A single word can carry a powerful message. But what represents empowerment for some could warrant controversy and concern for others.
Ragtime. Photo courtesy of Brian Markham
In the past few weeks, the Wilmette Park District found this out the hard way, as Chicagoland's theater community was up in arms over the cancelation of a classic American musical.
The scene starts in a setting of the affluent, mostly white Chicago suburb of Wilmette. Every summer, the North Shore village stages a musical production in its outdoor Wallace Bowl theater.
This year, the Tony Award-winning musical Ragtime, a story based on E. L. Doctorow's novel set in 1906 about intolerance and community, was chosen by Bill Berie, the district's performing arts supervisor.
The production, with the rights purchased in January, was set to open July 10 with a cast of more than 47—25 of which being volunteer actors. However, less than three weeks before show time, a problem occurred—district officials hadn't seen the production all the way through.
Fearing the ramifications of the N-word being sung multiple times in an amplified outdoor theater, the park district's executive director, Thomas Grisamore, sought to have the word removed from the script or be substituted.
Licensing agent Music Theatre International refused to alter the production, with unauthorized substitutions carrying fines of up to $150,000 per word.
It seemed a curtain call came before the prologue even started when Grisamore and the park district decided to cancel the production June 25.
Amid nationwide media coverage on the cancelation, Ty Perry, the production's director, said he became overwhelmed with support from Chicagoland's theater community.
'I was surprised that people noticed and cared about what was going on,' he said about the attention his production received.
Artistic Director Jason Loewith of Next Theater Company, in neighboring Evanston, said the cause for concern happens often and is something that every theater company must deal with in some way. But he also said Wilmette's mistake was in not addressing the issue long before it became a problem.
'This is more about self-censorship,' Loewith said. 'But, ultimately, the question boils down to, 'what are the community standards?''
Next, which prides itself in presenting 'socially provocative, artistically adventurous work,' has fought its own battles on the same issue. The theater company has a clause written into their lease, stating their productions need to adhere to 'community standards' set by the city of Evanston, said Loewith.
'Theater is the weirdest art around because it depends on the marketplace to survive but also aims to push boundaries,' Loewith said. 'The Wilmette Park District merely censored itself.'
On July 3, park officials reached a compromise: not to keep the controversial language out, but to move the production in, to an indoor park facility. The auditorium at the Community Recreation Center was offered free of charge for the weekends of July 17-19 and July 24-26.
Nevertheless, there were definitely lessons to be learned from the situation, said Grisamore.
'We will now have a lot more than just one individual reviewing whatever shows we pick for the outdoor venue,' he said. 'That certainly won't happen again; we now have a team of people who are going to be reviewing shows.'
Perry said he was ecstatic on opening night as many came out in support of the production.
'It was incredible seeing that, after the struggle we had. Everybody really pulled together to make the show happen,' Perry said. 'People would come up to me and say, 'Wow, I understand what all this was all about,' and 'You guys were right to fight the good fight.''
Aaron Bolden, who plays the Black jazz musician, Coalhouse Walker, Jr., in the production, said when he recited the controversial line—N-word intact—he especially felt a sense of pride.
'For me as an African American, and a person who is playing this roll, there are so many levels in which I relate with the character,' he said. 'It was amazing to see how powerful the moment was; It just made it come alive.'
The N-word isn't the only controversial word sparring political correctness, however. As a Black, gay man, Perry said the N-word and F-word, while both controversial, are invaluable expressions of our diverse culture and history.
'There are times when you have to use a word, it may not be specifically how you feel, you may not be comfortable with that word, but to deny its use is to deny who we are and where we come from,' Perry said. 'We have to show someone why they can't say 'nigger,' show someone why they can't say 'faggot'—then, they will understand.'
Regarding his theater company, Loewith said one of the plays he considered producing a few years ago was called Teen Sympathy, a 1950s play about homophobia. He said, as a gay man, he hopes to be more enlightened to a provocative production's message.
'Are you going to water down the language [ productions ] use for fear of offending [ current ] sensibilities? Come on, you've got to be kidding me,' Loewith said. 'I would like to think I trust my audience more than that.'
Perry said he didn't believe the situation would be different in a city setting, as opposed to a suburban setting, however. It all comes down to the message being received by the audience.
'People don't realize that sometimes, some things in life are not just black and white,' he said. 'There is a lot of gray in the middle, especially on stage.'