We Need More Asexual Representation in Musical Theatre
Art by Star Plasma
by Casey Nabors, Guest Editorial
Musical theatre has come a long way from all of any given show’s characters being only white and straight. With works like Hamilton, In The Heights, Once on this Island, West Side Story, Rent, and much more, musical theatre is slowly but surely becoming more relatable and accessible to people from all walks of life.
While Broadway still has a ways to go in making sure characters that don’t fit the straight, white narrative and are truly diverse in personality and story rather than just tokens and stereotypes, good progress is being made. However, there is one area that I’ve noticed has a gaping hole in it as far as representation is concerned, and that’s characters on the asexual spectrum.
To be fair, asexuality is just not talked about nearly as much as other sexual orientations. An estimated 1% of the global population is on the asexual spectrum, and in some circles, our very existence is often debated or flat-out denied, so it’s easy to see how we have yet to see an asexual character on the stage. All of these reasons that we haven’t seen our asexual or aromantic pals in a show is a glaring sign that this representation is needed. We may only make up about 1% of the population, but that’s still an estimated 70 million people, and our stories and lived experiences matter just as much as anyone else’s.
Asexuality is a grossly misunderstood identity. Often it is confused for being simply “picky” or “celibate” or even “not meeting the right one,” all of which is rather dangerous rhetoric that, at best, simplifies an individual’s lived experience and at worst erases those on the spectrum at large.
The Trevor Project has laid out a condensed guide to the asexual spectrum that you can check out by clicking here, but the basic definition of asexuality is an orientation that denotes a lack of sexual attraction. Just as important are folks who fall into the aromantic spectrum, which is defined as a lack of experiencing romantic attraction and is distinctly different from asexuality.
The only way to remedy this issue is that we need showwriters to write shows that depict asexual characters, but it is not as simple as dropping a random character in a musical to check off a diversity box. Asexuals can - and should - be just as diverse and interesting as their allosexual counterparts. For those who are in the process of developing a show, here are some tips to consider:
-The biggest piece of advice I can give you is that you will need to do some research on what asexuality is. Asexuality is an umbrella term and not all asexuals can simply describe themselves as “having a lack of sexual attraction.” Some are demisexual, meaning they can’t experience sexual attraction until an emotional connection with another person is formed. Others are gray-asexual, meaning they can occasionally experience sexual attraction, but it happens very rarely. There are also some asexuals who are sex-repulsed, meaning they have no sexual attraction to others nor any interest in or desire for the act of sex itself. Either way, if you plan on writing a character on the asexual spectrum, a little bit of research will be necessary. Even if you don’t plan on their identity being their primary characteristic (which is probably a good thing to avoid stereotypes), having proper knowledge of the asexual orientation will help to make the character authentic.
-If you yourself are not on the asexual spectrum, tread lightly if you are going to attempt to write about being asexual. While it is important for asexuals to be represented, it is also important for asexuals themselves to have that chance to tell their stories. If you have an asexual in your life who is able and willing to share their experience, give you pointers, and generally collaborate with you in creating an authentic, well-developed character, this is preferable to Google-searching asexuality and attempting to do it all yourself. Of course, it is possible to write in a character on the spectrum without writing about the lived experience of being an asexual, and both types of characters are needed.
-Lastly, writing an asexual character does not need to be a laborious journey. If you’re not asexual, do not know an asexual willing to collaborate, and generally want to avoid making asexuality a character’s only personality trait, then sometimes less is more. A character can drop a line in passing commenting that they’re asexual and it doesn’t need to be mentioned again. A character can bring up their asexuality in one or two scenes. There are also nonverbal ways to address a character’s asexuality. Consider the set and costumes - maybe the asexual flag can be hanging in a character’s room or printed on an article of clothing. These are just little ways to identify that a character is asexual without explicitly writing it into dialogue.
-Bonus tip (Content Warning: Sexual Assault): for the love of all that’s good, do not make your asexual character an assault victim. Media has a way of perpetuating the tired and terrible trope of LGBTQIA+ characters being victims of sexual assault, and luckily we are seeing less of this as time goes on, but it still needs to be said for good measure. In the context of asexuality, presenting an asexual character as a sexual assault victim can accidentally send the message that all asexuals are the way they are because of past abuse. While a small portion of identifying asexuals have been sexual assault victims or may have decided to adopt the asexual label after such a traumatic event, it is untrue that all asexuals are only asexuals because someone assaulted them.
As someone who is on the asexual spectrum, it is a little disheartening that this performing medium that I love so much doesn’t seem to have a character I can relate to on that level. I realize that as a cis-gendered white demisexual, I can simply focus on the romantic relationships between characters, but it would still be nice to see a character who is on the asexual spectrum in canon, and I know that there are many asexuals and aromantics who cannot “pass” as straight and don’t have the privilege of seeing characters like them on the stage.
Though I am immensely happy that musical theatre is making progressive strides in representation, it is time to add another orientation to the mix of diverse characters.