I only know Rashad from The Cosby Show and A Raisin in the Sun on television. I can't say whether this is an inspired move on the part of the producers or a misguided piece of stunt casting.And I know the audience might find it difficult to suspend disbelief having a black actress on stage with white children and a white sister. It might make August: Osage County seem primarily about race when it's not about that at all. (Update: Ok, there is a Native American character and it is partly about race. I've only seen the play once and that was 18 months ago, so I'll admit I've forgotten Violet's racially charged dialog.)
Still, I do find the prospect of an African-American Violet Weston intriguing. And Rashad is a veteran stage actress, winner of a Tony for her portrayal of Lena Younger in the Broadway revival of A Raisin in the Sun.
Over the past couple of years, I've seen quite a bit of colorblind and nontraditional casting. Trinity Repertory Company has a tradition of doing it, so I've seen plays with women in roles that have been written for men and African-American actors playing historical figures who were white.
On Broadway, I saw Audra McDonald in 110 in the Shade and she was wonderful. The fact that white actors played her father and one of her brothers didn't bother me at all. Maybe because it was a musical or the story, involving a mysterious stranger, had a fantasy quality, but I thought the colorblind casting worked.
With August: Osage County, the aspects of Tracy Letts' play that were the most memorable were the ones about family: the relationships between parents and children, between husband and wife, and among siblings. What makes this family interesting is their history - the secrets they keep, the things that bind them together and tear them apart.
When it works, nontraditional, colorblind casting offers an opportunity for actors and the audience to stretch themselves. Whether it'll work in this case, I don't know. But if Rashad can pull it off, more power to her.
