Christopher Ashley, Christine Toy Johnson, Tara Rubin Set for La Jolla Playhouse Discussion on The Nightingale Casting Controversy
(© Craig Schwartz)
La Jolla Playhouse will host a panel discussion on Sunday, July 22 to address the recent controversy surrounding the casting of the theater’s production of Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater’s new musical The Nightingale, according to a statement by artistic director Christopher Ashley. The free event, open to the public, will take place at approximately 3:45pm, following that day’s matinee.
Ashley will lead the panel, which will also feature casting director Tara Rubin, Cindy Cheung, and Christine Toy Johnson from the Asian American Performers Action Coalition, as well as others still to be announced.
The controversy has stemmed from the fact that the musical, based on Hans Christian Anderson’s China-set fable, has a multi-ethnic, but mostly non-Asian cast.
Moises Kaufman directs the production, which features Bobby Steggert, Nikki Castillo, Eisa Davis, Matthew Patrick Davis, Kimiko Glenn, Steve Gunderson, Jonathan Hammond, Corbin Reid, Aaron Serotsky, Charlayne Woodard, Chelsea Diggs-Smith, and Zach Martens.
Dan Knechtges choreographs the production, which includes Lon Hoyt as musical director, scenic design by Derek McLane, costume design by Susan Hilferty, lighting design by David Lander, sound design by Cricket S. Myers, puppet design by Chris Green, and dramaturgy by Gabriel Greene.
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