Dear Australia, Yes you have to cast 'Hairspray' with Black performers
by Chris Peterson, OnStage Blog Founder
Recently, I was alerted to a Australian community theatre production of Hairspray currently in rehearsals. From what I was shown, it would seem like the cast is very talented, but what the cast is lacking are Black performers for the Black roles. To be clear, it doesn’t appear that they are trying to whitewash the production, but it would seem like they have other BIPOC identities playing these roles.
As much as I love seeing a diverse cast, especially in Australia, I need to remind this theatre and many others, that when it comes to Hairspray, it is required that the Black roles are performed by Black actors.
And I’m not making up some rule about that, it’s included in the licensing materials for all productions of the show, not just in Australia.
Pre-2020, there was language in the licensing materials that created loopholes that made it possible for all-white productions of the show or productions that could exclude Black performers. Obviously, casting Black performers in the show is essential for several reasons, rooted in authenticity, representation, and cultural sensitivity.
I wrote a piece calling for the creative team to close that loophole and require all new productions to be cast appropriately, thus ensuring these roles will be portrayed authentically and provide opportunities to Black performers.
Now, language is included in the licensing materials to require such casting going forward.
“MTI receives many inquiries about the casting requirements for Hairspray. At its core, Hairspray is a story about acceptance and inclusion (and rejection and exclusion) during the early days of the civil rights movement. The authors' artistic vision requires that, in order to clearly and appropriately tell that story, the cast members in the show accurately reflect the characters as written. As such, this Production Contract requires that the cast members in your production of Hairspray accurately reflect the character descriptions contained in the script. Note: The use of make-up to portray black characters in your production (e.g., blackface) is not permitted under this Production Contract. By signing below, you agree to inform the director of your production of the casting requirements and that such use of make-up is strictly prohibited.
In the past, performance licenses for Hairspray did not include this provision. However, the authors have determined that expressly stating this requirement is an important component of ensuring that licensed productions of Hairspray accurately reflect the authors' intent.”
So given the fact that this language is pretty explicit, why are theatres seemingly ignoring this requirement?
I honestly don’t know, but it’s unacceptable.
I certainly understand the challenges of casting a diverse show in regions where there’s not much diversity. But do you know what that means? You don’t do a show that requires certain diversity.
So while I’m not going to name the theatre in question yet, because they still have plenty of time to course correct and cast the show appropriately, I am going to put the word out there that such casting requirements need to be followed.