Tut'Zanni & Anti-Racism. Steps forward and a continuing conversation.
We at Tut’Zanni have been having some discussions about the theatre we make, how we do it, and how we do it with a eye towards Anti-Racism. Coming out of those discussions, we have created some guidelines to help light our path as we take steps into the future.
Since we are storytellers, please indulge us as we tell the story of how we came to where we are and what that means for where we are going.
Some History.
The six members of Tut’Zanni met in Italy while playing with and within a form of theatre called Commedia dell’Arte. Though born of important truths, Commedia was and is a flawed art form. From its origins, Commedia was a form of resistance — a way for the lower classes (the powerless) to voice their frustrations in a sly way that caused the upper classes (the powerful) to miss the point completely. Commedia’s core is a conversation around class. Hierarchy is essential to the storytelling, both in showcasing the ways those in power abuse their position and by giving the powerless their own subtle ability to subvert that hierarchy. Class is THE conversation at center of every Commedia show… or at least it was in the past. That focus on power dynamics and societal hierarchies drew all of us as company members to explore this form. We relished exploring class from a modern lens.
However, Commedia was a creation of its time… and here come the flaws.
GENDER.
The archetypes and masks were created from the perspective of the male gaze, which meant all the female characters were problematic, to say the least. Women in Commedia were often sex objects, primarily there to fulfill male fantasy and desire. When female characters occasionally possessed a bit of practicality, that was often still just the butt of a joke rather than something to be admired. I could go on, but you get the point. As a company with a majority of female-identifying members, we love exploring a more contemporary Commedia, giving room to more (and more varied) archetypes that were created from and for the female-identifying gaze. And we continue that work.
SEXUALITY.
In addition to the archetypes and masks being created from a male gaze, they were also very… straight. Men chased women, women lamented over the ills of men, men did as they pleased. All too-familiar tropes that we have little interest in furthering. Having company members who do not identify as straight means we are very interested in exploring how we break those tropes and create new and more interesting conversations around sexuality. And we continue that work.
RACE.
In addition to the masks and archetypes being created from a straight male gaze, Commedia is also created from a very white perspective. And here we are today, thinking about how we as a company have set aside the conversation about race in Commedia and in our work in order to focus on the aforementioned matters.
Now, for the hard truths that we as company must address.
MONEY.
We are not a wealthy theatre company. Truthfully, we have few resources and rely on the generosity of our company members to keep us alive. Without resources, how do we contribute to Anti-Racism in our field?
RACE.
We are all white. How can an all-white company contribute meaningful stories that center Anti-Racism? Is it possible? Can Anti-Racism be shared from a white perspective, through a white lens?
NICHE.
Commedia and masked performance is a niche form of theatre. Few institutions teach it beyond brief introductions, or maybe a semester class to play within it. That means finding individuals trained to perform in masks, especially Commedia-style half masks, is a challenge. And at the end of the day, there is little money in the form because there are few opportunities. What does that mean as we move forward, re-focusing on Anti-Racism?
REACH.
We are painfully aware that we do not have a strong following, a large audience, or great influence in the world. But that does not matter to us. We will use the voice we do have to speak to those who will listen.
What should we do and what can we do?
From the conversation that articulated the above details, we also laid down some steps forward. To start, we are aware that, Rome wasn’t built in a day, to use an Italy-inspired maxim. Some of the first steps will feel inadequate, and they are. However, we realize that we must be inadequate in order to more towards a better future.
Here are the steps we were able to articulate…
Continue the conversation.
We must keep talking about how to address racism in the world around us, and how to bring Anti-Racism to the forefront our our work. Always.
Allyship.
We must find ways to lift up the voices of those whose stories have been denied space within our current culture.
We must find ways to lift up the voices of those who have pointed out where racism exists and how to address it, not only for our company, but for our audience.
We must lift up Anti-Racism in all our spaces, digital and physical. That will include (but is not limited to) land acknowledgments and Anti-Racism statements online and at shows.
Education.
We must keep educating ourselves on Anti-Racism. Full stop. We must take the time, spend the energy, and educate ourselves so we can be better, and so that we can live and create with Anti-Racism as a lens to our work.
Be honest with our perspective.
We are all white. That means we speak from a white lens, a white perspective on the world. We must be honest with our audience about our whiteness and speak to that whiteness. To begin, that means pointing the finger at ourselves. And working to open up conversations in the white space we occupy about how whiteness can be more Anti-Racist. We can speak to white audiences about Anti-Racism and bring more into the fold, creating a forum for conversations about race, racism, and Anti-Racism in white spaces.
Diversify our field. Diversify our audience.
Although we identify as theatre artists, we exist in a space within theatre, a small community of Commedia performers and masked theatre enthusiasts. We know that we must grow the field, in order for all of us to survive and thrive. Why not grow the field with a focus on diversity?
We will be looking at where we teach workshops, how we distribute free & cheap tickets, where we perform for students and more to make diversity an integral part of growing our little community.
We at Tut’Zanni are working hard to commit to a better future for all, which means we must center Anti-Racism in all our work moving forward. We will continue to amend the path forward as we learn more and as we grow. We acknowledge that these steps are inadequate, while also acknowledging that this is a process that will take time and energy. Sometimes the steps will be big and sometimes small, but as long as the steps are moving in the right direction, we stick to the path.
- Patrick (on behalf of the whole company)