Rocky Horror Picture Show and Tiny Orphans

I know I'm not the only person in this class who is a fan of cult classics, and one of my first obsessions as a young theatrical practitioner (read: music theatre obsessed teenager) was Rocky Horror. Everyone in their late teen years looks for an excuse to wear too much makeup and fishnets, right? ...Right? 

I digress. So. My best friend from high school, who has been working nationally and on Broadway for the last few years, and incidentally who introduced me to Rocky Horror, made a pit stop this year in our incredibly progressive (read: conservative and controlled by the Koch Brothers and Sam Brownback) city of Wichita, KS to do the live production of Rocky Horror as the choreographer and to play the role of Rocky. Generally speaking, this wasn't a big deal, and the population was actually really excited for the show to be staged in Wichita for the first time in years, and Mo has a pretty big presence in town for his influence as a choreographer and the work he did before he moved, so there was a pretty supportive vibe from the locals for the production. The thing is, is that Maurice is black. Again, this shouldn't be an issue, because there's nothing in the script that notes Rocky having a specific race, and when the show is about transvestite aliens and has like, no plot line, who is to say that casting a black actor in that role is revolutionary, right? 

Well, the Wichita Eagle (local newpaper) thought otherwise. Their promotion of the show put emphasis on Maurice playing Rocky by saying "Actor-choreographer Sims says that being the first black Rocky Horror – certainly locally and likely nationally – won’t change the dynamic of the plot."

When I talked to Mo about it, I asked him what he thought of the interview with the paper. He said something along the lines of "he was trying to make a big deal out of it and get me to say things about the role like I was so proud to be given the opportunity to play Rocky and I was like...It's not a big deal, I'm sure I'm not the first black guy to do it. I mean, it's about sex and aliens, how weird does it have to be?" In the article, he's quoted much more eloquently, responding to the question with "it will actually add depth to the show by supporting the idea that Rocky is different from everybody else,” Sims said. “He has a man’s body, but he is a new creature, so he has the mind of a baby. He is experiencing the world for the first time.” That is all to say that while I don't necessarily agree that this was a brave choice for color-blind casting, the overall success of the show was not altered or affected negatively in any way by this choice. I thought the show was a delight, he did a fantastic job, and nothing about casting a black actor took me out of the experience. 

On the other hand, there are a lot of issues I have with the adaptation of Annie 2014 to film. First of all, modernizing the script- um, what?- and trying to update it so it isn't deadly theatre and inaccessible to a modern audience- nice try, it sucks regardless- but with a show that is arguably "iconic" in the music theatre community, with a signature cartoon and red wig, an old, bald white guy, and a crippled president to be forced into the 21st century and race swapped for a black orphan and black tycoon have already raised a lot of eyebrows from fans. I will eat crow if it does work, but thus far, I'm having a hard time buying into the swap in this instance. 

Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/entertainment/arts-culture/article2494421.html#storylink=cpy

Theatre of the Oppressed Grad Student

The question about the role theatre plays in major world events reminds me of the one Tim posed in his prompt about the Holocaust, and I feel pretty strongly about my response to that question. By that I mean: I rarely think theatre is the venue to take on a magnanimous issue as a whole under the constraints that typical theatre operates from. We, as artists and audiences, can only suspend disbelief so far, and in tackling an issue of that gravity, the cynic in me says that we would only be so successful. If I’m being honest with myself about taking on the circumstances under which a mass genocide, entire war or an event of crippling oppression, I don’t personally believe I would be able to fathom how much impact an event of that depth could make me feel. If we are using theatre as the vehicle to address something like the Holocaust, a particularly gruesome war, genocide, and social or racial oppression, the best way in is through one person or small group of people’s experience. It may be a bastardized form of the event on the entire scale, but if someone is to take on something of that nature, it is too grand to be accessible, and we’ve failed before it’s begun. So in some ways, yeah, I do think there are some issues where theatre stops being the answer.

That being said, I don’t disagree with Boal’s method of work on Theatre of the Oppressed, which doesn’t come at us in the same passive audience observing kind of way. As a presentation, I’m weary to say yes, and… but as a tool to use as an efficient educational method to self-awareness, being more socially aware and empathetic, and learning skills in which to combat the future impact of such events- even going so far back to the Rehearsing Warrior Ethos article as a reason to consider theatre in this way- is something to consider. Maybe we use the skills Boal talks about in service to searching for the answer to a problem and through that knowledge and dialogue there are steps to be taken in attempt to make change, but a presentation on a proscenium stage about oppression isn’t the way to incite it.

This brings me back around to the first question Maggie posed: what is the next step? Call me an optimist, but I feel like the best case scenario for making change is starting with an honest account of our history and implementing some of these activities that Boal has used for years into our school systems to teach empathy and understanding. I am a huge advocate for teaching life skills through theatre, and starting young with people from all different walks of life is a way in with the upcoming generation who are going to make a difference. For our own theatrical dialogue? I don’t know. But I hope we don’t give up on the ways in which we have a say just because things get a little too hard in the face of technology and ADD.

Motherhood? Ain't Nobody Got Time for That.

At the risk of sounding like a raging feminist (in the negative connotation of the word), I have to take a stand on the maternity leave policies in a University setting, and most specifically LSU. There are several issues I have with the policy- for one, it doesn’t include Paternity Leave as an option for new parents, so we’re already gender discriminating. Two, the section titled “Maternity Leave” in the LSU employee handbook directs readers to Family Medical Leave and Sick Leave, therefore grouping childbirth in with illness or emergencies, therefore all other illnesses and family traumas have to be forgotten, ignored, or a risk of termination if they are used for maternity leave. And three, the amount of time allowed for family medical and/or sick leave (paid) is contingent on the years of service at the institution and what is saved up from appointment date to the day the leave begins, which is roughly one paid day per month, so approximately 4.5 days each semester. But don’t worry, with prior approval from the University, leave without pay is an option if sick leave is exhausted before the time that maternity leave might come into play.

This is an issue because across the board in academic institutions, and really in many professions, with the pay gap for women on the national level, we’re already only earning 77 cents to every male dollar, and one of the reasons the Society for Human Resource Management credits for the gap is what they call “motherhood penalty”, where women in the job market who are unmarried and without children rise to the top of the hiring pool because they are arguably a lower risk for family emergency without dependents, therefore creating a bias against and stereotyping working mothers. As Dr. Walsh mentioned to me in a meeting about job hunting in an academic institution, (I’m summarizing) “the best thing to do in an interview is to smile and assure the search committee that a family and children aren’t something that you’re interested in pursuing” because while it may not be the best circumstances to take a so called maternity leave later on, your job will be protected. The inequality has yet to be addressed because as Dr. Walsh also pointed out to me, women are relatively new on the scene in professorship positions, so the attitude is generally “you should just be happy to be here”.

The act of protest here requires a few things to be successful, and I think the most important one is male support. This isn’t a gender specific issue, it’s a family issue. If I were to take action as a planning party, I think a parade beginning at the State Capitol building and ending outside the LSU Student Union at 3:00 pm on November 4^th for a peaceful picketing protest at the next LSU Senate meeting is the best first step to change. Considering the LSU Board of Supervisors has been under a “no confidence” vote for almost two years, this is a good time to bring up issues that need to be addressed within the system. Direct Action is the best course in this situation, because passive resistance doesn’t make enough waves. Standing idly by won’t draw attention to a policy that is on the back burner.

In our current state, women and gender discrepancies are a hot button for media coverage, and while they can be spun negatively, I think a media presence is something that would shed light in a good way on the issue that needs to be addressed, and might put necessary pressure on the board to consider changes in a policy that hasn’t been revised since 2004. Louisiana passed the equal pay law in 2013 by a 23-13 vote, which was a step in the right direction, so perhaps LSU will join the wave of change and acknowledge that the rights of new mothers should be a separate policy from one that implies crisis or sickness.

This specific protest would close after the LSU Senate wrapped their meeting on election day, but I don’t think there is a concrete ending until the University acknowledges that the policy needs to be addressed now.