BWW Blog: Dayana Sanchez - Diversity Series: POC

THROUGHOUT OUR COLLEGE CAREER AS THEATRE MAJORS WE ARE ASKED TO READ AND DISCUSS PLAYWRIGHTS THAT HAVE CHANGED AND CONTRIBUTED TO THEATRE. We read about THE GREATS Shakespeare, Ibsen, Shaw, Moliere, Brecht, Beckett and many other playwrights that have pushed traditional theatre creating and producing something different. Reading about "The Greats" is a given in theatre education, Valuing the work of the playwrights and ultimately educating students of different time periods and exploring themes of the era.

However, as a Latina woman, I believe there is a limitation in only introducing students to playwrights who are white. Yes, the plays we read in academia offer valuable knowledge and I do believe that these plays are important to acknowledge and explore in classrooms. But I feel it isn't fair to give importance to a playwright and explore their writings when writings of playwrights of color are not looked at the same way. It sort seems like playwrights of color are extra in theatre education but A doll's House can be talked about FORVER and Waiting for Godot. These playwrights seemed praised and put in a pedestal on how their work is OUTSTANDING.

(I wrote an essay on Waiting for Godot and it's actually become one of my favorite plays. Let's not get it twisted.)

As a young girl, representation is not seen as important simply because it felt it wasn't needed. I went to Williamsburg Charter High School, where I played characters like Audrey from Little Shop of Horrors to characters like Daniela from In The Heights. I seamlessly felt I could play any role. I saw my friends play characters, that now a little wiser will most likely never be cast in. In college, I realized the importance of my color and the stories I could bring. I was fortunate enough to have attended a diverse school and have smart professors who wanted to be put on shows that were relatable to their students. Check out LaGuardia Community College.

But it's still not enough...It's heartbreaking to know that my story is not marketable. What's the point in getting training and achieving my dreams when spots seem so limited, even more so because of my skin color.

CUNY schools offer opportunities for students of all backgrounds to get a college education at a lower rate than private institutions , even with tuition hikes going up every year. According to the student profile made by CUNY in fall of 2015, there had been a total of 245,279 students enrolled in both senior and community colleges. In this student profile only 21.8% of students are white, while 31.4% of students are Hispanic, black students are at 26.2%, Asian students are at 20.3% and natives are at .3%. This study can help us determine that majority of students in theatre are not predominantly white. So why isn't People of Color explored and talked about openly and not only when it is an elective course.

I am graduating from Queens College fairly soon and the only playwrights of color that were included in their curriculum was Suzan-Lori Parks and Dominique Morriseau. Both of these plays were mentioned towards the end of each semester of class. I will say they were given the same amount of time as any other playwright however their stories also have seemed to be stripped away because professors would discuss the conflicts in the play as a "universal"; theme, stripping their history and making it "friendlier" for everyone in class. I do not believe this is fair at all and it leaves me thinking at the end of class that it is okay to think about plays such as THE AMERICAN PLAY and DETROIT '67 in a universal way. I am not saying that professors don't educate us as students about their history and themes that may deal with racism. But we have to note that these playwrights are breaking barriers for so many people of color to see these plays that relate to a specific experience. These experiences are important and they are not universal at all to me. They are personal to my story, my life.

Lin-Manuel Miranda, Danai Gurira, Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray and many others are breaking the barrier for people of color. Representation is important, the more diverse stories the more people will relate be able to take away something valuable. Theatre has value, it isn't dying but the same stories are being told, the same stories are being praised. There needs to be a change.

If you would like to find out more information on playwrights of color: Check out Collegiate Theatre Connection: Blog