Before a Texas School Canceled Seymour, Sarah Bernhardt Played Hamlet

MYPRESS / OPINION

Before a Texas School Canceled Seymour, Sarah Bernhardt Played Hamlet

Four Centuries of Theater History, Two Texas Laws, and the Students Caught in the Middle

GABRIEL F. GONZALES II · Historian. Educator. · October 22, 2026

I have a confession to make. I have never particularly cared for musicals.

Now, before theater enthusiasts come after me, let me explain. I appreciate the talent and dedication it takes to produce one. But musicals have never really been my thing.

There is, however, one spectacular exception: Little Shop of Horrors.

I love that show. Its dark humor, ridiculous characters, outrageous storyline, and unforgettable music make it one of my favorites. I have wanted to perform in it for years.

So when I learned that South Grand Prairie High School had canceled its production after a female student was cast as Seymour, I was disappointed. Then the historian in me started thinking—not simply about the musical or the controversy, but about the history.

Because what happened in Grand Prairie belongs to a much older conversation about casting, artistic expression, and who decides who belongs on a stage. That conversation began long before Texas existed.

Shakespeare’s Stage Was Never What We Imagine

When William Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, and Macbeth, women did not perform in England’s professional public theaters. Juliet, Ophelia, and Lady Macbeth were portrayed by boys or young men.

This was not an experiment in artistic equality. It reflected social conventions that excluded women from professional acting. Yet the system depended on something audiences have understood for centuries: the performer and the fictional character need not be the same.

After women entered professional English theater following the Restoration, cross-gender performance did not disappear. Actresses performed male roles—sometimes called breeches roles—while British pantomime developed the tradition of the principal boy, a young male protagonist portrayed by a woman.

The historical record is not a simple story of uninterrupted progress. It is a story of changing opportunities, practical choices, and competing expectations.

An American Woman Who Played Romeo

Long before Sarah Bernhardt became an international star, American actress Charlotte Cushman portrayed both female and male characters. Her repertoire included Lady Macbeth, Hamlet, and Romeo. She even performed Romeo opposite her sister Susan’s Juliet.

Think about that: two sisters performing one of the most famous romantic tragedies ever written. Cushman’s performances won acclaim while challenging assumptions about what a female performer could accomplish.

American theater was already testing casting conventions well before the twentieth century. And then came Sarah Bernhardt.

Sarah Bernhardt’s Hamlet

On October 22, 1844, Sarah Bernhardt was born in Paris. She became one of the world’s most celebrated actresses, and in 1899, at about 55, took the title role in a French adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

Her Paris and London performances provoked admiration and criticism. Some questioned her age or casting; others focused on her interpretation and command of the stage. In 1900 she portrayed Hamlet in an early motion picture.

Bernhardt was not the first woman to play Hamlet. Her significance lies in the international visibility she brought to an existing tradition, demonstrating that performance could be debated in terms of artistry rather than simply the actor’s resemblance to a character.

And the story does not end in France. Texas has its own chapter.

Mary Martin: A Texas Woman Who Became Peter Pan

Mary Martin was born in Weatherford, Texas, in 1913. She became one of Broadway’s great stars, appearing in South Pacific, The Sound of Music, and other productions.

In 1954 she starred on Broadway as Peter Pan—a grown woman portraying a fictional boy, in keeping with an established theatrical tradition. Martin won a Tony Award, and television later brought her performance into homes across America.

For generations, audiences celebrated a Texas-born woman playing one of literature’s most recognizable male characters. The character was understood. The performance was celebrated.

That history brings us back to Grand Prairie in October 2026.

Ana Mota Earned Her Role

According to reporting by KERA, Ana Mota, a 17-year-old senior at South Grand Prairie High School, earned the role of Seymour after four days of auditions. She had previously played male characters, including Jack in Into the Woods.

On October 6, Mota learned that district officials objected to her casting. She says she was offered a shared female role while a male student would play Seymour. Two days later, Mota and her mother, Nancy Jimenez, were told the production would be canceled and replaced.

Grand Prairie ISD did not cite casting alone. Its public statement also expressed concern about the romantic relationship between Seymour and Audrey and the musical’s depiction of an abusive relationship.

Schools have legitimate responsibilities to assess age appropriateness and production content. Little Shop of Horrors is a dark comedy involving manipulation and violence, after all. But why were these concerns resolved by canceling a production after roles had been awarded? I believe students deserved a fuller explanation.

Two Texas Laws, One Number

The district said the decision was intended to keep its programming consistent with Senate Bill 12 and other applicable law. There is an important complication: Texas enacted two different laws numbered Senate Bill 12.

The 2023 law addressed sexually oriented performances and became the subject of federal litigation. A federal district court again ruled it unconstitutional in August 2026, with further appellate proceedings possible.

The 2025 law addresses public education, including parental rights and certain restrictions concerning instruction, programming, and social transitioning. Its Education Code provisions do not expressly forbid a female student from portraying a male theatrical character.

According to KERA, an audio recording of the October 8 meeting captured administrators discussing the 2023 legislation. A district spokesperson later said one administrator had misspoken and identified the 2025 law instead. KERA reported that the district did not identify the specific statutory provision it believed barred Mota’s casting.

That does not establish that the district broke the law. It raises a legitimate question about how officials interpreted it. A school’s discretionary judgment that a production is unsuitable is different from a claim that a statute required its cancellation. In my view, students and families deserve to know which argument officials are making.

What the Recording and School Board Revealed

KERA’s reporting on the October 8 recording identified Suszy Meyer, the high school’s area chief, and Lance Morse, the district’s fine arts executive director. Meyer described proceeding cautiously amid uncertainty about the law. Morse discussed the possibility of protests and public backlash.

Those remarks show that anticipated controversy was part of the discussion. They do not prove that avoiding controversy was the district’s sole motive.

At the October 15 school board meeting, Board President Emily Liles said trustees supported the superintendent’s decision and stressed that the cancellation was not a judgment of student talent. That statement should not be confused with a documented board vote to cancel the production.

Mota and her mother challenged the district’s reasoning and alleged sex discrimination under Title IX. That is an allegation, not a court finding. The school selected Frozen as a replacement, and Mota said she hoped to audition. I wish that cast every success. But a different show does not answer the questions surrounding the first one.

Texas Has Been Here Before

In 2023, Sherman ISD faced a different casting controversy when transgender student Max Hightower lost the role of Ali Hakim in Oklahoma! under an administrative restriction concerning students playing characters of another gender.

After public comment, the Sherman school board restored the original cast and production, then launched an inquiry into how the situation had been handled.

The circumstances and legal questions were not identical to Grand Prairie’s. But both disputes demonstrate how casting decisions can become controversies that affect an entire student theater company.

What the Students Stand to Lose

The Educational Theatre Association urged Grand Prairie ISD to reconsider. In its October 13 statement, the association described portraying people unlike oneself as fundamental to theater education and called for a transparent process that included students and educators.

I agree with that educational principle. As a teacher, I know theater teaches far more than dialogue. Students learn discipline, collaboration, preparation, interpretation, empathy, responsibility, and confidence.

And when a show disappears, it affects far more than its leading actor. Performers, musicians, technicians, and the students who worked behind the scenes all lose something they had prepared to create together.

Administrators must consider law, curriculum, and community concerns. I believe those responsibilities should coexist with clear explanations and respect for students’ work.

When the Curtain Never Rises

Charlotte Cushman played Romeo. Sarah Bernhardt played Hamlet. Texas-born Mary Martin played Peter Pan. And Ana Mota earned the role of Seymour.

Their circumstances are not interchangeable, and history cannot settle every present-day legal dispute. But it establishes one point beyond serious historical doubt: cross-gender casting is not a modern invention. It is an enduring part of theatrical history.

As an educator and historian, I believe the question should not end with whether a girl can portray Seymour. We should ask whether our decisions reflect the critical thinking, historical awareness, transparency, and fairness we ask our students to develop.

I still love Little Shop of Horrors. I still hope to perform in it one day. And I hope those students receive every opportunity to experience the magic of theater.

Because after centuries of theatrical history, perhaps the most important question is not who gets to play a character. It is what we teach our students when the curtain never rises.

Gabriel F. Gonzales II | Historian. Educator.

Inspiring the Next Generation Through History and Education.

Sources & Fact-Checking References

Editorial note This is a bylined opinion column, not independent investigative reporting. Contemporary facts and attributed remarks rely on the published reports and primary materials below. Allegations of unlawful discrimination are identified as allegations, not adjudicated findings.

1. Dylan Duke, KERA News, “A North Texas school play was canceled over a girl playing a male role. Then it got complicated,” October 15, 2026.

2. Joseph Rowe, FOX 4, “Student speaks out after Grand Prairie ISD halts musical over casting decision,” October 15, 2026.

3. Grand Prairie ISD statement reproduced by FOX 4, October 13, 2026.

4. Texas Legislature, S.B. 12, 89th Regular Session (2025), enrolled text.

5. U.S. District Court, The Woodlands Pride, Inc. v. Paxton, supplemental findings and amended injunction, August 25, 2026.

6. Royal Shakespeare Company, “Women on Stage.”

7. Library of Congress, “Internationally Acclaimed American Actress” (Charlotte Cushman).

8. Folger Shakespeare Library, “Bernhardt/Hamlet.”

9. Texas State Historical Association, “Martin, Mary Virginia”; Internet Broadway Database, “Peter Pan” (1954).

10. Ayden Runnels, The Texas Tribune, “Texas school board launches investigation into how a trans student was stripped of his role in musical,” November 17, 2023.

11. Educational Theatre Association, “Statement on the Cancellation of Little Shop of Horrors at Grand Prairie High School,” October 13, 2026.