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People who enjoy theater will see good theater. Period. If I see Denzel Washington in A Raisin in the Sun, it’s because he’s a great actor in a great play. It’s the same reason I want to see Ian McKellen in Waiting for Godot. Race has nothing to do with it.
If I only saw plays about characters that are exactly like me, I wouldn’t go to the theater very often. I think the notion of “identity theater” is limited and silly.
You are speaking for yourself and you don't limit yourself, therefore you are not silly. I also find the statements that "I'm Black and I don't like theater, so therefore Black people are not interested in theater" limiting and silly, and this is my point.
However even with our conclusions to both hypothesis: Are you also stating that there is enough interest from Whites and others to not only keep plays with a significant Black cast on Broadway, but also to continually put out new plays with primarily Black cast, since Blacks "are just not that interested in theater"?
Also why would Black technicians, designers, artist, and managers train, and apprentice for years and subsequently work for years in theater if there were no interest? Their friends and families also buy tickets because of them, even though they are not seen on stage.
Back in the day when entertainment offerings were limited to the "theater" all sorts and types went of both sexes. It helped that you had productions and companies for various races, languages, etc... Besides Broadway there was Yiddish, Italian, African American and so forth.
Once the movies and later television came into being theatre attendance at all levels began to drop. Men usually only went by and large if they were gay, married and their wives dragged/forced them, or if they were members of a certain class/demographic that appreciated good theatre.
Much of what is on Broadway today is mass produced rubbish based on television shows, comic books and so forth. That or endless new casts of old shows. How many times can you see "Mame", Chicago, and so forth.
Live music is becoming increasingly rare and the actors of dubious talents. Stars like Neil Patrick Harris are among the few with legitimate voices and serious acting chops/credentials.
When you factor in this and other things into the equation it is no wonder the current Broadway demographic is the way it is.
Once saw a production of "Old Settler" done by an all AA cast and the house was packed with mainly an all black-American audience having a wonderful time.
Problem is at least in NYC shows are expensive to produce so unless it is as described as above, there is little reason for many AA or otherwise to part with their hard earned money.
Much of Broadway is geared towards visitors to Manhattan anyway, which also probably accounts for the audience. All those bus/package tours from Paris, Texas and so forth.
Latino is not a race. LOL Is Sammy Sosa not black? The last time I checked he has African features and dark skin, until he started bleaching. There are many other Afro Latinos living in NYC. I just find it interesting that whites continue to focus on blacks despite the fact that we are NOT the number one minority in terms of numbers. The person who started this topic didn't make statements about Latinos or Asians, he specifically targeted blacks.
There are plenty of undocumented Hispanics in the NY-tri state area and many are not fluent in English. I doubt that the majority of NYC based Hispanics, who are mostly working class will be purchasing even 5% of the broadway tickets.
We all know Latino' s are not a race. So Latino' s can be whatever race they want to be in the performing arts if they look the part. It only matters if the story is ethnic. If an actor is too dark to play a White character, if it matters in a play, then they have the same problem as a Black actor and they can audition for the same parts, Unless it's a play specifically about Latino' s. If there is complexion issues in Latino performing arts, that is another thread and would be a terrific topic.
Because white people likes plays more than blacks just like I'm sure blacks like hip hop and rap more than whites. Sure some whites love hip hip and rap and some blacks love theatre but race is real. Our genes determine a lot of us. Every group has its own culture based on those genes. As a whole, not each group is going to have the same likes and tastes, while on an individual level you will find people in any group that likes the culture of another group or whatever.
I'm white and I don't like plays. I rather watch movies and tv at home. But a lot of whites do.
I've seen my share of Broadway plays. I go to the Westchester dinner theatre once per year and enjoy what's being offered. That being said, I don't particularly go "goo goo gah gah" over plays....never knew race had anything to do with it.
Content is important. On page one a link was made with prominent mention of FELA. When I saw it the house was sold out and 3/4 of the audience were black.
Broadway is NOT theater, and Broadway caters to tourists, otherwise you could not run a show for 20 years...New Yorkers will see a show they want to see in the first couple years.
Tourists are very largely NOT African.
And Broadway prices have soared out of the bounds of reality for a NYC population with a median income of $50K. The average world traveler earns MUCH more than that or he would remain at home, not paying $300 to see the BOOK OF MORMON.
Recently, I went to see Shakespeare on Broadway. There were definitely Asians and Blacks in the audience. Perhaps, overall it was mostly white, but certainly not exclusively, at least where I was sitting.
Why don't Hispanic, Asian and Black professionals who have the money and travel to NYC as tourists show up at Broadway Shows at the level of their population in America? That is the real question.
I have seen shows with African American leads and still the audience was 99% white.
I see Broadway Musicals and plays going away in 20 years unless they are able to get a more diverse audience.
Last edited by I'm Retired Now; 11-26-2013 at 07:30 AM..
Musicals are very different from plays. Each have their own kind of audiences...
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