Is Color Blind Casting The Way To Go?

I was talking to a dear friend of mine the other day and a very interesting subject came up. We were talking about the influence the media has on our youth and to be honest our adults and we started talking about what are the possibilities for this powerful medium in the future.  This led to a very interesting topic. The topic was “Is color blind casting in plays the way to go?” Is casting a Vanessa Williams as Belle in the Broadway Musical Beauty in the Beast or Casting Benicio Del Toro in the role of Lawrence Talbot in the Wolfman the way to go?  That is a very interesting question and one that I thought that we should think about.  In short I think the answer would have to be Yes*. I say that the answer would have to be Yes* because there is no doubt that this is a positive step in the right direction.  However, to continue to do this and only this would be the equivalent of saying that there aren’t any stories written by or about the cultures that these actors belong to. It kind of like saying that different cultures, religions or sexual orientations that are all around us are not stories worth telling in this medium. That might be a little harsh ,but isn’t that what we are saying by continuing not to produce or tell these stories?

You see I think something to consider is that it might be time to start telling new diverse stories.  It might be time to empower new writers and artist to tell stories on the major stage. Stories that are fascinating and uplifting and current. Maybe it is time to empower new writers and play writes like Linda Faigao-Hall (Linda’s Work) , Carolyn Gage , Tarell McCraney or Luis Valdez.  Maybe we should start taking a look at artist like Charmaine G. Brown ,  Jorge Rojas, or Art websites like Asia Art.net and musicians like Victor Woo (His Music is AMAZING!!) , Bernie Reilly, or Ledisi (You Owe It To Yourself!)

By supporting these artists we empower them and artists like them to make more music, to make more art, and to tell more stories that resemble the stories that we want to tell and hear. Stories that paint a picture of a diverse world. Positive stories that reflect images of all of us!

I am watching one such story as I write this blog post.  A film called Falling for Grace Directed by Fay Ann Lee.

This was a really fun film to watch. I was drawn in from the very beginning and stayed in the entire time. It was a very well done film. Also there was a surprise cameo by Lewis Black! That guy is funny! Loud, but funny! You should run out and rent this one immediately.

So in conclusion: Colorblind casting is a great thing, but telling stories that are about diversity, stories that tell of life in our multicultural society, stories of romance, stories of happiness, stories of life struggle, and stories of life triumph is (In my humble opinion) where we should be heading.

We need to see ourselves in media. We need to see ourselves and celebrate life in every way that we live it! Every Culture! Every Sexual Orientation! Every Religion! Every Ability! Every Way We Live It!

So support these artists and artists like them and if you are an artist looking for a chance to tell your story please send us your stories via the submission form. We are looking to produce stories that celebrate our diverse global community. Will you join us?

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