Another
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation star hits the stage.
Robert David Hall is well-known to fans of CSI as Dr Al Robbins. "I love CSI it pays the mortgage and I hope it goes on for years," Hall told the American Chronicle. "I have a need as an actor to test myself and stretch the boundaries. Also, I want to be a part of Blue Zone Productions and help this theatre company grow."
Blue Zone Productions is a Los Angeles based company that was created by performers with disabilities. A double-amputee himself, Hall is an advocate for disabled people in the entertainment industry. "I'm grateful to the writers, producers and cast members on CSI who treat me just like any one of the other actors. My character is part of a team," Hall said. However, he added, "Acting starts with the theatre and this is where I came from."
Blue Zone is doing a production of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, which starts in January. Hall will star in the play alongside Ann Stocking, Teal Sherer and Paul Haitkin. "Our goal is what any actor would have," Hall explained. "To put up the best version of 'Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?' that we can. It just so happens that three of the four actors in this play are performers with disabilities. But, that's not the main thing about this play."
"Although the audience will see that the characters are people with disabilities, it's not really going to be mentioned," Hall continued. "It's just a part of the reality of life, just like it is out in the real world. Fifty-four million people have a disability of some kind or another and all we're trying to do with Blue Zone and this production is to put out a stellar production that a lot of people want to see." The actor explained, "We've got to put our heart and soul into it."
Sara Botsford will direct the production. "We don't want it to be about people with disabilities, however, they are people with disabilities and we need to honor that in the production," she said. "We're trying to incorporate that reality into the reality of the play. So far, it just enhances the dynamic between the characters."
"I think it's going to be a neat experience for the audience - seeing talented actors with disabilities," Sherer explained. "I think there's a curiosity about people with disabilities and what they do in their day-to-day lives. We're excited that Robert David Hall is involved. His success as a series regular on CSI and the celebrity of him, helps our cause. It should bring a lot of people out here to see the show which will be great, because this is a town where name matters."
"In my acting career, I have had to audition for so many disabled characters, the disabled veteran, the disabled activist who chains themselves to something. Even now actors with disabilities are only seen as only qualified to play the occasional disabled role," Hall said. "I played so many disabled characters to learn my craft in TV, but the truth of the matter is that you can't have a career as an actor unless you're playing mothers, fathers, lovers, cops, judges, unless you're playing real people. Guess what, there are a lot of people with disabilities in the real world who are college students, lovers, crooks, geniuses, etc. We don't go around with a big sign that says 'I am disabled. Caution.' We're human beings and I want to be a part of the movement that gets us judged by the quality of our work."
"I'd like to see Blue Zone become an important theatre where actors with disabilities around the country will want to study and audition for Blue Zone and be a part of the company," he continued. "That's off in the distance, but this falls into part of the SAG, AFTRA, Equity 'I AM PWD Campaign.' We're saying, 'Hey casting people, hey producers, there are plenty of actors with disabilities who are fully competitive with anybody else.' Maybe some of those folks will see this play, and that would please me a lot."
The original article is from the American Chronicle.
