being Asian in theater

Type casting is the process of being given or restricted from a role due to someone’s ethnic or racial background. Thankfully this has been a relatively minimal issue for me, but it has been a persistent one in the community nonetheless. This idea pertains exclusively to shows where the race of a character is ethnically ambiguous or if the role is only given to said actor due to their race. The entire process not only limits the accessibility of roles but also can damage their self-image as an actor. (example)

I would know this from personal experience, as in a high school production of ''Little Shop of Horrors'' I played the distinguished role of “Chang” or the “Old Chinese Man.” Now, I was okay with this casting decision, but what I was really hurt by was the fact that I felt that I only got the role due to my race. This sent me into a spiral, and for the better part of a week, I did nothing but linger on the fact that I didn’t deserve the role. The worst part was the director didn’t even check to see if I was Chinese first! While I did eventually get over it, it was an impactful experience that changed the way I see the theatrical world. Though seeming relatively small in the larger sandel that happens in theater, it still hurt, making me sometimes even regret being Asian. While in recent years roles for asians have increased, there are still a lot of opportunities for asians and may other ethnicities.

This major idea ties into the idea of “If you can’t do the show properly, should you do the show?” As mentioned in a previous blog, “In the Whites” is a version of “In the Heights” done by a highschool that had the cast made almost entirely of white students. Directors intent is a major part of any show, and some would find it disrespectful to not

properly honor the director's intent. One good example of expressing proper actors intent is in

the reboot of West Side Story, where instead of the originals fake tans and caricatures, they had real Latin actors play these iconic roles. This not only respects the original creators intent, it expands it beyond what was possible at the time. But this can become harmful, when 

race becomes the only favor when casting.

One such example of this is with the beloved show Two Broke Girls. In the show Mathew Moy plays an asian man named Han Lee. While Han Lee is both an able and enjoyable character, he is a caricature of an Asian business owner. He is stingy, loud, and often selfish. While good for representation, this idea reinforces the stereotypical ideas that many people had. Another example of this is the early versions of the parents in Fresh Off the Boat. While in later seasons they were deletions into full and fleshed out characters, in the beginning they were the classic uptight, quick to anger stereotypical asian parents. While this initially worked for the show, as season went on many viewers, myself included, felt that they were rather one dimensional, and appreciated when the writers began to round the characters out and make them more human.

Being asian in theater is a new and exciting subject that I hope continues to grow, and I believe that more people will get into this amazing art form and continue to tell

amazing stories.