Hungarian opera singers claim African American identity

Fifteen Caucasian opera singers from the Hungarian State Opera signed a document claiming that they identify, in part, as being African American. Szilvester Ókovács, the Opera House’s director, asked those with roles in George Gershwin’s piece Porgy and Bess to identify as African-American in writing, in order to get around the fact that Ira Gershwin insisted that these roles only be filled by African Americans. HFP reported on the initial controversy in 2018.

We now learned, thanks to a report on the 444.hu website, that following “encouragement” from the opera director, 15 out of 28 singers have claimed African American identity. The eyebrow-raising Hungarian-language joint statement reads: “African American origins and consciousness form an integral part of their identity.”

Scene from the all-white cast Porgy and Bess

Singer-actress Enikő Bakonyi does not believe this statement to be disingenuous at all. She explained to the Index news site: “We did not lie about our genetic makeup being Black. The statement is not about this at all. We simply confirmed that African American consciousness forms part of our identity and this is true. Gershwin’s music, jazz and with it African American culture and arts form part of our shared human heritage. They are part of our everyday lives, as we enjoy culture on a daily basis, as well as music, thus this is inseparable from our identity. There is nothing insulting in this.”

Ms. Bakonyi and others who signed this statement seem to have a simplistic and warped view of identity. Tasty gastronomy, pleasurable music or culture form only one small dimension of identity. Far more important than these are socio-economic and socio-cultural realities and shared experiences that bind people together and create a sense of common identity. Caucasian actors, actresses and singers in Budapest cannot possibly share in the lived experiences of African Americans, nor are they and their families tied to the history that informs this identity. This statement and the rationale behind it seems both gimmicky and crass.

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