The Conscious-Casting Conundrum

Abstract:At a critical juncture in the Canadian theatre landscape, we are faced with how to consciously cast racialized performers in plays, and how to have plays written by racialized playwrights consciously produced and taught more often. Before 2020, there were many calls to achieve these actions, and since then, these calls have only been heightened. The ‘problem’ is how to do all of this without offending or appropriating, while at the same time championing some incredible actors and plays. Through personal anecdotes and current global contexts, this article attempts some approaches to solving this conscious-casting conundrum.