The Tony’s blew us all away to say in the least, proving that while representation may be hard to find in Hollywood, New York sure knows how to please the diverse theater lovers around the world. Plenty of diverse actors brought home awards and the audience’s applause could not have been louder.
James Corden set the stage for an enjoyable show and the rest of the program did not disappoint. The night was filled with lighthearted comedy and music that made you want to sing along even if you didn’t quite know the words. However, for once the night proved to be a win for more than just white people.
Perhaps we all knew that Hamilton would have to bring down the house last night, but it still profoundly moved us to see cast members like Lin-Manuel Miranda and Daveed Diggs deliver their thank you speeches, even if they may have been a little long and were rushed off the stage by the infamous music that makes everyone cringe . Even with the noticeable success of musicals that feature colorful casts like Shuffle Along, Eclipsed, and Hamilton, I was still worried that the Tony’s would fall into fame’s usual pattern and whitewash all of its winners. Fortunately, that was not the case and I can’t express how happy I am for such a seemingly simple act of inclusion.
If there was any place where diversity was able to flourish, it would be New York. The city that never sleeps where our generation is not only encouraged but urged to be different and this optimistic attitude are beginning to seep into the world of Broadway.
It wasn’t too long ago when people seriously doubted Hamilton’s capacity to accurately retell history with…shocker- a diverse cast! An African- American George Washington and Thomas Jefferson? A Latino John Laurens and Alexander Hamilton? This surely shouldn’t be allowed or tolerated, they said with their privileged, biased white voice. Voices that were all too comfortable with seeing their race and their race only portrayed and all media, broadway included. So when a musical like Hamilton can win INSERT NUMBER Tony awards, well I’m close to speechless. Black excellence never ceases to amaze me, no matter what field people of color are portrayed in, they always seem to shine, and their recognition is long overdue.
Mass publicizing of musicals like Shuffle Along and Eclipsed is definitely a step forward in making diverse plays more popular and not just an afterthought after watching yet another rendition of Wicked. Not a lot of people are exposed to diverse plays and musicals, and if it takes forcing them onto White America via a widely viewed award show,then so be it. Of course, it will take a lot more to diversify theater but everything has its beginning and change takes patience and I’m more than willing to wait for it.
I don’t sing, or dance, or act, but there are young children of color that can and have very real dreams of pursuing this career. But someone wise or important once said that you can’t do what you don’t see, and for a long time young people of color did not see themselves portrayed in musicals. So to see such a diverse group of winners acknowledged for their gifts is remarkable, and I commend the Tony’s for taking a stand in favor with change.
