Natalie Portman stars in Vox Lux, a Dec. 7 release produced by Killer Films and distributed by Neon. (Photo courtesy Killer Films)

Women achieved greater numbers in orchestras when they auditioned behind a curtain and were selected blindly, chosen only by performance, noted actress Natalie Portman in an interview in the Nov. 28 Oscar Preview issue of Deadline.com’s Awardsline magazine.

Exhorting entertainment’s decision-makers not to ignore gender bias, Portman cites a “great orchestra example that started a few years ago.” As Portman explains it: “The top orchestras were entirely male and what they started doing were auditions behind a curtain to judge the listening of the music. Suddenly there was a 50/50 parity in the makeup of their orchestras. They didn’t realize the unconscious bias against women. Most industries can’t do job interviews behind a curtain. It goes to show that we have so much bias in not recognizing talent and allowing it to express itself.”

Portman, who is interviewed by Deadline’s Anthony D’Alessandro, continues: “Of course nobody wants to get a job because of the of their  marginalization, you want to get a job because of your talent. But therea re so many who don’t get the opportunity sine they are marginalized, and there are those actually appreciate others’ values, talent and voices.

Check out a Harvard University Gender Action Portal article on the study of how blind auditions impact orchestra staffing.

Proceed to page 46 of Awardsline’s online PDF to read the entire Portman interview. Or visit Deadline.com to explore the outlet’s entertainment news.