Theater Cancels ‘Cinderella' Because It's 'Too White'

The Chanhassen Dinner Theater in Minnesota has canceled its production of Cinderella because it found that the cast was "too white" to go on.

Michael Brindisi, the artistic director, who first raised issue with the cast, said the play was fine but could not in good faith go on with a cast that, according to estimates, came in about 98% white. So, they opted to boot the whole project.

"That doesn’t work with what we’re saying we’re going to do,” Brindisi said.

In a follow-up, the company said it will implement “anti-racist” protocols in response to the now-canceled cast and rely on its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) consultant.

All in all, this decision is incredibly unfortunate for the cast, which worked hard for this opportunity and are now out of a role. Perhaps, Chanhassen Dinner Theater feels it made a statement, but it also punished the assigned performers for being hired with a certain skin color. The theater could have added more cast members if it were that hellbent on lowering the whiteness. Instead, it terminated all performers.

Because of the anger, Chanhassen Dinner Theatres is all done with Cinderella and replacing it with Footloose. In preparation for next year’s production, Chanhassen hired diversity consultant Kelli Foster Warder to implement a strategy to keep whiteness down.

As of now, it's unclear whether past productions of Cinderella will soon be under attack.











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Bobby Burack is a writer for OutKick where he reports and analyzes the latest topics in media, culture, sports, and politics.. Burack has become a prominent voice in media and has been featured on several shows across OutKick and industry related podcasts and radio stations.