‘S.N.L.’ to Add Black Female Performer

Saturday Night Live will be hiring an African American female to join the cast, The New York Times reported Thursday.

The NBC staple has been the center of controversy due to the lack of diversity on the cast. Currently, there are only two African American actors on the show, Kenan Thompson and Jay Pharaoh. Maya Rudolph left in 2007 but was never replaced. Thompson would appear in drag but stated to the press earlier this year that he no longer wanted to do that. Pharaoh also weighed in on the matter and said the show needed to do more and it appears that time has come now.

A casting call was placed a few weeks ago to audition for the long running series.

"All told we've seen about 25 people," Lorne Michaels, S.N.L. creator and executive producer, said. "A lot of the people we saw are really good. Hopefully we'll come out of the process well."

Michaels noted that the cast was already female heavy and he would not be hiring many of those who auditioned. However, there would be at least one new face of color joining the seasoned show.

"We're all about talent. It doesn't help if somebody's not ready - and 'ready' is one of the charged words. But you want to be sure you give people the best possible shot," he said.

Gabrielle Dennis took to Twitter and shared the news of her audition. She also added a picture of herself and the other actresses who took part in the casting session.

With my girls @Breshawebb @simoneshepherd @TiffanyHaddish & other funny ladies I got to meet at our #SNL showcase :) pic.twitter.com/X1D5gT2GOJ

— Gabrielle Dennis (@GabrielleDennis) December 2, 2013