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Condola Rashad: "Some People Are Afraid of a Black Juliet"

The Broadway star of "Romeo and Juliet" talks racism and being an advocate for the LGBT community.

As the female lead in the Broadway production of Romeo and Juliet, Condola Rashad breaks ground as one of the very few women of color to play Shakespeare's most famous dame. But not everyone is pleased with the choice, she admits. The two-time Tony nominee, who plays Juliet opposite Orlando Bloom's Romeo, reveals that she received some particularly brutal racist tweets during the show's Broadway stint, but opted to brush off the negativity rather than get angry. 
"I chose to put everything I have into the performance rather than answer back," she tells us in our exclusive interview. Watch below to hear Rashad talk about one particularly hurtful tweet and how she handled it. Plus, the actress (daughter of television legend Phylicia Rashad) opens up about becoming an advocate for the LGBT community and whether or not she believes racism still exists behind-the-scenes on the Great White Way.

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