Tayneshia Jefferson and David S. Stewart with Aaron Rowe (sitting) of the Disney Entertainment Group at the 2009 USITT conference.

What it’s like being a minority in technical theatre

[To read more about Tayneshia and David's story in the theatre, as well as read (and add to) Tayneshia's "How to Interact with the Minority Theatre Professional in Your Life" guide, click here. -ed]

Imagine that someone charges you with the task of hiring a Black production manager. Once you have successfully navigated the why’s, wherefores and “say whats?” that making such a charged request would elicit in our current socio-political climate, you would find that you had very few options before you. Your hiring pool would be extremely meager, albeit spectacularly talented. Your hiring pool would consist of two individuals: David Stewart, production manager and SM instructor for the University of Wisconsin–Madison; and Tayneshia Jefferson, production manager/stage management lecturer for Indiana University’s Department of Theatre and Drama. Us.

While it’s true that the two of us don’t know every single person working in professional theatre, it’s also true that when we play that silly Kevin Bacon game we come darned close. So it’s with a bit of sadness, but also with a fair amount of certainty, that we say: If you have ever been curious about the level of diversity in the realm of theatre management, the answers are “Yes, it is there” and “Yes, we are it.”

To Be Young, Gifted and Black (with Apologies to Lorraine Hansberry)
David S. Stewart: I am reminded of the story from Super Bowl XXII, won by the Washington Redskins. Washington’s quarterback at the time was Doug Williams, the first Black quarterback to play in a Super Bowl (and the only one to win one to date). Following the game he was asked, “Doug, how long have you been a Black quarterback?” To which he responded “I’ve been a quarterback since high school. I’ve always been Black.”

While never having been on the receiving end of that particular question, I am always aware of the look on a person’s face when they meet me for the first time. After many phone conversations with a new insurance agent, I needed to see him face to face to sign off on a policy. When I arrived at the office, his eyes slightly widened and he said, “You aren’t what I expected.” I responded, “What did you expect?” That question did not receive an answer, although I already knew what it was: I didn’t expect you to be well-spoken AND Black. I enjoy the confusion as people try to reconcile their picture of who they thought I was with who I am—and many folks have no idea what I am. Is he black? Hispanic? White with a good tan? (I’m bi-racial.)

The one thing that has bothered me is that the more I work, it seems the more I get away from my roots. I didn’t really realize how disconnected I had become from an ethnic populace until I had the opportunity to work with a new(ish) program here on the University of Wisconsin–Madison’s campus called “First Wave.” First Wave is a program that grants four-year scholarships to hip-hop and spoken word artists. It is a first-of-its-kind program and it serves a predominately minority community. At first, I felt a bit out of place, and that really concerned me as I wondered if I would come across as too white and that I wouldn’t be accepted. That couldn’t have been further from the truth. I have been wholly accepted and embraced by the community and it has been refreshing, as well as life altering, to me. I never expected to be able to work in my capacity as a production manager and have that skill translate to the minority community.

Tayneshia Jefferson: At some point in my past, I am sure that someone has asked me the question, “So, what’s it like to be Black and work in theatre?” After frowning in confusion my probable response was, “It’s probably not much different than being Black at my house.” I can no more explain what it means for me to be Black and working in this business than could the white chick at Starbucks making my venti Caramel Frappuccino. After a lifetime of being “different” or “artsy” or “eclectic,” the grown-up version of me is comfortable in my own skin. I long ago outgrew the need to quantify my own ethnicity or substantiate aspects of my persona that don’t quite fit the perceived norm, whatever that is.

My great love of theatre stems from the fact that it has always been a place where I fit comfortably with very little effort on my own part. Were it not for that fact, I quite possibly would have found something easier to do and made a lot more money doing it!

That’s not to say that it has always been an easy fit. Though I don’t feel that race has been an obstacle or a determining factor in whether or not I got a particular job (although how would I know, really?), there are definitely cultural challenges that I have experienced at every turn. I’ve often joked about writing a “How to Guide” regarding appropriate/inappropriate behavior when you have only one or two Black friends or co-workers. I have, on occasion, found myself seeking out the company of other Black people just so that I can have the experience of my mere presence not be such a remarkable thing.

Why Are We Rarities?
Each year at the annual USITT Conference and Stage Expo a small group of individuals known as the People of Color Caucus have a session where we sit down and discuss our own “State of the Union.” The meetings began about six years ago as the brainchild of past USITT Board Member Gregory Horton. From the beginning, the stated purpose was not only to network and share resources, but to also have a forum to address the issue of minority representation within the industry. In recent years we have drawn a small but diverse group of individuals and managed to cover a broad range of topics. The one we seem to return to with consistency is the dearth of diversity in the world of design and technology.

So the question becomes: Why are we rarities? And what course of action will make us not so? Within the People of Color Caucus it has proven challenging to make significant headway in the conversation due to the limitations of both time and space. It’s difficult to make progress when the sole face-to-face contact occurs once a year for an hour and a half, and the composition of the group is determined by the vagaries of who has both the time and resources to attend the conference each year. Still, recent sessions have provided us with the opportunity to propose expanded programming and brainstorm about grassroots efforts in recruiting. There are some individuals, such as Matt Miller from Temple University, who are trying to plan summer enrichment experiences that allow for minority students to participate in a summer technical theatre program on the campus of the university. As with most endeavors, funding is one of the biggest obstacles to these efforts, particularly in light of our current economy.

Many of our colleagues agree that there is a need for recruitment efforts to begin at the middle school level. We also agree that the primary obstacles to recruitment stem from myths about the industry. Many minority students hail from families who are unwilling to invest thousands of dollars in a theatre education because they don’t understand the potential for sustainable employment in the field. Like many parents, they desire a more practical course of study for their progeny, presuming that the choice to pursue theatre will lead to a future fraught with chronic poverty. A theatre layman will automatically assume that the rate of employment for our end of the business is comparable to that of a performer, when the truth is exactly opposite; because we are not performers our employment ratio is much more encouraging. With the exception of a few, brief, stints, we both have been consistently employed as working theatre professionals for 20+ years.

So, where does this leave us? In the future, we look forward to a time when we won’t excitedly remark on how many Black or Hispanic kids show up in our classes each semester. There is still much, much work to be done before our efforts have a significant impact. So, for now, it’s one kid at a time. We focus our efforts on serving as a resource and enabling families to understand that this is a viable course of study for young theatre makers and that there are many possibilities for successful and lucrative careers to be found here within. To the aspiring professionals we say: “Come on in, the water’s fine…”