Disabled Representation on Stage Matters by Madi Chase

Jenna Bainbridge as Nessa Rose in “Wicked”

March 4th 2025 history was made in the Broadway and theatre community when Jenna Bainbridge joined the cast of Wicked, becoming the first wheelchair user to play Nessa Rose in the stage musical. Wicked has had a continuous run in the Gershwin Theatre since opening on Oct 3rd 2003 in addition to multiple tours and productions internationally. Why is this the first actor in a wheelchair to play a character in a wheelchair after 20 years? There are many reasons why, I see them more as excuses like the theatre is not fully accessible or in act 2 she stands for a minute. But Jenna is an Ambulatory wheelchair user; she walks and uses mobility aids on stage and in her everyday life!

Broadway has been running since the 18th century but Jenna is only the second wheelchair user and the first was Ali Stroker back in 2019. This is mainly due to the theatre buildings having ‘accessibility measures’ but it is not fully accessible for the audience, cast, and production crew. When I went to NYC to see Boardway musicals I had to research the accessibility of the theatres to create a game plan; the most helpful article was from “New York Theatre Guide”. It goes through all of the theatres giving information about theatre accessibility, seating, and devices available. Focusing on Gershwin Theatre ---does have an elevator, no stairs at the entrance, but some levels of seats are only accessible with stairs, and the only wheelchair accessible bathroom is on the second floor. In the Museum of Broadway there is a scaled down model of the theatre, this allows us to see some of the layout backstage. It shows how the dressing rooms are stacked on eachother for 4 floors, with additional rooms and technical departments below the stage. I am curious to know how Jenna moves around the backstage and where her dressing room is set up. Another great resource I used was “Theatre Access NYC” to help lessen my stress of figuring out accommodations and could focus on the magic of the theatre.

“He told me “You either need to suck it up or quit acting, no director will ever meet all of your accommodations””

Nessa is met with people constantly trying to push her chair around and treat her more like a pet than a human, reminding me of the children like Mia and Teddy from “Good Kings Bad Kings”. “I could see where I wanted to go but was powerless to make it happen” (pg 13 Nussbaum). Children at the ILLC were forced to stay in manual wheelchairs instead of providing motorized power chairs, allowing them to move on their own and not needing to have someone push them around. Jenna says “I also love my wheelchair. It represents freedom for me. And so to play a character who has a more complicated relationship with her wheelchair is really interesting” (Vulture). Mobility aids can be freeing for many, allowing them to move with more easy and less stress on their bodies.

One of the quotes from a Vulture article stood out to me “Oftentimes non-disabled writers put disabled characters into two categories. There’s the character that needs to be saved and overcome their disability, and they do it through somebody else loving them. And the other trope is that their disability is something that they resent and it makes them evil.” (Vulture) As I was reading this I said “pity p***” out loud, I like to add commentary while reading article to keep it interesting. Pity p*** and the film “Freak show” has changed how I view all media (films, plays, etc) with disabled representation, which is lacking but that is a different discussion. I believe that most disabled or neurodivergent representation has been bad because it was written by someone who is neurotypical and not disabled. Jenna agrees with me and states “as Nessa blames her disability for her circumstances.” this is during act 2. “It was written by a non-disabled person, was directed by a non-disabled person, was originally performed by non-disabled people.” (Vulture) I am glad we are talking about this as a class, it's important for more people to be mindful of this; those people being the majority of the class who are not in the disabled community.

“We do not see a lot of mobility aid representation in theatre and most of the time they are viewed as a tragedy.”

There are 2 chapters from “Demystifying Disability” by Emily Ladau relating to this inspirational achievement; “Disability in the Media” and “Understanding Disability as Part of a Whole Person”. We do not see a lot of mobility aid representation in theatre and most of the time they are viewed as a tragedy. In Wicked, Nessa is called “tragically beautiful” throughout the stage and movie musical. This exemplifies Landau's point, “The ‘tragedy’ of physical disability” that is put on Nessa’s character from the interactions of her peers and society. This is also seen when Nessa is angry with Elphaba for not using her magic to cure her and when Elphbia does, Nessa throws a fit and ends up ripping out her lover’s heart.

I see Jenna as an inspiration and is actively changing the disability representation in theatre to become more positive. She has been a role model to me and many others since her debut in “Suffs” last year. I am personally an actor who has struggled to get accommodations for my disabilities and had to fight to portray a neurodivergent character correctly. I had to fight with this one professor at Utoledo’s Department of Theatre and Film during his acting class to be able to sit during instructions. He told me “You either need to suck it up or quit acting, no director will ever meet all of your accommodations”. Seeing this news for Jenna made me cry because it meant positive change is on the horizon. This gives me the confidence to advocate for my needs in creative spaces and has shifted my focus during performing on fueling my body and not trying to fit into a typical box I cannot fit into.

Jenna is able to bring a new layer to this character that no other actor before has been able to do because she has her life experience as a wheelchair user to pull from. This makes it a more realistic portrayal and leads to an increase of honest representation of disability on stage. “What I focus on is — for my own lived experience; I can’t speak for anybody else — there have absolutely been times when I have wished my life were different or that my abilities were different or that my disability were different. And times where I’ve thought my life would just be easier. When I’m acting in that scene, I focus on that feeling. Nessa’s disability isn’t the problem — that’s proven in the show. So actually, the story can be looked at as a celebration of the fact that your disability can just be one wonderful part of you.” (Vulture). I could go on for hours about how Wicked the musical has helped me find value and pride in my disability and differences. By having the actor being part of the disabled community while playing a disabled character, it proves to all other disabled creatives that we belong in the room too. Making theatre accessible to all parties (actors, production team, crew, and audience) is a huge passion of mine since I work in all of the parties of theatre.

Works Cited:

Mazzeo, Esme. “Wicked’s Jenna Bainbridge on Reframing Nessarose’s ‘Tragic’ Disability.” Vulture, Vulture, 4 Mar. 2025, www.vulture.com/article/wicked-nessarose-disabled-actor-jenna-bainbridge-interview.html.

Russo, Gillian. “Guide to Accessibility at Broadway Theatres.” New York Theatre Guide, New York Theatre Guide, 25 Nov. 2024, www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/news/guide-to-accessibility-at-broadway-theatres.

“Theatre Access NYC | Official Site for Accessibility to Broadway.” Theatre Access NYC, www.theatreaccess.nyc/. Accessed 12 Apr. 2025.