(Jewish Group) Ridley Road is a drama about Jewish people, so where are the Jewish actors?

[Behind the Aegis]

It is 1962 and neo-Nazism is on the rise in Ridley Road. A lavish production leading BBC One’s autumn schedule, the four-part drama tells the story of Vivien Epstein (Agnes O’Casey), a Jewish hairdresser from Manchester, who arrives in a London still struggling to recover from the Second World War.

It is uncomfortably resonant. Characters talk of the descent of “our once great empire”, of “awakening”, of using “alien labour to undercut wages”. In the first episode, a yeshiva – a place of Jewish study – is attacked; today, the UK’s Jews still need security, and if that doesn’t disturb you, it should: there are no guards to the entrance of the village church fête. Google and you will find the world of anti-vaccine conspiracies is awash with anti-Semitism.

Sarah Solemani’s script, adapted from Jo Bloom’s 2014 book, is tense, shot through with bitter humour, and has been brought to the screen with tremendous attention to detail. Eddie Marsan is wonderful as Vivien’s dodgy East End uncle. He may not be Jewish, but his performance feels authentic.

This is no small thing. One can be racially Jewish without being religious, and there are Jews of every skin colour. In practice, this means that non-Jewish people can, and often do play Jewish people, and vice versa. Tamsin Greig’s Jackie in Friday Night Dinner was glorious, for instance, while, despite valiant effort, Rachel Brosnahan’s Marvelous Mrs Maisel did not feel Jewish at all. Then there’s an assortment of Shylocks and Fagins, some am dram, some professional, whose performances haunt me still. The shrugging, the prosthetic noses, the attempts at Yiddish. Oy vey.

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These musings are always interesting and I find myself more and more in the camp of sometimes it would be better to have the actual minority play the part, but then there are the times when I simply think, "it's acting! I don't expect an actor to become a homicidal maniac in order to play one."

[mucifer]

1. for about the past 100 years Jews have been playing non Jewish characters in movies. Mel Brooks even

made fun of that fact in "Blazing Saddles" when he played a Yiddish speaking Kosher for Passover Native American.

[Behind the Aegis]

2. There isn't much concern for minorities playing NON-minorities.

It is different when someone, say a Greek, plays a character that is described as "Latino" or an Arab, or take the case of Iron Eyes Cody who was of Italian descent playing a Native American. There are many such incidents like those, and even more, of course, of non-gay people playing gay people. If the ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, etc. are central to the character, is it better to cast someone from that group? What about voice-over work? What about "passable" minorities, such as Darren Criss, who is half-Pilipino?

[mucifer]

3. I'm just saying historically we Jews have been doing it for a loooong time to other minorities.

[Behind the Aegis]

4. So have others. Also, that doesn't much factor in as to if casting non-Jews for Jews is relevant.

[yellowdogintexas]

5. The Jewish people are not a race. An ethnic group, yes but not a race

I checked in several sources, both Census and Scientific. This list is the only one I found regardless of the source. This list has been used by the US Census (it is also the same list taught in Sociology when I was in college 50 years ago.)

Race Categories
American Indian or Alaska Native: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America) and who maintains tribal affiliation or community attachment.

Asian: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Black or African American: A person having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa.

Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.

White: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

Ethnicity Categories
Hispanic or Latino: A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race. The term, "Spanish origin", can be used in addition to "Hispanic or Latino".

Not Hispanic or Latino


.

[Behind the Aegis]

6. And?

Your "take away" was one single use of the word "race"? Ok, then a Greek playing a Latino? OK? An Arab playing a Greek? OK? A Chinese role played by a Japanese person? OK? That last one has happened numerous times in many a combination.

Unfortunately, "race" and "ethnicity" are words misunderstood and often exchanged haphazardly.

As a reminder, this is the Jewish group.