Tagged With Diversity
The Conundrum of the Non-Profit
Firstly, let me say this in an attempt to head off the fire-breathing extremists out there (not likely I know, because they are after all, extremists), diversity is always a worthy goal in any endeavor, simply put, because it reflects the best about our country and about ourselves, but where the argument begins is in how best to create that diversity.This is an especially complex question when it comes to the arts. And even more so when those arts are being created by a non-profit company and are fu...
These Men For All Season - By Ezra Buzzington
Manhattan Theatre Club has been catching a lot of flack lately due to the announcement of their 2015 – 2016 season. Whatever wet finger Artistic Director Lynne Meadow lifted to test the direction of our cultural winds misled her into thinking that she could select any collection of plays she wanted and for whatever reasons she wanted them. Girl, was she wrong. Pulitzer Prize...
Skirball Center to Host "The Mikado" in Yellowface
As most of you know – all three or four of you who actually read this site – I am not a fan of political correctness, whether it has a liberal or conservative bent, doesn’t matter, I just find the over-sensitivity of the offended to be antithetical to true artistic expression and risk-taking. Nevertheless, I’m a white guy, so in today’s climate, anythin...
"A Short, Sharp Shock..." or "Me Love Mikado Looong Time" By Ezra Buzzington
The New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players recently cancelled their “traditional” production of The Mikado due to an online outcry denouncing the company’s choice of utilizing yellow face.They shouldn’t have done.For Executive Director David Wannen to say now that they “never intended to give offense” (the current and oft repeated go-to expression when add...
Sins of the Str8, White Father - By Ezra Buzzington
A bed center stage. A huge bed. Or a small one, maybe. Lit by a circle of perfectly focused amber light. This is your bed. And it’s empty. Dressed to your specifications. Pristine. A quarter would bounce off the tightly snuggled blanket. Or, perhaps it’s dishevelled: recently disrupted by loving secretions and the flailing activity of limbs akimbo. Whatever bed design you conjure up in your mind’s eye on this otherwise barren stage, you have made it. It’s time for you lie in it.There is a snowball rollin...
The Saturday Saying(s): The Jubilee Edition
“You cannot call your attempts at creating parity and diversity in American Theatre and in your community inclusive when the very language of your pledge explicitly excludes a portion of that community.”-Colin Mitchell – in response to the ridiculously wrongheaded Jubilee pledge sponsored by Howlround“In order to address parity in the American Theatre and in my community I promise to support a vision of every theatre in the United States of America producing only work by women...
The Road To Hell (Act II) "It's Only A Year, For God's Sake!" (Rationalization #1) - By Ezra Buzzington
Time is relative. This we know. A fresh-faced 19-year-old’s impression of one year is vastly different than that of an octogenarian’s. 525,600 minutes means something completely different to the demographically targeted audience of “Rent” than it does to those who were brought up on “My Fair Lady”, “The Music Man” or, even, “The Who’s ‘Tommy’”. And yet, it’s exactly the same. So, it all depends on perspective. And physics, of course. But, that’s another subject.One of the several responses I’ve received...
The Road To Hell - Act III - "Look over here. Don't Look Over There" (Rationalization #2) - By Ezra Buzzington
I’ve had several interactions with people lately regarding Howlround’s Jubilee event via the Howround page, Facebook and the Kindergarten College of Twitter. Of the various rationalizations offered in an attempt to argue around the undeniable fact that the Jubilee’s Pledge is blatantly disciminatory in its current wording, this one might be my favorite.Theatres all over the country often make the choice to celebrate a particular cultural point of view by dedicating an entire season to unheard v...
Fade From White - By Ezra Buzzington
I recently found myself at an intimate theatre in a tony section of town watching a workmanlike production of an old chestnut when I was overwhelmed by a sudden blandness. The design, the construction, the stage, the lights, the actors, the wardrobe. Everything. It wasn’t bad, by any means, just unimportant. A theatre of shrugging. But, there was something else. Something indicative. Something new in its vapidity. Then I heard a...
HFF16 Fringe Scholarships
At the Fringe we are dedicated to providing platforms for unique and underserved artists. We are proud to announce our newest initiative: Fringe Scholarships. ...