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Conversations, Resources, Archives National Diversity Forum | Written on the Body: A Conversation About Disability | Listening with an Open Eye | New Traditions |
Possibilities: Disability within Theatre
Monday – August
26, 2002 @ 2:15pm EST
An online
roundtable discussion, hosted by the Non-Traditional Casting Project, Inc.
included the
following participants:
Peter DuBois
Artistic Director, Perseverance Theatre
Alaska
Timothy Douglas
Associate Artistic Director, Actors Theatre of Louisville
Kentucky
Sandy Shinner
Associate Artistic Director, Victory Gardens Theater
Chicago
(led by)
John Belluso
playwright & co-director of Other
Voices at
the Mark Taper Forum
Los Angeles
Monday – August, 26,
2002 @ 2:15pm EST
John Belluso:
Thanks to all for being a
part of this conversation today about representing the disability experience on
stage. And thinking strategically about what it means to bring this
under-utilized group into the theatre, both as audience members, as
playwrights, actors and all other aspects of performance.
So this doesn't become a
lecture, I'll just throw the ball up into the air and see if there are any
initial thoughts or experiences which might be a good starting point.
Timothy Douglas:
Well, as you form your
initial thoughts, I'm reminded that this particular question of diversity had
not been in the front of my mind since my days at the [Mark Taper Forum]
when I got to work so closely with Other
Voices. [It was] probably the most rewarding
time in development for me, because I was required to think in such [a]
different way. Just being a part of this discussion makes me realize how
ghettoized I've become with regards to race and representation on the
stage…a necessary battle for me specifically, but I welcome this even
broader challenge to my awareness.
John Belluso:
I think that's a great
point, but adding another category (disability) to this canon of
inclusion…
Peter DuBois:
I have an actor in my
company who is hearing impaired. This
affects his work in every way, from movement work to moment-to-moment
work. In a way he has his own acting
style, which is entirely compelling. I
am interested in that part of the conversation.
Where disability intersects with performance style.
John Belluso:
That’s a great point
Peter, I think one of the things that disability does is allow us to be
reminded that theatre is centered around the body, and
therefore has its kind of language.
Timothy Douglas:
It feels as though the
(lack of) representation of the disabled on the stage is an exact reflection of
how our society at large handles the visibility issue. The transformative
nature of live performance reminds us constantly that all levels of
“things uncomfortable” can have the greatest cathartic benefits
when providing a compelling story.
John Belluso:
I agree, I think people
are hesitant to explore this issue in part because they fear it is inherently
"sad" or "tragic".
Sandy Shinner:
I think that the audience
responses have been quite extraordinary to work dealing with disability,
although getting audiences to the theater has been difficult.
Timothy Douglas:
Again, I keep resonating
on issues of race - especially now that I'm living and creating my art in
“the South”. In cities like Los Angeles my productions about race
and even disabilities were met with acceptance, for the most part. I was
feeling pretty confident that the message was getting heard. But now that I'm
in Louisville, I'm finding that August Wilson's most established plays are
being met as if this were the 60's.
John Belluso:
I think comparing it to
race is a really useful paradigm; when both people from both experiences enter
the room they are, in a sense, "on display"; their difference appears
immediately.
Timothy Douglas:
Where I was going was ...
I'm always amazed at my own amnesia around representation and how diligent I
must remain no matter what success I perceive to have been made.
John Belluso:
Absolutely.
Timothy Douglas:
Every time I'm in your
presence John, I'm reminded that I've gone unconscious even though I'd like to
believe I have your back at all times. Both personally and professionally I
don't know where to draw distinctions. On the one hand, you're a great talent,
my pal and a great personality, you have a particular challenge that doesn't
fundamentally change WHO you are for me, and yet, I must recognize your
challenge without objectifying. Which gets into all kinds of
P.C. behavior, and AHHHHHHH…in this way I'm a true reflection of my
culture.
John Belluso:
Thank you Tim, I think you
do have my back, and it is so tricky isn't it? Desiring our
similarity while respecting our difference.
Peter DuBois:
What are your thoughts on
how those differences/challenges can inform a theatrical vocabulary? Whether dramaturgically or in terms of
performance itself?
Timothy Douglas:
My instinct is to defer
and ask that question of the one who is representing the disabled. At least I'd
like to do that first and THEN layer in my sense of how to tell that story most
effectively. I've had this encounter with a blind playwright who was determined
to have his play staged for a “sighted” audience. The greatest
challenge was not in the storytelling, but how best to communicate the form of
what I was doing so that the playwright and I could have similar experiences.
John Belluso:
I tend to always try and
think of it historically; I remind myself that the figure of the disabled body
has always been onstage—from Sophocles to Shakespeare’s Richard III to The Cripple of Inishmaan— there is a
canon of representation.
Timothy Douglas:
SO true John ... what do
you perceive our resistance to be specifically?
John Belluso:
There is a canon of
disability, but it is always viewed through the lens (a lens smudged with fear
and anxiety) of the non-disabled writer.
Sandy Shinner:
Shouldn't we then
encourage theaters to produce work by disabled writers in the same way we are
trying to offer a season with differing points of view? There are some terrific plays—certainly
yours John—that should be seen.
John Belluso:
Yes, I think it's like any
other "minority" group; when the tables are turned and the
stories/myths are coming from within the group, old perceptions are shattered.
Sandy Shinner:
That was definitely the
case with Susan Nussbaum's play No One As Nasty—the perceptions were certainly shattered
and the audience of disabled and non-disabled patrons was blown away.
John Belluso:
Absolutely Sandy, I think
the key is to encourage theatres to include disability in this desire to create
new audiences and hear new stories, as you guys do at Victory Gardens, with your Access Project.
Sandy Shinner:
We are certainly committed
to making sure we integrate the, now 10 year old, Access Project into the
artistic life of the theater and move forward each season.
John Belluso:
I'm wondering, in terms of
audience, how do the particular regions [from which each of you come], seem to affect the number of disabled people who come to
the shows?
Timothy Douglas:
In terms of the short
piece you did for The
Humana Festival, it's still resonating through the disabled community here.
I think representation [of disability] in the mainstream theatre here never
occurred to most people. Here specifically, although late, the effect has been
positive and large.
Sandy Shinner:
I would have to admit that
we have a small number of disabled patrons attending, although the number grows
a bit each time we produce. Lots of work needs to be done in that area although
the theater is fully accessible with captioning, audio description etc. As with
any target audience, the numbers increase if they know that the playwright is
disabled and not just writing about disability.
Timothy Douglas:
I'd echo Sandy's
observation.
Sandy Shinner:
What we have been most
successful with is attracting audiences who have really never thought much
about disability issues but are used to coming to see new work here.
John Belluso:
That’s great. It's
been my experience that non-disabled audiences are sometimes braver than
producers think. And they love getting to hear an “authentic” voice
coming from another community they may not know personally.
Sandy Shinner:
Absolutely...we hope that
is the nature of theater-goers in general.
We therefore have a responsibility to bring these new points of view to
audiences, encourage discussion and open up their eyes.
Timothy Douglas:
John, I liken that unto
the experience of the first encounter with the person who lives with whatever
particular challenge…once we allow ourselves to see past the disability,
we get so connected so fast. (At least that's my experience). My biggest fear
is of offending. In those moments, I'm actually more focused on myself. As a
result, once I break through, I find I allow myself to go deep fast. Audiences
instinctively do this, because bringing the play to them has already done the
hard, getting-to-know-you part. This is also my experience as a director,
specifically with Lynn Manning and John Pixley. Once
I got over myself, I was able to do some of my best work EVER.
John Belluso:
That's such a good point
Tim. Freeing yourself from the fear of offending is such a key to breaking down
any kind of stereotypes.
Sandy Shinner:
I agree.
Peter DuBois:
Absolutely.
Timothy Douglas:
So what's my resistance to
doing this constantly?!?
John Belluso:
I don't think you have a
resistance.
Timothy Douglas:
I know one reason is that
I spend much time on issues of race specifically, so I guess some part of me
says, "Okay, John, this one's yours". Resistance isn't exactly the
right word, but the fact that I know this issue requires more attention…
the fact that I “forget” to keep it high on the agenda feels like
resistance…I know better.
John Belluso:
I think we are all products of our society,
and it is a society which would prefer to keep us separated rather than forming
strategic alliances, and so sometimes we operate that way.
Sandy Shinner:
It also involves a very
broad spectrum—from making sure you have all the facilities that are required
and are set up to make accommodations for staff, etc—as well as just
produce the work.
John Belluso:
But forums like this
remind us how similar we are and that our needs are the same; equality,
justice, etc etc.
Sandy Shinner:
I think sometimes a
theater feels like it can't make that comprehensive a commitment and therefore
doesn't do anything. It is better to
try to do something in a small way than delay until everything is set.
Peter DuBois:
Yes. Absolutely.
I want to come back to the question of region. In Alaska the challenge of
everyday life here informs everything we do, from making theater to how we
engage disability. John, have you
experienced an impact of “region” on your work?
John Belluso:
Yes Peter, I actually just
returned last month from Australia and I think the different regions I go to
have a huge impact on each production. My production here at the Taper last
summer was a huge challenge.
Peter DuBois:
How so?
John Belluso:
Even with an institution
as large as the Taper,
we still had to struggle with questions like "How do we get the disabled
audience members interested and coming to see the show?”
Peter DuBois:
What was Australia like?
John Belluso:
It was fairly progressive
(and Beautiful!) but they had their access problems as well.
Sandy Shinner:
What were some of your
ideas about marketing…Chicago has a very active disability community and I
think that helps, but we still need to attract more patrons.
John Belluso:
I think in some ways the
strategies the Public Theater used
in NOISE/FUNK are very helpful: going
into the community to build audience members from the inside out.
Peter DuBois:
Yes, for us it has been
building strong ties and partnering with organizations that facilitate
community building and access.
Timothy Douglas:
It seems to me that's always the best way. What do you hear, John, as the
roadblocks to more representation? OR what was it for you that inspired this
roundtable? [And] how was the turn out for BODY
OF BOURNE at the Mark Taper Forum?
John Belluso:
It was actually really
good, but it required a good deal of work, but I think it paid off.
Sandy Shinner:
It is difficult to get
anyone who hasn't been going to the theater to step in the door—disabled
or non-disabled. How do we make people
in the disability community feel more welcome and their presence more important
to us, John?
John Belluso:
I think the good news is
[that] we are on the right track.
Sandy Shinner:
I’m glad you think
so.
Peter DuBois:
Going back to Timothy's
question—what are the roadblocks?
John Belluso:
We just need to keep
thinking strategically and keep eyes open for new talent which can share a
story that is meaningful to a disabled audience; and that of course becomes
universal for all audiences.
Peter DuBois:
Yes.
John Belluso:
But back
to the roadblocks…
Sandy Shinner:
I am actually surprised
that there are so few funding organizations that are interested in promoting
accessibility in the theater...has anyone had any luck there?
Timothy Douglas:
Well, I've always got my
eye out for that new talent. I want you to know that you may send me those
scripts and artists that you're willing to share whom you believe are ready for
the leap… (that goes for all of you!)
John Belluso:
Excellent.
Sandy Shinner:
Ditto
for us too. We are looking for scripts for both mainstage and studio production.
Peter DuBois:
Ditto here. Sandy, we have had some luck with funding
access locally, but that's it.
John Belluso:
And of
course for me at the Taper as
well.
Sandy Shinner:
Thanks Peter, we have had
luck only from a few corps and more from individuals.
Timothy Douglas:
It seems that many theaters
are already physically accessible, but how to send the message that the work
itself is actually accessible? There's an arena that might just be vague enough
to inspire funding. NEH (Nat'l
Endowment for the Humanities), perhaps?
Sandy Shinner:
We have tried NEH for some projects and will do so again.
John Belluso:
Yes, the idea that always
resonates with me is that we as people with disabilities need access to both
sides of the stage, and when it's stated in terms of going beyond
"technical accessibility" and going into the realm of Artistry,
people (and some corps) get excited.
Sandy Shinner:
The Kennedy Center has just embarked
on an internship program for people with disabilities, as I'm sure you know. So
they managed to get some money into the hands of interns who want to work,
primarily, in administration which is an area we haven't mentioned.
Peter DuBois:
Responding
to John, speaking of artistry: is there
anything to talk about in terms of training and development—writing,
acting etc.
John Belluso:
ABSOLUTELY! Training is a
key issue.
Sandy Shinner:
Two of the scripts we have
produced came out of work done in our Artist Development workshop which is an
ongoing play development class...
John Belluso:
Without access to
training, people with disabilities always end up on the audience side of the
theatre. I think large training institutions need to be thinking about
disability in the terms we have been framing in this discussion.
Peter DuBois:
Absolutely. When part of the training is exploring what may be
perceived of as “otherness” to inform both the form and content of
what you do, it becomes so empowering. And it leads to exciting work.
John Belluso:
As a part of the need for
diversity (rather that a hindrance to performance, which I fear is how they
think of it).
Timothy Douglas:
I can easily see
integrating disabled writers into training as well as training specific to the
disability. In your opinion, what might be a model for performers? I think I
just answered my own question…allow the artist to take the lead, and what
I can do is to provide or help track down the resources.
John Belluso:
Well, I think in some ways
it takes me back to looking critically at the canon.
Peter DuBois:
Yes.
Timothy Douglas:
Yes…you're saying
training specific to the project or particular physical challenge.
John Belluso:
Yes, and by allowing say,
someone with cerebral palsy to play Richard
III.
Timothy Douglas:
I guess that doesn't seem
obvious to me initially, because I'm so concerned about offending! But who
better to “get inside” Richard
III?! What about new work, though?
John Belluso:
There is that balance to
strike, but I think New work should also be influenced by past images as well,
understanding the history of the experience. Wrestling with
those images in a good and exciting way.
Peter DuBois:
I smell a fabulous
project.
John Belluso:
Yes! I think there are so
many possibilities by looking behind us, what has come before, in order to go
forward with new Myths. And I think at the end of the day that's really what we
are talking about is new Myths.
Peter DuBois:
Yes!
Sandy Shinner:
You can certainly tell who the writer in this
conversation is.
John Belluso:
Lol (laugh out loud), Sandy.
Timothy Douglas:
Yes, of course…I was
asking more about training for the disabled artist, creating new work, which
has not yet been created.
John Belluso:
Yes, creating work is so
vital.
John Belluso:
There are so many things
we’ve really never even seen on a stage before.
Timothy Douglas:
…And some we've seen
way too much of.
John Belluso:
And training plays such a
huge role in that balance.
Timothy Douglas:
This was great for me.
Thanks John and all.
John Belluso:
Yes, let me send out a big
“Thank You” to you all.
Sandy Shinner:
Thanks for including me,
John. I think when everyone—playwright,
director and theater—makes it the goal to work with disabled artists and
create new work with these images and ideas, it can and will happen. It seems that getting the firm commitment of
the theater is perhaps the hardest.
Timothy Douglas:
I'm very open to a follow
up. Also, if you think of something which you believe I or Actors Theatre can act on, please do
not hesitate to holler! Blessings...Timothy.
John Belluso:
Absolutely. Thanks Peter!
Thanks Sandy!
Peter DuBois:
Same
here. Thanks to all of you. I will be thinking about new frontiers today.
John Belluso:
Excellent!
Adam Moore (NTCP - Program
Manager):
On behalf of Sharon Jensen
and everyone here at NTCP, thank you all for a wonderful afternoon. We will be
in touch soon. Have a good week.
end