Trans Boy Returns To Lead Role In 'Oklahoma!' After Outcry At Sherman School Board Meeting

In a packed meeting, over 60 people spoke in support of Max, a trans boy barred from playing a lead male role. The school board then relented, issuing an apology and reinstating Max to the role.

In a crowded school board meeting, Sherman Independent School District's community convened to discuss the recent controversy over the barring of transgender boy from playing a leading male role in the high school play ‘Oklahoma!’. The week before, the district had prohibited transgender student Max Hightower from playing the role of Ali Hakim, a male lead character, citing differences between his assigned sex at birth and the character's gender. This decision sparked a nationwide backlash, leading the district to propose a modified version of the play with fewer roles intended for young children. Yet, at Monday's packed meeting, more than 60 attendees voiced their support for Max, criticizing the board for singling out a transgender boy who simply sought to perform in a role he had rightfully earned. After extended deliberation, the board reconvened and voted unanimously to permit Max to assume his role, accompanied by an official apology.

Max Hightower, a 17-year-old transgender boy, was at the center of the recent school board controversy. Following his successful earning of the role of Ali Hakim, the principal convened members of the cast to announce that the casting and the play contravened school policies. Subsequently, the school updated its website to state, “As it pertains to this specific production, the sex of the character as defined in the script will be the basis for casting.” This decision left students without their production of ‘Oklahoma!’, which was set to open in just a month and for which rehearsals were already underway. It also meant that moving forward, nobody would be able to play a role that did not match their assigned sex at birth, a policy that stands at odds with both transgender inclusion and the history of theatre itself, where cross-gender casting has existed for centuries.

The controversy blew up around the United States. PEN America, a major freedom of speech organization, called the decision cruel and demanded that the play “continue as originally cast and planned.” NBC News covered the decision to bar the student and cancel the play. Influential transgender activist Charlotte Clymer mused, “do they not teach Shakespeare at this high school?” ESPN’s Sarah Spain remarked, “Save kids from (the centuries-old practice of) genderbending in theatre!”

Sensing that the district was losing ground on its fight, the district then modified the policy to state that playing different genders was acceptable, but that they would be switching the script to a 1-hour long version of Oklahoma! meant for kids. The new script specifically states that is for “pre-high school students” with “younger attention spans.” This move seemingly alienated as many people as the first decision, leading to the community to come together and demand a full restoration of the play and Max’s role in a tense school board meeting.

The meeting opened with Max’s father, Philip Highwater, who remarked that the new version of the play would cut Max’s major part in the show, stating, “This was the biggest role Max ever had, this was a solo.” Following that, people young and old stepped up to the microphone to voice their support for Max to thunderous applause while Max himself sat and listened in the audience.

One of Max’s fellow cast members, Lucy, spoke out about how the theatre teachers at the school taught her important lessons about the play, stagecraft, collaboration, and teamwork with the production. She then remarked, “then, a little over a weak ago, our principal brought some of our classmates into his office, and we all learned some new lessons… about prejudice, transphobia, and discrimination.”

Watch her speech here:

Another alumnus of the school, Jonathon Morris, spoke about his anger at the decision to remove Max and change the play. Expressing dismay, he called out the school board, stating that he was “appalled to see that the bullies had moved from the hallways to administration offices and this school board.” Though the school board tried to quiet him after doing so, he did not stop speaking. He went on to state to one of the board members, “your son was in two theatrical productions with me. How you can sit here now and try to take away this opportunity from [Max] is completely beyond my comprehension.”

Watch Jonathon’s speech:

Following dozens more people speaking out against the policy, the school board then took a break that lasted over two hours. When they returned, they voted unanimously for a resolution that would restore Max’s role to the play and restore the full ‘Oklahoma!’ production itself with the following apology:

We want to apologize to our students, parents and our community regarding the circumstances that they have had to go through to this date. We understand that our decision does not erase the impact this had on our community, but we hope that we will reinforce to everyone, particularly our students, that we do embrace all of our Board goals, to include addressing the diverse needs of our students and empowering them for success in a diverse and complex world. The Board is committed to uphold its ethical duties to include being continuously guided by what is best for all students in our District.

Editors note: Max’s age has been updated to his correct age of 17.