After casting controversy led to the cancellation of the 2018 IHS spring musical, “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” ICSD has implemented theater changes in order to further its effort for 100 percent student engagement in the fine and performing arts. Daphne Shululu, ICSD’s new Director of Fine and Performing Arts, and Lorraine Tino, a theater arts educator and the director of the fall plays at IHS, said these changes are meant to make the district’s theater department more inclusive, diverse, and student-led. One of these changes has allowed students to have a say in the show-selection process. This year, students had the option of voting between two productions that Shululu believed could be color-consciously cast and directed—productions that a recently-created committee of students selected.
Last year, members of the student activist group, Students United Ithaca, demanded that “Hunchback” be canceled because they claimed that the role of Esmeralda, a French Romani gypsy, was whitewashed and accused the theater department of having a long history of whitewashing lead roles. To avoid future controversies, Shululu formed a casting committee made up of Musical Production Team and school faculty members to utilize a color-conscious casting approach in order to decide which actor would be most appropriate for each role.
Tino and Shululu advise the aforementioned show-selection committee, which consists of seven students from different grades, who are currently deciding on which two plays and/or musicals students will have the option to vote on this upcoming school year. Students in the casting committee agree that giving students a greater influence in the show-selection process will encourage more students to join the theater. “We’re the youth of the school and for our voices to be heard . . . it brings everybody in and includes everyone. It says, ‘Hey, it’s not just theater kids that can do it, it’s everyone that can do it,’” explained Leah Slattery ‘20, a member of this year’s show-selection committee.
The committee meets weekly after school for about one to three months to discuss production ideas by reading through different shows and deciding which two productions would be most appropriate for IHS, both in terms of entertainment and color-conscious casting. The committee’s criteria for choosing productions is based on whether the productions have non-traditional roles (ethnic-neutral characters that can be played by an actor of any ethnicity) and whether the show extends to different cultural experiences and marginalized people. While Tino and Shululu provide guidance in the discussions, they say the committee is supposed to be led primarily by the students.
Committee members gush that being on the committee is an insightful and enjoyable experience, and they encourage other students to join the committee next year. Zoe Klausner ‘20 remarked, “I’m very happy I’m on the committee. I think we have a lot of relevant conversations about the theater department and how we can make it better, and it involves different voices and perspectives of the students who are actually going to be affected by the choice of the show.” Sankofa McLaurin ‘19, another member of the committee, added, “I think people should join next year’s committee because it’s really inspiring to be part of the process where you think about what should or should not be on stage. . . and I just think that being an active part of the community is something that’s just very rewarding and this is just a simple way to do it.”
Tino believes there’s a perception among IHS students that the theater department is exclusive to white students. She believes that in order to dismantle this perception and to inspire students in marginalized communities to join the theater, the committee should select shows that tell the stories of marginalized people. “Telling the stories of everyone, including marginalized people, will always be a really important goal . . . it’s just that at a certain point we won’t have to be quite as intentional when hopefully the day arrives when everyone knows the theater program is for everyone and people will come and audition for a play. It’s ‘ethnic-neutral,’ where they’ll realize that if we do ‘The Music Man,’ even if you’re not a white guy you could have the lead. But that may not happen for a few years until people really believe that that’s true,” she stated.
Students added that choosing a play that highlights the diversity of cultural experiences is important because it honors the diversity found in today’s world. “I think it’s important that we choose a diverse play because that’s the reality of the world. It’s hard to tell a story if you’re not telling it correctly, and the world is diverse now. There’s diversity in people, ideas and experiences, and I think that it’s our responsibility as the humankind to make sure that we’re true to the diversity of our days,” McLaurin ‘19 argued.
If you’re interested in joining next year’s student show-selection committee, email Daphne Shululu or Lorraine Tino.