Posts in Observations
Knoxville Opera Forgets It's 2019 and Opts for Yellowface for "Madame Butterfly"

Thankfully in 2019, awareness of blackface, brownface, and yellowface have been heightened to the level that it’s almost universally understood that donning them is wrong.

Yet some people are showing a more delayed response in understanding that.

Reports and pictures of an opera production with actors dressed in yellowface, are going viral on social media. The images are from the Knoxville Opera’s production of Madame Butterfly, which closed last weekend.

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To Produce or Not to Produce: Neil LaBute

“Producing Neil LaBute’s work is oppressive to womxn, people of size, people of color, people with disabilities, and many other groups, while simultaneously putting money into the hands of someone known to be problematic and hurtful. Keep your theatre life safe and healthy, and truly consider your choice before producing, or working on, a Neil LaBute piece.”

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Can Nostalgia Propel Theater Forward?

Those who love theater will find a way to continue to make it.  They’ll convince someone who has never seen a play to come see it and they will fall in love with the art form. The next time a show gets put up in the local community theater, they’ll spend their money to come and see it, even if they don’t know anyone involved. The important thing is that they show up.  We need them to show up.

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