Nigger Wetback Chink: The Race Play

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Also knows as: N*gger Wetb*ck Ch*nk and/or N*W*C* Live.

This play, part of the Speak Theater Arts, LLC company's repertoire, uses a combination of theater, stand-up comedy, hip hop, slam poetry, and real-life stories to take on racial slurs, stereotypes and the concept of race itself in this 95-minute production.^[1] The show was first debuted in the Spring of 2004 and is performed and co-written by three former UCLA students: Rafael Agustin (the "wetback"), Miles Gregley (the "nigger"), and Allan Axibal (the "chink"). The show quickly became a success in Los Angeles and has been touring throughout the United States being performed at colleges and theaters across the country. It is a grass-roots phenomenon that has taken cities from Los Angeles, CA to Louisville, KY to Nashville, TN and Providence, RI, among others by storm.^[2]

The show opens with a catchy chant that bombards the audience with stereotypes and words that often make people uncomfortable to speak. Allan Axibal first comes on stage neatly dressed as the “model minority” and gets the chant started. He is followed by Rafael Agustin dressed as a cholo in his bandana, muscle shirt and pleated pants who expands on the chant. Lastly, Miles Gregley struts out in full pimp attire complete with a feathered hat. As they chant racial slurs, they are able to captivate and amuse their audience. However, the play is not just about jokes and laughs but rather it aims to strip these very racial slurs of their pejorative power. The three actors have insisted, “their point was not to exacerbate racial tensions or divisions, but to drive home that there is only ONE race, the human race. The show traces the origins and evolution of three derogatory terms that shaped our lives. In doing this show we hope to de-power these words for ourselves and for our audiences.”^[3]

1 Awards
2 Critical Reception & Controversy
3 References
4 External Links

[edit] Awards

Winner of “Best Play” from the American Readers Theater Association^[4]

[edit] Critical Reception & Controversy

The productions hits home with a force. Audiences have cried and laughed at performances of this play. Still, the title of the play as well as the use of such powerful racial slurs, has created controversy at some of the campuses that it has been performed. The advertising for the play has created outrage in some places when people aren’t aware of the actual content of the show. Responding to questions regarding the choice of words, the actors have told newspapers such as the Los Angeles Times:

"People ask us all the time, 'Why did it have to be these words? Couldn't you just call it "African American/Latin American/Chinese?" ' My answer to that is, why not these words? What is it that people are so afraid of? It's a shame that someone's day is ruined if they see a poster of ours. When people are offended it's because of their own experiences they've had with these words. We're not out to offend anyone, and we're not using these words against people. When the three of us got together, the title just came and it was perfect: These are the words we've been dealing with our whole lives."^[5]

Reactions to the show have differed with students and with the different campuses the show has been performed at. Although it has been highly acclaimed by critics at major newspapers as well as student publications, advertisements for the show have created controversy on several campuses. Some of the promo boards on campuses such as UCLA have been vandalized with graffiti. The posters, advertised as N*gger Wetb*ck Ch*nk, have been defaced with comments such as “Racist F*ck!!!” and “This makes me mad!”.^[6] In response to questions about these responses, Alan Axibal has commented: “"People may be agitated by the words we use in the title of the show, but the truth is that we are just as aggravated because we've lived with these words all our lives. They are very important words that bring up some very important issues".^[7]

Nonetheless, at this same campus (UCLA), each of the N*W*C* shows performed between May 2003 and March 2004 sold out the UCLA Freud Playhouse that seats 568.^[8]

On other campuses, such as Kansas State University, the intent behind the sponsoring organization was to begin a dialogue about race and get push people beyond their comfort zones. At KSU and other campuses, there was little resistance to the show once people were able to overcome the name.^[9]

At other performances, such as one in Olympia, Washington, neo-Nazi’s were threatening the performance while the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) issued fliers condemning their use of ethnic slurs.^[10]

Despite the reviews in major newspapers praising the show, mainstream newspapers as well as radio stations have refused to run advertisements for the show due to the controversial title.^[11]

The show will be ending its run, after four years, in March 2008.