BWW Student Blog: Who Runs the World?

Jess here. Recently, I've been thinking about how lucky we are to have a gender-swapped Bobby in an upcoming production of Stephen Sondheim's "Company." With me being the hopeless feminist I am, I have brainstormed some show ideas that I'd like to see produced on stage sometime before I'm dead.

"The Producers" - OK, so it has always been a dream of mine to play Max Bialystock and a revival of "The Producers" with two leading ladies would be nothing short of iconic. Often times in the theatre business, producers are thought of as men. Giving women the opportunity play such stand-out roles would be intriguing, and maybe even eye-opening. Also, since this show is SO funny, allowing comedic ladies to pay tribute to this classic could give these beloved characters a new spin.

"The Book of Mormon" - Give me ONE good reason why "The Book of Mormon" wouldn't be perfect with two female missionaries. The show in and of itself is satirical, so there's nothing holding it back from introducing two women to the hilarious roles. Arnold Cunningham is such a perfectly written character, and adding a female twist could expand the parody driven element even further.

"Spring Awakening" - OK, I think this one would be monumental in the world of feminism. Although "Spring Awakening" was a breakthrough for a number of reasons (teenage mental illness, sexuality, education, etc.) the show still has the potential do even more. By swapping the female/male roles, the theatre community could get an honest glimpse into what the development of teenage girls actually entails; a reality seldom revealed. Seeing young women attempt to understand their lives, and come to terms with their sexuality or mental illness could have a major impact on society today.

"Newsies" - THIS WOULD BE SO COOL. "Newsies" is known for its spectacular dance and song, and I think it would be radical to see tomboys up on the stage KILLIN' IT. Jack Kelly as a strong female would be super cool, and I would love nothing more than to see the ladies take on the choreography and dance in a style that they rarely do.

Anyway, I know there won't be any producers who will read this and be like "Wow. That girl is right. Let's produce a female version of "The Book of Mormon" right NOW." But at least I can say I thought of it first if these shows do happen to exercise some gender-swapping role modifications down the road.

One thing Broadway could always use more of are shows featuring leading ladies, because honestly, the roles are hard to come by. By providing producers with a variety of creative casting ideas we are opening society up to becoming more tolerant of fluid gender representation, with the end result of equal character content for all.

"I'm lovely, all I am is lovely, Lovely is the one thing I can do." -Stephen Sondheim

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