The Federal Theatre Project, 1935-1939

Abstract

This book investigates the explosive phenomenon of the Federal Theatre Project (FTP) in comparison with the European legacies of modernist political theatre. It provides a comparative study of the history, politics and performances of the New York Living Newspaper, Negro, Dance and Children’s units. By reading the project in tandem with its European counterparts and exploring a range of performances, this book suggests that the FTP is responsible for an array of theatrical and dramatic experimentations but that it is also indebted to and carries on from the tradition of the European avant-garde and contemporary modernist theatrical explorations. The book discusses issues of race, gender and politics as explored in the chosen performances and documents the reasons behind the project’s disbandment by the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). It also critically identifies and assesses the changes in style, structure and presentation of the Living Newspaper productions throughout the project’s duration. Lastly, it pays special attention to its director, Hallie Flanagan, who brought the European modernist theatrical experimentations to the attention of American cultural life more prominently. She was the main driving force behind the FTP’s ambition to create a federation of theatres that would produce new, experimental performances aiming at attracting new audiences and engaging with contemporary social, political and economic issues.