Ga masu sauraro a dakin karatu na Folger Shakespeare da ke Washington, Adjoa Andoh ta ce wasu daga cikin ayyukanta na iya zama "masu launin fata ko kuma sun fi mayar da hankali kan launin fata," amma hakan ya faru ne kawai saboda akwatunan da duniya ta saka mu a ciki. Ta kara da cewa tana iya mai da hankali kan kungiyar kwallon kafa ta Leeds United cikin sauki.
"Ina kewar wasanni biyu masu muhimmanci don kasancewa tare da ku a wannan makon," in ji mai shekaru 63, yana sa masu sauraro suka yi dariya. "Ina da tikiti!"
Duk wani mai son kwallon kafa zai fahimta. Andoh, wata 'yar wasan Shakespeare, darekta, kuma tauraruwar jerin shirye-shiryen Netflix Bridgerton, ta yanke shawara mai wuya ta tsallake wasan kusa da na karshe na FA Cup don shiga sabon shirin zama darekta a Folger. Wannan wurin tarihi na Shakespeare, wanda ke da hotuna daga wasannin kwaikwayo da aka sassaka a cikin marmara, yana kan Capitol Hill tun 1932.
Makon nata ya hada da binciken tarin Folger, abubuwan jama'a kamar laccar da ta gabata a ranar Lahadi (wanda ya hada Linjilar Luka, cinikin bayi na tekun Atlantika, kiɗan punk rock, da aikin wata na Artemis II cikin sauki), ziyartar makarantun Washington, da kuma nuna shirinta na 2019 na Richard II a Shakespeare's Globe a London.
Makon ya kare da karatun wasan kwaikwayo don bikin cika shekaru 90 da samar da Macbeth na Federal Theatre Project. Wannan yana daya daga cikin shirye-shiryen farko na Amurka da ke da 'yan wasa bakar fata, wanda matashi Orson Welles ya jagoranta. Wanda aka tallafawa da kudaden shirin New Deal na Shugaba Franklin Roosevelt don taimakawa Amurka ta fita daga Babban Bala'in Tattalin Arziki, wasan na asali ya yi nasara kuma ya ba da ayyuka masu muhimmanci ga masu fasaha marasa aikin yi.
Zaman darekta ya kuma hada da hira da jaridar Guardian a daya daga cikin dakuna masu kyau na Folger da aka yi da katako, kwanaki biyu kafin ranar haihuwar Shakespeare. "Na dan yi kuka jiya," in ji ta, tana tunanin ganin mafi girman tarin First Folios na Shakespeare a duniya da kuma zagaya wuraren ajiyar kaya. "Akwai wani abu mai ban sha'awa, mai kuzari game da Folger da yake a inda yake," a babban birnin kasar, in ji ta.
Siyasa ta kasance muhimmiyar rawa a cikin Richard II nata a Globe. Ya binciko abin da wasiƙar soyayya ta Shakespeare ga Ingila zai iya bayyanawa game da lokacin "tashin hankali na kasa" bayan kuri'ar Brexit na ficewa daga Tarayyar Turai. Hoton ya nuna Andoh, wata bakar fata mai aski, a gaban tutar St George. Ta fito da ra'ayin, ta hada kai da jagoranci, kuma ta yi tauraro a farkon sigar wasan da mata masu launin fata suka yi a Biritaniya.
Wannan wata bayyana ce a fili cewa babu rashin hazaka, sai dai rashin tunani a tsakanin masu daukar aiki da korar aiki a masana'antar. "Dukanmu muka yi kuka domin kamar, ba dole ba ne in zama ni kadai a dakin," in ji ta. "Ka yi tunanin cewa duk aikin da ka taba yi a matsayin dan jarida, koyaushe kana cikin dakunan labarai tare da marubuta masu launin fata kowace rana, ko kuma ka kasance a cikin dakunan labarai inda kai kadai ne namiji. Dole ne ka yi tunanin kanka ta wata hanya ta daban, domin ba za ka iya shiga kawai ka zama dan jarida ba.
"Dole ne ka yi tunani, 'Oh, shin ina da yawa kamar maza?' Abubuwan da ba ka bukata a cikin kanka. Don haka ina so mu sami damar kada mu sami wannan a cikin kanmu. Za mu iya shiga kawai mu kasance, mu zama babban manajan wasan kwaikwayo, ko babban mataimakin darekta, ko mai koyar da murya, ko dan wasa, ko mawaki, ko duk abin da kake yi. Kuma mu san cewa kana aiki a kan wani aiki inda za a bincika kyawun ka, fasahar wasan ka, barkwanci ka, isar da layin ka, zane-zanen ka sosai, amma za a sami rukuni guda na ku, kuma duk kuna aiki don zama masu kyau."
Amma siyasar zabar 'yan wasa da ke la'akari da asali ba ta taba zama mai rikitarwa ba. A 2023, Andoh ta jagoranci kuma ta yi tauraro a matsayin Richard III a Liverpool Playhouse da Rose Theatre Kingston ba tare da wata babbar gardama ba. Amma shekara guda bayan haka, Michelle Terry, darektan fasaha na Globe, ta fuskanci suka mai karfi lokacin da aka sanar da cewa za ta taka rawar. 'Yan wasa da kungiyoyin nakasassu sun nuna rashin amincewa, suna jayayya cewa ya kamata a ba da bangaren sarkin "nakasasshe, wanda bai cika ba" ga wani dan wasa mai nakasa.
Me Andoh take tunani? "Richard III wani hali ne da Shakespeare ya fara tunaninsa da nakasar jiki, kuma wannan nakasar tana da alaka da duk wani nau'in halaye na mugunta. Idan ka sanya wani a kasa saboda wani abu da ba zai iya taimakawa ba, me zai faru idan suka mayar da martani? A cikin shirinmu, kawai muka ce abin da aka ware—halin da mutane ke danganta mugun nufi da shi—zai zama launin fata maimakon kashin baya mai lankwasa.
"Ka kiyaye duk sauran abubuwa kamar yadda suke. Kar ka canza harshe. Kawai ka sanya wannan mutumin ya zama shi kadai mai wannan bambancin jiki daga sauran 'yan wasan. Abin sha'awa, a cikin shirinmu, 'yar wasan da ke taka mahaifiyata kurma ce kuma tana da iyakacin gani. Muna da wani dan wasa mai jiki mai bambanci, da wani wanda ke da wahalar ji. Amma wannan ba labarin da nake bayarwa ba ne. Su kawai manyan 'yan wasa ne, don haka ina son su a cikin shirin."
Wata muhawara ta yanzu ita ce ko ya kamata a yi wasan kwaikwayo na LGBTQ+ kawai ta hanyar 'yan wasa na LGBTQ+. Andoh ta ci gaba: "Maganar ita ce, na dogon lokaci, ba a yi wasan kwaikwayo na 'yan luwadi ta hanyar 'yan wasa na luwadi ba. Yana iya zama kamar turawa zuwa ga wani abu mai tsauri, amma a gaskiya kokari ne kawai don daidaita abubuwa. Daga nan, kowa ya kamata ya iya yin duk abin da yake da hazaka a kai. Amma na fahimci wannan bukatar ta daidaitawa."
Wannan daidaitawa a bayyane yake a cikin Bridgerton, shirin Netflix mai nasara wanda aka kafa a zamanin Regency na London tare da 'yan wasa masu bambancin launin fata fiye da yadda za ka gani a irin wannan shirin a zamanin da. Andoh tana taka Lady Danbury, wata mace mai kaifin basira mai son mata.
A matsayinta na mai son tarihi kuma 'yar wani malamin tarihi mai ritaya, ta ce, "Koyaushe ina bakin ciki cewa akwai wasannin kwaikwayo na tarihi, kuma ba lallai ba ne in sami rawa a cikinsu. Yana da kyau a yi wasan kwaikwayo na gargajiya, amma hakan baya canzawa zuwa wasannin kwaikwayo na tarihi na zamani. Abin da Bridgerton ya yi shi ne canza al'adar zabar 'yan wasa."
Yayin da Bridgerton labari ne na almara, a gaskiya ya dogara ne akan tarihin da aka "boye a bayyane," in ji ta. Andoh ta ba da misalin Dorothy Thomas, wata baiwa da ta sayi 'yancin kanta da na 'yan uwa 20. Daga baya ta kai kara ga majalisar game da harajin da bai dace ba kuma ta yi soyayya da Yarima William, wanda zai zama Sarki William IV.
"Babu wani hukunci a kai. Bayani ne kawai. Muna bukatar mu san duk tarihi don kada mu yi mamakin sassan da muke tsammanin ba gaskiya ba ne, kuma don kada mu ji kamar, 'Oh, rundunar farkawa ce ta buge mu da blah blah blah nsu.'"
Amma "yaki akan farkawa" yana faruwa a bangarorin biyu na Tekun Atlantika. Zaben Donald Trump a 2024 ya nuna koma baya. Shugaban Amurka ya cire shirye-shiryen bambancin, daidaito, da hada kai (DEI) daga gwamnatin tarayya kuma ya matsa wa kamfanoni da gidajen tarihi lamba don yin haka. Dandalin Black Lives Matter da ke wajen Fadar White House an rushe shi kuma an shafe shi. Trump ya ci gaba da kai hari kan 'yancin masu canza jinsi a kowace dama.
Andoh ta ce: "An mayar da DEI baya a wurare da yawa na jihar, da kuma a duniyar kamfanoni da sauran wurare. Yayin da muke murza hannayenmu game da Jeffrey Epstein—kamar yadda ya kamata—akwai wuraren da DEI zai tallafa wa mata a wurin aiki, kuma watakila ba sa samun wannan tallafin kuma.
"Idan kana zaune a duniyar da ke da masu nasara da masu hasara, kuma idan kai mai nasara ne, ba za ka so ka canza tsarin ba. Amma idan kai mai hasara ne, kana so ka canza shi. Wannan shine tashin hankalin da muke rayuwa a ciki."Kana neman daidaito, wanda ke nufin neman masu nasara su zama masu karamin iko, kuma hakan zai fusata wasu mutane. Za su yi fama da shi. Kowa yana son rayuwa mai sauki, don haka idan akwai damar rage nauyinsu, za su dauka.
Andoh ita ce darektan hadin gwiwa na kamfanin samar da shirye-shiryen Swinging the Lens, wanda ke da nufin gano tarihin da ba a kula da su ba da kuma gabatar da labaran da aka saba da su daga sabbin kusurwoyi masu hada kai. Sanin ta game da "silo na launin fata"—abin da take kira "hadarin haihuwata" mai ban takaici—yana da tushe sosai a cikin yarinta.
An haife ta ga mahaifiyar Bature 'yar Biritaniya da mahaifin Ghana, ta girma a Leeds kafin mahaifinta ya koma da iyalin zuwa wani karamin kauye a yankin Cotswolds na karkara a karshen shekarun 1960.
[Hoto: Adjoa Andoh da Liz Kettle a cikin Richard III. Hoton: Manuel Harlan]
Rayuwa a Wickwar, Gloucestershire, ta kasance kamar rayuwa a cikin shafukan Cider With Rosie, in ji Andoh—mai dogaro da kai, shiru, da kuma hadin gwiwa sosai. Mahaifinta ya yi aiki a majalisar Ikklesiya kuma ya yi wasa a kungiyoyin kiɗan gargajiya na gida, amma ga wata yarinya mai launin fata mai hadewa da lafazin Leeds mai kauri, yana bukatar juriya. "Dole ne ka kasance mai tauri a can," in ji ta, tana kara da cewa ta tsira ta hanyar zama "mai karfi" da kuma sa mutane su yi dariya.
Ceto, da hangen nesa na makoma da ba ta yi tsammanin ta yi ba, ya zo ne a wani rana mai ruwa, tsakiyar mako a 1979. Tana da shekaru 16, tana fama da rashin ci (anorexia) da kuma sakamakon rabuwar iyayenta mai raɗaɗi, Andoh ta halarci wani wasan kwaikwayo na Bristol Old Vic na Plenty na David Hare, wanda Kate Nelligan ta yi tauraro a ciki.
Kallon Nelligan tana taka wata tsohuwar mayaƙin Faransa da ke shaƙa a London bayan yakin, Andoh ta zauna a cikin duhu tana kuka. A wata lacca a ranar Lahadin da ta gabata, ta tuna: "Akwai sihiri da ke faruwa a wannan gidan wasan kwaikwayo—tattaunawa tsakanin marubuci, dan wasan, da ni wanda ya dauke ni ya canza ni. Na fahimci cewa watakila gidan wasan kwaikwayo ne inda zan iya amfani da baiwata, zama kaina, kuma in rasa kaina a cikin wasu halaye.
"Wasan Kate Nelligan a wannan rana mai ruwa ta tsakiyar mako ya tsara tafarkin rayuwata kuma ya dauke ni daga bakin cikina mai zurfi. Lokacin da nake koyar da daliban wasan kwaikwayo, sau da yawa ina tambayar su su yi tunani game da ikon canza rayuwa na baiwarsu. Kada ka taba yin wasan da raini. Ka dauki wasansu da muhimmanci, domin watakila ba za su taba sanin wace rana mai ruwa ta tsakiyar mako wani rai mai bukata zai zauna a gabansu ba, a cikin duhu, yana sha'awar haduwa."
Tambayoyin da Aka Yi Yawa
Anan akwai jerin tambayoyin da aka yi yawa game da ra'ayoyin Adjoa Andoh game da Shakespeare, Bridgerton, da DEI bisa ga maganarta "Ba dole ba ne in zama ni kadai a dakin"
Tambayoyi na Matakin Farko
1 Wanene Adjoa Andoh
Adjoa Andoh 'yar wasan Biritaniya ce kuma darekta Wataƙila ka san ta a matsayin Lady Danbury daga Bridgerton amma ita ma fitacciyar 'yar wasan Shakespeare ce
2 Me take nufi da "Ba dole ba ne in zama ni kadai a dakin"
Tana nufin cewa a farkon aikinta, sau da yawa ita kadai ce bakar fata a wurin daukar hoto ko a cikin 'yan wasan gidan wasan kwaikwayo Yanzu tana farin cikin ganin an sami karin bambancin don haka ba ta zama kadai ba Game da kasancewa ne ba kawai zama alama ba
3 Yaya Bridgerton yake da alaka da DEI
Bridgerton da gangan yana zabar 'yan wasa masu launin fata a matsayin fararen fata na tarihi Wannan wani nau'i ne na zabar 'yan wasa da ke la'akari da launin fata, wanda shine babban aikin DEI
4 Menene zabar 'yan wasa da ke la'akari da launin fata
Yana da akasin zabar 'yan wasa marasa la'akari da launin fata Maimakon yin watsi da launin fata, yana hada da 'yan wasa masu launin fata da himma da tunani, sau da yawa yana sake tunanin labari ko duniya don nuna al'umma mai bambancin launin fata
5 Me yasa Adjoa Andoh take magana game da Shakespeare da DEI tare
Tana jayayya cewa jigogin Shakespeare—iko, soyayya, launin fata, da adalci—na duniya ne Ta yi imanin cewa 'yan wasa masu bambancin launin fata suna sa wadannan labarai su zama sababbi kuma masu dacewa ga masu sauraro na zamani, ba kawai ga masu arziki farare ba
Tambayoyi na Matsakaici da Na Gaba
6 Wadanne kalubale na musamman ne Adjoa Andoh ta fuskanta a farkon aikinta a matsayin 'yar wasan Shakespeare bakar fata
Sau da yawa tana fuskantar sanya ta a cikin wani nau'i na musamman ko kuma ita kadai ce mai launin fata a cikin kungiya Ta ji cewa dole ne ta yi aiki da ninki biyu don tabbatar da cewa za ta iya rike rubutun gargajiya kuma sau da yawa tana ware
7 Yaya tsarin DEI na Adjoa Andoh ya bambanta da tokenism
Tokenism shine lokacin da aka hada mutum daya kawai don nuna bambancin launin fata Andoh tana ba da shawarar yawan mutane masu mahimmanci—samun isassun mutane masu bambancin launin fata a cikin
