Correct Casting for Characters With Disabilities
Abigail Breslin played the sister of a cancer patient earlier this year in the movie version of Jodi Picoult's book My Sister's Keeper. Now she's slated to play a classic special-needs role -- Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker -- on Broadway. But some disability advocates are unhappy with the casting, saying that a deaf and blind actress should be playing the part. The play's producers counter that, without a name star in that central role, nobody will bother to see or hear the show.
Interesting as it might be to see an actress who can bring some personal experience to Keller's portrayal, it's hard to argue with the fact that Breslin will put more high-ticket-price-paying butts in seats. The producer has mentioned the possibility of using a deaf and blind actress as an understudy, and that might offer an opportunity for those who want to experience that sort of portrayal to do so without betting the bankroll on it.
I can see the point of going with a known actor to play the lead in a play or movie about disabilities, rather than a less-known actor whose life experience is closer to the character. I'm more surprised by something like the casting of a non-wheelchair-using actor to play the secondary role of a wheelchair-using high-schooler in the the TV show Glee. Kevin McHale may have some fans from his days in the boy band NLT, but he's hardly a big star, or the star of this show. The character of Artie seems like the perfect opportunity to find a singer who doesn't leave the wheelchair behind when the filming stops, especially for a show that's been praised for diversity.
How do you feel about using actors without disabilities to portray characters with disabilities? Share your thoughts in the comments.
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Actors with the specific disability being portrayed in TV shows and films should always be cast in the parts available, no matter how badly they are written.
And characters with disabilities should be included in casts, families and crowd scenes when disability is not even an issue in the storyline, reflecting their inclusion in real life off-stage.
Actors with disabilities should have the same access to high school drama clubs and productions, community theater and acting schools as their mainstream peers. Parks department and college theater groups should be subsidized to promote integrated and inclusive productions so that actors with disabilities can develop their talents and also inform the writing of scripts and quality of production values.
I don’t mind Abigail Breslin playing Helen Keller on Broadway as a child – the real shortcoming in the script here would be if the life story was so centered on childhood events that audiences remain uniformed about her life as an adult. People with disabilities have great potential given the small accommodations and supports necessary for them to achieve their goals and dreams.
Perhaps our protests are misplaced – the script should have been written by a person who grew up deaf and blind. Helen Keller grew up to have strong opinions on topics with which some disability advocates vigorously disagree. Some suggest that her role as a pioneer and her achievements in spite of the social mores of the time should be discounted because she held those opinions.
So, it’s always something…
Let those who are without perfection themselves cast the biggest stones. I’m still glad that her story is honored in any way in the history of the USA and the world.
I think the idea of casting for authenticity can get ridiculously out-of-hand. Does a character with cancer have to be played by an actor with cancer? What about dominant-handedness: should a left-handed character always be played by a left-handed actor? Of course not, and this is no different. On the other side of the same coin I also believe that casting in general should be more inclusive in terms of race, age, disabilities, etc. and these characteristics are most interesting when they are irrelevant to the plot or to the character. There’s nothing more trite in a script than the old/black/handicapped/etc. character who refers to his identifying characteristic in a self-deprecating or stereotypical way.