In the 1930s, the Work Progress Administration funded a massive Federal Theatre Project in America's major urban centres, presenting hundreds of productions, some of the most popular and memorable of which were produced in the highly controversial and avant garde 'Negro Units'. This experiment in government-supported culture brought to the forefront one of the central problems in American democratic culture - the representation of racial difference. Those in the profession quickly discovered inescapable ideological responsibilities attending any sort of show, whether apparently entertaining or political in nature. Exploring the liberal idealism of the thirties and the critical debates in black journals over the role of an African American theatre, Fraden also looks at the obstacles facing black playwrights, audiences, and actors in a changing milieu.
| ISBN: | 9780521565608 |
| Publication date: | 28th June 1996 |
| Author: | Rena Fraden |
| Publisher: | Cambridge University Press |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Pagination: | 268 pages |
| Series: | Cambridge Studies in American Literature and Culture |
| Genres: |
Literary studies: general Theatre studies |
In the 1930s, the Work Progress Administration funded a massive Federal Theatre Project in America's major urban centres, presenting hundreds of productions, some of the most popular and memorable of which were produced in the highly controversial and avant garde 'Negro Units'. This experiment in government-supported culture brought to the forefront one of the central problems in American democratic culture - the representation of racial difference. Those in the profession quickly discovered inescapable ideological responsibilities attending any sort of show, whether apparently entertaining or political in nature. Exploring the liberal idealism of the thirties and the critical debates in black journals over the role of an African American theatre, Fraden also looks at the obstacles facing black playwrights, audiences, and actors in a changing milieu.
Blueprints for a Black Federal Theatre features in the following genres: Literary studies: general, Theatre studies
Blueprints for a Black Federal Theatre is available in Paperback, Hardback
Blueprints for a Black Federal Theatre was written by Rena Fraden and published by Cambridge University Press
Blueprints for a Black Federal Theatre has 268 pages
Yes it is part of Cambridge Studies in American Literature and Culture series
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