Colorblind'd (FringeNYC)
Closed 1h 30m
Colorblind'd (FringeNYC)
80

Colorblind'd (FringeNYC) NYC Reviews and Tickets

80%
(19 Ratings)
Positive
90%
Mixed
5%
Negative
5%
Members say
Relevant, Ambitious, Edgy, Absorbing, Great acting

About the Show

Part of FringeNYC: Can’t get tickets to Hamilton? Come see the second best show in NYC about non-traditional casting! An obscure, low-rent college theatre department becomes a national punch line when its sole African American professor casts a white girl as Rosa Parks.

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Show-Score Member Reviews (19)

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589 Reviews | 142 Followers
95
Absorbing, Ambitious, Entertaining, Edgy, Must see

See it if In the tradition of Gillman's "Spinning into Butter" excites you.

Don't see it if You don't like racial tension and a show with no "good" guys.

155 Reviews | 46 Followers
80
Absorbing, Great acting, Great writing, Intelligent, Relevant

See it if you like plays that make you think. Typecasting vs Great Acting. Teaching vs doing. The 4 characters were excellent.

Don't see it if if you don't like well written drama.

318 Reviews | 61 Followers
78
Clever, Ambitious, Confusing, Edgy, Great acting

See it if Love great-acting, smaller venue, "out-the-box" plays

Don't see it if Hate smaller theatre, profanity, race issues, & don't come with high expectations (I was hoping to see "Rosa Parks" acted by "the chosen 1"

688 Reviews | 116 Followers
75
Ambitious, Confusing, Edgy, Relevant, Original

See it if Many provocative and relevant ideas that too often are left unsaid esp regarding academia, daring and edgy when needed

Don't see it if Many provocative and relevant ideas but too many of them thus preventing a taut dramatic experience, at times acting a little too broad

118 Reviews | 27 Followers
70
Cliched, Ambitious, Relevant, Thought-provoking, Interesting

See it if you're interested in the phenomenon of casting controversies in the social media era

Don't see it if you prefer cogently structured plays with consistent characterization

22 Reviews | 7 Followers
82
Ambitious, Intelligent, Relevant, Thought-provoking, Cliched

See it if you've been tuned in to the question of "colorblind" casting in contemporary theatre.

Don't see it if you're tired of the "ignorant trashy white girl" trope.

31 Reviews | 6 Followers
79
Ambitious, Cliched, Confusing, Dated, Edgy

See it if U want to see a new take on racism and academia and theatre

Don't see it if U dont like preachy, strident shows with too many plotlines

32 Reviews | 10 Followers
49
Great acting, Disappointing, Confusing, Indulgent

See it if you want to see some really top notch acting. All four performers were excellent and I could almost believe their ludicrous actions.

Don't see it if you don't want to see what happens when a white guy thinks he can write an edgy play about race in America.

Critic Reviews (5)

The New York Times
August 19th, 2016

"An African-American professor casts a white student in the lead role of her new play about Rosa Parks. The lone black theater major is not as good an actor, but complains about being passed over...Casting presents all-too-real issues, and the black student’s unsentimental view is one we don’t hear often, but the show is burdened by hackneyed writing and uneven performances."
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Time Out New York
August 19th, 2016

"There are those who continue to insist we live in a postracial world, and Kirk White’s 'Colorblind’d' pokes fun at this belief as he engages in a deeper conversation about race and art...'Colorblind’d' is a bit sprawling, and important elements of the characters’ relationships to each other seem thinly sketched. But the play is entertaining and funny."
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Theatermania
August 24th, 2016

"A glib new drama…While the premise and first few scenes are engaging, the inconsistent ‘Colorblind'd’ quickly flies off the rails, leaving more questions than answers...By the end, writer White and director Keith Winsted seem to abandon their question of nontraditional casting and simply leave us scratching our heads over plot holes. All in all, 'Colorblind'd' is a disappointingly missed opportunity."
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CurtainUp
August 19th, 2016

"From afar, Kirk White's play is most obviously about sensitivities and perils of grappling with race in the performing arts, but White also takes a critical eye to academia, probing the value of formal theater education...With so many elements, the play can sprawl such that it sometimes comes off as unfocused...Without a firmer sense of where we stand, it's hard not to feel adrift in a sea of ideas."
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Theatre is Easy
August 22nd, 2016

"Playwright Kirk White tackles a lot of issues and because of this, the characters aren't always fully drawn. It is worth noting that White and director Keith Winsted are both white men; while they have every right to tackle these issues, it is hard not to wonder if this is why 'Colorblind'd' stays mostly at the academic level...The exception is with the character of Dorien: Cotto brings an emotional weight to what would otherwise be an ideas play."
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Trailer

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