Did Marriott Theater hire enough Latinos for "Evita"?
Marriott Theatre faces charges of cultural insensitivity after a Chicago-area actor criticized the Lincolnshire theater's casting of its upcoming production of “Evita,” Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical chronicling the rise of Argentina's Eva Peron.
In an open letter to Marriott's artistic team posted on social media Thursday, Bear Bellinger criticized the theater for casting only one Latino actor in the production, which begins previews April 13.
“Using only one actor of Latin descent is irresponsible to that truth and a lost opportunity to feature a group of people who are regularly ignored on our stages,” he wrote.
Bellinger, who has performed at Metropolis Performing Arts Centre in Arlington Heights and at Aurora's Paramount Theatre, said he does not believe Marriott representatives acted with malice in casting the show, but had “fallen out of touch with the need for minority perspectives.”
He did not respond to requests for comment.
In a statement issued Friday, Marriott Executive Director Terry James said the issue is an emotional one “best served by a dialogue and doubling down on our continuing efforts to be inclusive and diverse in casting.”
“We have been actively working to bring in new minority talent to our stage, and we absolutely welcome conversations as to how to improve efforts that would not just benefit Marriott Theatre, but our entire Chicagoland theater community,” James said.
Pointing out that 22 out of 26 actors in Marriott's 2014 production of “The King & I” identified as Asian Pacific or nonwhite, James said in a prepared statement that the theater has worked with the Actors' Equity Association to increase the number of minority actors auditioning for shows. James also referenced the casts of “Dreamgirls,” “Hot Mikado,” “Hairspray,” “Ain't Misbehavin'” and its current show, “Sister Act,” as evidence of Marriott's commitment to diversity.
“Evita” director/choreographer Alex Sanchez says Bellinger's criticism is unwarranted and incorrect. Sanchez, a Latino, says in the 30 years he has worked there Marriott has always been proactive about nontraditional casting and always supported him as an artist.
“I know (Marriott) is reaching out,” he said. “It's a matter of actors making the choice to come to those auditions.”
Not many Latino actors auditioned for the show, said Sanchez, adding competition from Paramount's “West Side Story,” which opens Saturday, might have had something to do with that.
“At that point it's out of our hands,” said Sanchez, pointing out that turnout is lower in the suburbs than in the city, where he estimated 75 to 100 dancers auditioned for Goodman Theatre's “Wonderful Town” (which Sanchez is choreographing) compared to the 40 who auditioned for “Evita.”
Paramount artistic director Jim Corti empathized with both sides.
“It's a very difficult situation,” he said. “I know how hard we have to work to represent ethnicity authentically in our productions, and I can sympathize with the actors who are hurting.”
Corti says William Carlos Angulo, choreographer for Paramount's “West Side Story” opening Saturday, reached out to Chicago's dance community to cast the show. Angulo also performs in Marriott's “Evita” ensemble.
A desire for authenticity motivated the prolonged casting process, which took nearly a year, Corti said. But it's necessary if theaters are to make use of color-conscious casting.
“The political and social climate demands it and we have to be responsible,” Corti said.
To that end, Paramount has posted an audition notice seeking an African-American cast for its production of “Jesus Christ Superstar” next year.
“A theater has to represent our audiences,” he said.