A Theater for Everyone

When a play is performed, the theater is filled with spectators of all races, genders, and backgrounds. Most theaters target the vast majority of the populous using broad ideas and plots we’ve seen before in movies and other theaters. However, since the 1960’s a great number of theaters have been formed devoted to plays by and about specific ethnic, gender, and political groups. These theaters have many different purposes and the plays performed are altered in ways they may reach different people. Plays make money by corralling people in a theater and appealing to their senses in different ways. But, these plays and theaters must attract as many different people as possible in order to make a good profit. Plays like Twelve Angry Men have been altered in some theaters to incorporate women roles in order to appeal to a specific gender. Seeing as though fifty percent of the world is composed of women, a play with all male roles seems a bit outdated. Twelve Angry Men has had it’s name altered to Twelve Angry Jurors in order to add women roles to the jury and even the main character. Gender is a big factor in playwriting. Women enjoy plays as much as men do and diversifying roles is a good way to bring more women into the theater thus increasing profit. Profit is not the only reason for reaching out to specific genders. The Weird Sisters Women’s Theater Collective is based in Austin, Texas and is dedicated to promoting women in Theater and other arts. They promote feminist idealealeals and produce all-women plays in an effort to showcase female talent in both female and male roles. They also have productions that are focused on education. Educating other people in the trials and tribulations of women and condemning misogyny are two popular subject matters in Weird Sister plays. Weird Sister plays, being a cast comprised only of women provides a much different look at a play. The women playing predominantly male roles give a woman’s take, a woman’s perspective on that character thus changing the feel of the performance to whomever may be viewing it. Avid play attendees may have seen one play at another theater but may go to a Weird Sister take on that play and see it in a whole different light. When zeroing in on gender you provide a slew of different aspects and acquire many different results that you couldn’t get out of regular productions. Gender is only one of the specific group types that theaters all over try to reach in order to make a profit, educate, or promote an idea. Various ethnic groups are often targeted in order to bring them into the theater. Many other plays are centered around these ethnic groups in order to provide a look at certain culture to others. Color Struck, is one such play that centers around the idea of Colorism. Colorism being the idea that Black Americans are judged based solely on their skin color.
In Sarasota, Florida, there is a theater called the West Coast Black Theater Troupe. Like the Weird Sisters, West Coast Black Theater Troupe produces shows with casts composed of only one social group. The WCBTT is an ethnic theater whose purpose is to expose people to black theater and provide opportunities to black theater arts enthusiasts. They have sent a handful of actors and actresses to Broadway and other professional theaters. They hold productions ranging from all black plays to plays written for a mixed cast and deliver and all black take on them. The audiences for these plays are predominantly black which is much different from other theaters where seventy-eight percent of theater goers are white (broadwayleague.com).
These out of the ordinary theaters do not always have to target people with different backgrounds or genders. Some of these theaters promote ideals, political views, and current events. Political satire is a very popular brand of play performed by comics that has been popular since the ancient Greeks. The political satire in ancient Greece held much weight and altered public opinion. Centuries later not much has changed. Political comedies are common and either promote or denounce republicans and democrats and other political affiliations. Comedy is usually used first in trying to persuade a group of people one way or another. It’s easily disregarded if found incorrect or offensive and people hold comedians as human beings rather than politicians so it is easier to side with them and to understand what they’re saying. Political lectures reach far less people and of course aren’t nearly as funny.
There are many theaters outside of the mainstream. They provide new points of view and different feels to audiences willing to attend. They provide opportunities to different genders and ethnicities so they may succeed in the arts. Political theater may change someones view on politics while attending an all female theater may change how they view women. These theaters are an important part of the Arts.

Works Cited

The Weird Sisters Women’s Theater Collective
Austin, Texas http://weirdsisterscollective.com/manifesto/ “Color Struck” Under the Gaze
Martha G. Bower

The West Coast Black Theater Troupe
Sarasota, Florida http://www.wbttsrq.org/ The Rebirth of Political Theater
December 20, 2004
Robert Brustein