The 2021–22 season was a banner year for Broadway. It came as theatres were reopening after the 16-month pandemic shut-down. And after the Black Lives Matter protests of 2020, which called for greater awareness of systemic racism and more diversity within all areas of American life, the theatre industry responded by having 12 out of the 33 shows that Broadway season written by a BIPOC writer. That was the year where a musical by a Black writer with an all-Black cast won the Tony Award for Best Musical: A Strange Loop.

But according to a new report from the Tony Award-winning advocacy organization Asian American Performers Action Coalition (AAPAC), that season wasn't as diverse as previously marketed. For over a decade, AAPAC has released reports detailing the racial and ethnic breakdowns of the artists working in theatre in New York, both on Broadway and Off-Broadway. 

According to the newest Visibility Report, both Broadway and the 18 largest Off-Broadway not-for-profit theatres saw "increased Black representation by leaps and bounds which should be celebrated, but only the non-profits went on to also increase representation for Asian, Latinx, and MENA (Middle East and North African) artists. Broadway, in contrast, saw diversity mostly as a Black and White issue."

In 2021–22, for the first time ever, there was near-parity between white actors (50.2%) and BIPOC actors (49.8%) on Broadway. But when broken down by ethnic group, the numbers tell a more complicated story.  Of the 49.8% BIPOC actors hired, Black actors represented 40.9% of all roles. Meanwhile, actors in other ethnic groups overall saw a decrease in representation. Latine actors played 4.1% of roles, Asian actors 3.7%, and Middle Eastern/North African actors 1.1% (though that group saw a slight increase from 0.7% before the pandemic). And 14.2% actors identified as mixed-race. 

White writers worked on 76.3% of all Broadway plays and musicals produced in 2021–22, while Black writers wrote 23.7% of works (a sizable increase from 2.7% previously). All other ethnic groups were "shut out" of the 2021–22 season, aside from mixed-race writers, who made up 14.3%.

The 18 largest Off-Broadway not-for-profit theatres—among them Lincoln Center Theater, Manhattan Theatre Club, Roundabout Theatre—told a slightly better story. For the first time, BIPOC actors out-numbered white actors Off-Broadway, at 62.5%. Black actors comprised 41.3%, Asian American actors 9.9%, Latine 6.9%, MENA 4.4%, and mixed race 14.3%.

For writers Off-Broadway, 49.1% were BIPOC with 31.1% Black, 12.3% Asian American, 3.8% MENA, 1.9% Latine, and 25% mixed race.

Said AAPAC: "Opportunities can and should increase for all underrepresented groups without pitting them against each other in the Oppression Olympics that the system of White supremacy has historically perpetuated...The 2021-22 season proved that with conscious, collective effort, diversity numbers could be improved rapidly. It showed that if enough energy was put into it, stories from underrepresented groups could be developed that would appeal to a broader audience."

The report also calls for increased representation across all POC groups, saying: "Broadway can do better." 

The Visibility Report is supported by Rodney L. White Foundation and the American Theatre Wing. The full report, which also features breakdowns for directors and designers, can be read at AAPACNYC.org.

AAPAC also recently conducted a survey of Asian actors around the country and found that less than 5.5% of those actors believed that theatres were creating an environment of inclusion for that ethnic group. In response, AAPAC has also released "The AAPAC Theater Practices Toolkit: Creating an inclusive environment for AAPI/Asian artists," which contains a breakdown of challenges faced by Asian-American artists and how theatres can address them. 

The toolkit can also be accessed at AAPACNYC.org. 

The AAPAC steering committee is made up of Pun Bandhu, Vichet Chum, Christine Toy Johnson, Peter Kim, Julienne Hanzelka Kim, Eileen Rivera, Lipica Shah, and Nandita Shenoy. AAPAC is the recipient of a 2022 Tony Honors for Excellence in the Theatre and a 2020 Obie Award.