Last month, Quentin Letts, a theatre critic with The Daily Mail, was the subject of headlines rather than the author. He was accused of having a “blatantly racist attitude” by The Royal Shakespeare Company following a review in which he questioned their decision to cast a black actor in a lead role. It opens up a conversation about diversity in casting for stage and screen. Casting Director Maureen Hughes, Artistic Director at the Abbey Theatre Graham McLaren and actor Donna Anita Nikolaisen joined Sean Rocks on Arena to talk discuss the issue.
Sean asked Graham if he thought Letts’ review, in which he suggested that the RSC may have had an ulterior motive in casting a black actor in a lead role, was problematic. Sean thinks that regardless of whether you think an actor is right for a role, bringing their ethnicity into the equation is “hackneyed”.
“If you're asking was it racist? Yes. It was racist. Because essentially, he calls into question the actor’s colour as a contributing factor as to why, you know, why he was miscast.”
Graham explained that he sees it as “incumbent” upon him and the Abbey to represent society as it is.
“It’s my job, running the national theatre, to reflect the nation back to itself.”
Maureen gave the example of how she cast the play, On Raftery’s Hill, 20 years ago and then again just two weeks ago. In her most recent casting, the role of Dara Mood went to a young black actor, Kwaku Fortune, from Wicklow. Maureen also pointed to the recent announcement by The Gate Theatre that their Autumn season will feature a production of Hamlet featuring Ruth Negga in the title role.
“I think Ireland is suddenly beginning to recognise the fact that…you walk down O’Connell Street or Main Street Ballyhaunis and it is not white anymore. It’s not just white Irish people. We are very mixed. Our dramas are beginning to reflect it.“
Sean put a question to Donna (who is Irish-Caribbean): How often is she asked to play a “straight-forward” Irish role without race being a consideration? She replied, “not too often”, to which Graham chimed in:
“See me after the show, Donna.“
Donna spoke about several great years playing Ama Chisenga on Fair City, a role she enjoyed but which was “race-specific”. She thinks the key marker to progress is when major roles are cast as “any ethnicity”.
“When you’re an actor, when you’re an artist, you're always changing, you're becoming different characters. That’s perfectly understandable. But it’s also great to be able to stand up on stage and be seen as an Irish woman.”
Listen back to the full discussion on Arena here.