced the cast for the upcoming production of “Avenue Q” to immediate controversy surrounding the casting choices, and we would like to take a moment to state our position.
The production staff of the upcoming show takes the issues addressed in “Avenue Q” very seriously. The show, while humorous and irreverent, nonetheless tackles important issues such as sexism, sexual orientation, and racism. Part of the reason we opted to perform this show was to shed light on these issues within our small Midwestern town where they tend to get little attention. We believe firmly that bigotry and discrimination based on these differences is abhorrent and unacceptable. We echo the voices of those who have spoken out in condemning the unequal treatment of individuals based on skin color, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or cultural beliefs.
Theater has always been about disguise, pretending, and illusion. Actors don costumes, wigs, and makeup to pretend to be someone they are not and do their best to convince an audience that they are the character they portray. Straight actors play gay men, women play men, Americans play Germans, adults play children, people play animals—the list goes on and on. By and large, there has never been a requirement that an actor playing a role actually share the characteristics of the part they are playing.
We join other bold theater organizations who are committed to disrupting the notion that only actors of a certain color, creed, religion, gender, or sexual orientation can fill certain roles. We believe it is possible for an audience to suspend disbelief and accept a Black man playing the role of George Washington, or a woman playing the role of Judas Iscariot, or an Asian boy playing the role of Billy Elliot, or a white man playing the role of Jesus Christ.
We held open auditions for Avenue Q after months of extensively distributing audition notices. From those who auditioned, we cast the individuals we felt could most effectively portray the various characters in the show. Of course, many of the characteristics of the actors differ from the character they are portraying. Because it’s theater, and that’s what theater is all about.
We are quite cognizant of the fact that inequalities exist in theater, as they do in many contemporary institutions, and that some of these inequalities are based on skin color. Creating a welcoming environment for people of every skin color, sexual orientation, religious belief, cultural belief, and gender identification entails tackling the issues that have traditionally caused people with any sort of difference to feel unwelcome. We need to address issues of homophobia, sexism, racism, ethnocentricity, and gender stereotypes. We believe that performing a controversial show like Avenue Q will open a dialogue about these issues, which, in the end, will move us closer to being a more diverse and welcoming organization.
The production staff of the upcoming show takes the issues addressed in “Avenue Q” very seriously. The show, while humorous and irreverent, nonetheless tackles important issues such as sexism, sexual orientation, and racism. Part of the reason we opted to perform this show was to shed light on these issues within our small Midwestern town where they tend to get little attention. We believe firmly that bigotry and discrimination based on these differences is abhorrent and unacceptable. We echo the voices of those who have spoken out in condemning the unequal treatment of individuals based on skin color, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or cultural beliefs.
Theater has always been about disguise, pretending, and illusion. Actors don costumes, wigs, and makeup to pretend to be someone they are not and do their best to convince an audience that they are the character they portray. Straight actors play gay men, women play men, Americans play Germans, adults play children, people play animals—the list goes on and on. By and large, there has never been a requirement that an actor playing a role actually share the characteristics of the part they are playing.
We join other bold theater organizations who are committed to disrupting the notion that only actors of a certain color, creed, religion, gender, or sexual orientation can fill certain roles. We believe it is possible for an audience to suspend disbelief and accept a Black man playing the role of George Washington, or a woman playing the role of Judas Iscariot, or an Asian boy playing the role of Billy Elliot, or a white man playing the role of Jesus Christ.
We held open auditions for Avenue Q after months of extensively distributing audition notices. From those who auditioned, we cast the individuals we felt could most effectively portray the various characters in the show. Of course, many of the characteristics of the actors differ from the character they are portraying. Because it’s theater, and that’s what theater is all about.
We are quite cognizant of the fact that inequalities exist in theater, as they do in many contemporary institutions, and that some of these inequalities are based on skin color. Creating a welcoming environment for people of every skin color, sexual orientation, religious belief, cultural belief, and gender identification entails tackling the issues that have traditionally caused people with any sort of difference to feel unwelcome. We need to address issues of homophobia, sexism, racism, ethnocentricity, and gender stereotypes. We believe that performing a controversial show like Avenue Q will open a dialogue about these issues, which, in the end, will move us closer to being a more diverse and welcoming organization.
