The theatre department’s upcoming production of “Thoroughly Modern Millie” prompted preliminary controversy due to the way the original film depicted Chinese culture through characters like Mrs. Meers, the main antagonist, and two young Chinese immigrants who Meers turns into her henchmen.
“[Mrs. Meers] is portrayed as an Asian woman with a very stereotypical accent,” theatre director Jason Tamborini said. “On top of that is the fact that most productions [of the play] feature a white woman in yellow face makeup and a wig on. That can get really messy really quickly.
Tamborini said it was important to identify characters that may be considered stereotypical in an appropriately fitting light.
“I think it’s important we showcase Mrs. Meers as the true villain,” Tamborini said. “We’re going all out on Mrs. Meers as the true villain. The lines are still downright racist; the character kidnaps woman and sells them. She’s a bad person. Pretty much top to bottom, there is no redeeming quality in her.”
Tamborini said the production aims to portray the immigrants as accurately as possible.
“[Mrs. Meers] doesn’t have any empathy,” Tamborini said. “To contrast her, I really wanted to make sure that we were able to portray our two Chinese immigrants as honestly and as truly as we could.”
Junior Nica Albertson said she thinks the play accurately depicts controversies of the 1920s.
“I believe that it’s an appropriate representation of the situations at that time,” Albertson said. “An American woman paints her face white and appropriates Chinese culture brutally. It is unbearable to watch because of how ridiculous we perceive it as now, but for the time period, it was practically normal.”
Albertson said accurate depictions of culture are crucial to the public’s understanding of tradition.
“It is important to portray a culture accurately because that is the image that people see in [the media],” Albertson said. “It’s a major factor that leads to the racism prevalent to this day; a lot of racism is based on presumptions from media.”
Junior Rosy Simonelli, a fan of the original film, said the adaptation interests her.
“I think it’s really cool that they’re taking on a play with so many challenging ideas and themes,” Simonelli said. “I can’t wait to see how it turns out.”