Editorial: A Controversial Company: Debating the Casting of the RSC's The Orphan of Zhao

Ashley Thorpe, Amanda Rogers

Research output: Contribution to journalEditorialpeer-review

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Abstract

This introduction investigates the issues raised by asserting cultural ownership over specific traditions of performance. In particular, it highlights how casting – one of the least analysed areas of theatre practice – might both empower and complicate debates around who should participate in performance. How might authentic casting – of casting actors who ‘look like’ they are from the same geographical region as the performance text or tradition – and colour-blind casting practices come into conflict? The casting controversy surrounding the Royal Shakespeare Company’s (RSC’s) 2012-13 production of The Orphan of Zhao provides an opportunity to tackle these questions.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)428-435
JournalContemporary Theatre Review
Volume24
Issue number4
Publication statusPublished - 2014

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