Theater, Dance & Media welcomes Victor Vazquez, Casting Director and Founder of X Casting, in a talk entitled "Casting the Imagination," for the last Perspectives on Performance talk of the academic year.

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ABOUT X CASTING

Through a shared purpose towards collective liberation & anti-racism, X Casting re-imagines the art of casting.

A newly released report from the Asian American Performers Action Coalition (AAPAC) points to a lack of representation of actors of color in New York mainstream theater. The study found that representation of actors of color in Broadway productions dipped to 29% from 36% in the previous season. Among those affected, Latinx actors saw the most drastic decline, swinging from 8% to 2.9%, and roles for Black and African American performers decreased from 23% of all hires to 18.6%.

In Tv, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) school of Social Sciences released its 2018 report titled The Hollywood Diversity Report where it examined 399 Tv/digital scripted shows airing or streaming during the season. The study found that despite representing nearly 40% of the United States population, people of color made up only 21.3% of cable scripted leads and digital scripted leads.

X Casting is dedicated to radically changing these numbers by supporting projects led or created by Black, Indigenous, People of Color, Women, Trans & Queer creators in NYC, Los Angeles and globally.

X Casting upholds joy & excellence.

ABOUT VICTOR VAZQUEZ

Victor Vazquez, CSA (he/him/his) is the founder and lead Casting Director of X Casting.

New-play and new-musical projects include: The Royal Court Theatre in London’s West End, The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center, The Kennedy Center, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, A.R.T. Harvard, Long Wharf Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage, American Conservatory Theater, Dramatists Guild Foundation, WP Theatre, The Drama League, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, The Alliance Theater, The Play Company, and The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis. Commercial video and photo campaigns include a collaboration with Timberland, Desus & Mero, and a video campaign narrated by Spike Lee. Victor is currently an adjunct professor of acting for senior students in the Drama Department at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.

Previously, he served as resident Casting Director at Arena Stage for three seasons, overseeing the casting of over 25 productions and over 26 new play/musical workshops. Recently, Victor served as Casting Director for the ACLU/NYCLU Singing Out For Freedom benefit, directed by Liesl Tommy (Tony nominated Director, and Director of MGM’s Aretha Franklin biopic), and taught Anti-Racist Theatre course at Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama.

Victor has held casting calls in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, the SF Bay Area, and Washington D.C. He casts projects nationally and internationally. He lives in New York City with his partner Bryan

Victor holds a master’s degree (with distinction) from the University of Oxford in the UK. He is the proud son of Mexican immigrants; Spanish is his first language. Victor is a member of the Casting Society of America, and a 2020 Theater Communications Group (TCG) Rising Leader of Color.