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Cailen Fu is currently in Mean Girls at the August Wilson Theatre, as the standby for Regina and Gretchen. She was born and raised in California and received her BFA in Musical Theater and Honors in Acting from the University of California, Irvine. Ever since her debut in Mean Girls on August 11, 2019, she has graced the stage with her powerful renditions of Queen Bee Regina George and “wannabe” Gretchen Weiners.

Aside from being a mean girl onstage, offstage she advocates for numerous social justice issues such as Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ+ rights. She posts informative graphics on her Instagram (@cailenfu) regularly and keeps a highlight of resources on her page. On an Instagram post she writes, “I show my support for Black lives by doing my research and educating myself on systemic racism, having those difficult conversations and providing resources for others to continue their education and support of anti-racism, and actively listen to #amplifymelanatedvoices.⁣”

I recently asked Cailen about her journey as an ally, and how it affects her career in theatre.

How diverse was your theatre community growing up?
It was relatively diverse. My high school’s student body was very diverse—we had students from EVERYWHERE. It was a very cool cluster of cultures and communities but that didn’t always transfer to our theater department.

Did you ever feel a sense of tokenism/colorism in the theatre?
Yeah, definitely. I think when I was younger I didn’t notice it as much. I’ve grown to see that I have often benefited in my life from being half White. I think in the past it’s been very convenient in casting me in certain roles because I’m what they call “easily digestible” for an audience. I look “white enough” for those who don’t *really* care about seeing an Asian woman as a lead and the company I work for can mark off that they have a more diverse company. That is totally not the case with all companies or producers, nor do they all think that way, but it is something that I’ve started to take note of in my career!

How have you handled situations where you felt uncomfortable or called out?
I often try to find the right channels to go through to have a conversation about uncomfortable situation or my opinions or thoughts about a process or character, etc. I haven’t really had a moment where I was “called out” but anytime I disagree with anyone in the business, I try to find a way to chat privately about it. I don’t think it’s ever necessarily productive to have an argument super publicly especially in the heat of the moment because that can just create major friction. But, I don’t walk around the issue, being direct and honest about any situation is always best in my opinion.

What are ways young people, like high schoolers can change the narrative in their town?
I think standing up and questioning the choices that are being made are the best ways young folks can help change the narrative. Staying curious and not accepting the answer of “you’re too young, you won’t understand”. Make people explain their choices in full and have the conversation! For a theater example, if your local community theater wants to do “The King and I” but you don’t have any Asian Americans in your theater community, stand up and say “hey, I love that show but we definitely don’t have the people who can tell that story. Let’s look into these shows instead!”

Thank you to Cailen for sharing her stories. You can check her out on her website or her instagram.

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