From Broadway musicals to Shakespearean tragedies, the theater community at the University is a thriving one, with organizations for any and all who care to get involved. This year, many of the student directors — in both theater-focused Contracted Independent Organizations and drama department productions — are women. And these directors are using their roles to reshape the way that gender roles and norms are depicted in their plays.
While directing “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” with Spectrum Theatre this semester, second-year College student Brianna Whitaker has focused on empowering herself and her actors to make the changes they want to see in theatrical spaces.
“Let's mold the show to be mine. Let's mold it so that it is forced to accept who I am as an artist and an actor,” Whitaker said.
Meanwhile, second-year College student Claudia Hunn is directing “Romeo and Juliet” for Shakespeare on the Lawn this semester — a student-run organization with a goal of “Bringing Shakespeare Alive on Grounds.” Hunn is taking her own twist on this famous text by emphasizing Juliet as the central character who motivates the play’s plot.
“I came at it and said, we're gonna do this very famous show, but we're gonna come at it from a completely different angle,” Hunn said. “We're gonna talk about female subjugation. We're gonna talk about female relationships, and really flesh those out so that those aren't an afterthought in the grand scheme of all of these male characters.”
Third-year College student Emily Wartel has also taken her own spin at this issue while directing the First Year Players’s upcoming show, “Catch Me if You Can” — by creating three new female roles in the play, opening up more opportunities for female actors.
Additionally, Wartel is using the show as an opportunity to emphasize how the male gaze can perpetuate unrealistic ideas of women. She plays with technical elements like lighting and set design to contrast the real world with a fantasy one, switching from neutral to brighter colors.
“[The protagonist] is honestly a very misogynistic character, but my concept for it was kind of to flip that on its head, and I really leaned into the fantasy versus reality elements of the show,” Wartel said.
Outside of theater CIOs, the University’s drama department is also working to confront these dynamics. Second-year College student Kate Hovey focused on themes of gender stereotypes while directing the show “Be A Doll" with the department last month. The plot of the show follows a woman whose childhood dolls come to life, and pressure her to fit into a specific role, like a doll with only one purpose. Bolstered with an all-woman cast, Hovey focused on building a space for every actor to bring their own experiences to the production.
“It was really great to be able to talk with the actors about growing up. Did they have dolls that were like this? How did that affect them? Did they feel like they needed to act like this doll, or did they feel like they could have been something else?” Hovey said.
First Year Players’ performance of “Guys and Dolls” last semester was directed by third-year College student Maggie Polistina. She also played with traditional gender norms, flipping costume colors from pink to blue as one of the leading women gained power.
But, Polistina is looking further than surface level presentation and pointed to the fact that most scripts have gender bias baked into them.
“A lot of these classics that we want to keep coming back to don't have a lot of female representation or they were written at a point when it was not meant to serve a female perspective in any capacity,” Polistina said.
She highlighted theater as a field with an obligation to represent diverse voices and perspectives because of its commitment to stories. According to her, there is both a value and necessity in reframing approaches to classic material, in order for new voices to emerge.
“You have the same script that you're using, but depending on who's directing it or who's working on at any given time, the take on that particular thing can change and morph itself in so many ways,” Polistina said.
“I think that theater has kind of an obligation to take what's been there — and then rework it, and find creative avenues to do that,” she continued.
Similarly advocating for a change of view, Whitaker is committed to creating a space for herself and for those whose voices have been overlooked in the theater community. This goal emerged from her own experience of fighting to find a niche in the community, and failing to find one that truly encompassed who she was as an individual and an actor.
“There aren't a lot of roles for me because I have a unique [vocal] register, and because I'm a Black woman, I just don't see a lot of me being represented in the most popular musicals on Broadway,” Whitaker said.
Hunn also mentioned how gender dynamics — such as the competitiveness of being an actress and the double standards women contend with — can impact the behind the scenes of every theater production.
“‘Oh, am I being bossy? Am I being a bitch?’ Right? And, quite frankly, I just don't think that's anything that male directors have to worry about,” Hunn said. “Because you're not bossy, you're driven, you're not being an asshole, you're, you know, taking charge. And it is such a double standard that I just think women have to contend with in an arena like directing.”
Wartel shared this sentiment, speaking on the pressure that stems from this tension.
“I think also a lot of times women are pitted against each other in the arts, because it's a female dominated area. You're kind of seen as a dime a dozen, and you feel like you have to work a million times harder,” Wartel said.
Still, the directors of University theater are ready to take on this challenge. Moving forward, Whitaker has plans to make her mark in other spheres of the theater industry, and continue to push for the space she wants to see come to life.
“I have plans to just produce my own works that reaffirm … the uniquity of my experiences and my talents,” Whitaker said.
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