Theater and Republicans

A few weeks ago, I received a request via email.

An actor had been reading my theater interviews and asked to do one of them with me about what they perceived to be an act of discrimination against them.

They didn't give me many details aside from saying they had just been dismissed from a production, but they did give me their phone number, and I called them later that day.

Once I got them on the phone, it became clear that their situation was a little unusual.

They had been cast in a workshop reading of a show.  There was an agreed-upon stipend, but no formal contract, although there was a promise of continuing on with the project if the workshop turned into a full production, which it was likely to do.

During the process, one of the other actors in the workshop found out that this person is a Conservative.  In fact, they're a supporter of the President.  They regularly share articles from right-wing websites.  All of this is on social media, and their account is not private.  I know, because I went on their various social media accounts after I got off the phone with them.

The actor who discovered what their political leanings were immediately went to the director and stage manager and said they didn't feel comfortable being in a cast with somebody who aligns themselves with certain views, and they felt that it was hypocritical of this person to be in a show that was, itself, pretty political--with a very liberal slant.

The director and the stage manager felt that there was nothing they could do about what someone's political views are, and that as long as no actions were taken to make the actor complaining feel uncomfortable, they would have to let it go.

That's when the actor contacted the playwright, who then demanded that the person in question be taken off the project.

The next day, that person contacted me asking me to do an interview with them.

I said, "No."

And I'm writing this because I've been informed that the person I said "No" to is planning on including me in the list of people persecuting them, because I refused to let them voice their side of things even though, at this point, I've given an outlet to some pretty...questionable people.

I want to state my reasons for not agreeing to do an interview with them, and if you think I'm wrong after reading what I have to say, then I guess I just have to live with that.

First off, I usually like to do an interview when I feel like I can best convey as many sides of the issue as possible.  For that to happen in this case, I'd have to talk to the person in question, the actor who filed the complaint, the director, the stage manager, possibly the other actors, and the playwright.

The playwright, the director, and the stage manager have already said they won't speak with me so I can't share their side.  I'm not saying I definitely would, but not having the option doesn't sit well with me.

Secondly, you should know that I believe anything you do or say on social media should be off-limits when it comes to people deciding to work with you provided you make sure to privatize what you post.  My social media is public, and that's because I want people to read what I put out there, and I'm aware that that opens me up to scrutiny and consequences.  I've weighed the pros and cons.  This person also has a public account--actually all their accounts are public.  If that weren't the case, I would definitely be more likely to argue on their behalf.

Here's where things might get dicey for you.

While I think the obvious argument here is "Nobody should be fired for their beliefs, because the reverse could happen, and somebody could be fired for being liberal" I don't subscribe to that idea, because I feel like it's really just equivocation.

Liberal ways of thinking are not the same as Conservative ways of thinking.  We've grown accustomed in this country to talking about racism, sexism, and homophobia as if they're akin to preferring different kinds of ice cream flavors.

There are all sorts of gray areas here for me.

Would I consider it appropriate to dismiss someone from a project because they're pro-life?  I mean, I wouldn't love having them around, but...probably not.

Would I consider it appropriate to dismiss someone for being against gun control?  Again, I wouldn't love it, but I'd probably deal.

But if someone checked every single Breitbart box, would I still want to work with them?

Well, let's add one more issue to the mix--one that I've already alluded to.

What if the show in question espouses liberal ideas?  Not only puts them forward, but endorses them?

This is where I have trouble, because for the life of me, I can't imagine being in a show that was anti-gay marriage or that came across as being transphobic.  The idea that I would play a role in a show with a message that I fundamentally disagreed with just so I could get a credit on my resume and a check is just not something I can picture doing--probably why I've only ever been in one production of The Taming of the Shrew.

While I'm aware that a significant amount of contemporary theater is going have a liberal bias, and Conservative theater artists probably just have to learn to hold their nose, it does come across as benefiting off the backs of the people you're privately trying to suppress.

Is that my way of saying, if you're a Republican, maybe theater isn't for you?

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmaybe?

Look, I'm not a journalist.  Never said I was.  Quite the opposite, in fact.  And I have a whole slew of unpopular opinions that nobody would agree with me on, one of them being that I don't really the distinction between the modern Republican party and the villains in an Indiana Jones flick, and I think it's totally fine for anybody to say "Yeah, I don't want to work with you, not just because you're not just a bad person, but you're like, really proud of how f***ing awful you are and given the choice, you would probably have me sent to a labor colony."

As far as this particular incident goes, I'm a writer, and while I will drag certain playwrights (Edward Albee) for how they wanted their shows cast, I also think it's within their rights to ask for exactly what they want, and call the shots as they see fit for as long as they can until a movie studio buys their work and changes everything.

I've never kicked anyone out of one of my shows, but I did once say to someone, "You can be in this play, but just know that I feel you're totally miscast and you couldn't be further from what I imagined the character to be and I'm never going to be happy with you in this role" and the person then, smartly, backed out of the project.

Was that a mature way of handling the situation?

No.

Was that one of my prouder moments?

Nope.

Do I feel it was within my rights to say that?

Totally.

So I felt I didn't have the moral high ground here even if I didn't agree with this particular playwright, and I actually do.

When this all blows up sometime tomorrow, please know that this is all I'm going to say on the subject unless someone wants to sit down for one of those Dateline interviews with me where I bite my lip a few times and try to hold back tears.

That's all