After being on Broadway for a month now, Disney's "Aladdin" has had astounding praise. With this praise, however, the show has received criticism because of its actors' ethnicities. It is speculated that none of the 34 actors portraying Middle Eastern citizens are actually Middle Eastern in heritage. Disney executives have explained that they cannot deny or confirm these speculations because they are legally not allowed to ask actors and actresses what their ethnic heritage is during the casting proccess. Many anti-discrimination groups are very angry at this, and they want answers.
Although I agree, sometimes you have to stick with the major themes and messages of a story by casting correctly, Aladdin is a show that can be performed different ways. Personally, I think the casting is up to the directors of the show, and whoever they think would portray the roles the best will most likely do just that. The actors do not need to be the exactly right ethnicity to play the parts. That is what makes the most talented actors. To correctly portray someone of a different race, and to do it without mocking them is the perfect balance that an actor needs and is an incredible feat when achieved. If the actors in Aladdin are doing that, it's fine by me.
Kevin Mikuls
