“Waiting for Lefty” was an original play, written
and performed during the great depression. There is something quite strange
about theater being produced during an economic downfall such as that. In 1932, Franklin D. Roosevelt made “The New
Deal” a popular part of his candidacy that lead to his election. It mainly gave
hope to Americans that more jobs would be created. This lead to many federal
projects being born like the Federal Theater Project. The federal Theater
Project would create jobs for many artists and actors. It was the largest and
ambitious effort put forth by the Federal Government to have theater
performances in the US. In Franklin D. Roosevelt’s first term he appointed the
WPA (Works Progress Administration) to establish four arts-related projects
called Federal Theater Project One. This includes the Federal Theater Project
(FTP). The FTP lasted for four short years, dating from 1935 to 1939 when its
funding was shut down by Congress. By October 1935, 1,000 actors had been given
work. This number increased as The FTP got more publicity. Some may wonder why
the funding was cut if it created more jobs. Political Controversy between
Democrats and Republicans had much if not all to do with this.
Questions
arise when the government funds a project like this. A question that every
American thinks about is, how much should the government play in our daily
lives? People debate if providing jobs and paying wages are really our
government’s role in our society. When a government funded group of Democratic
actors and playwrights, perform plays about very left-wing ideas, the question
rises, is it propaganda? Does The FTP become propaganda, when the government is
paying the bill? Or are these actors and playwrights just doing what they do
best- entertain?
The
role of our Government has been debated over since the constitution was formed.
The general consensus is that Republicans did not, and still don’t want the
government to be involved in our daily lives and Democrats, the opposite.
Republicans might have noted that the government shouldn’t intervene with the
creation of jobs, paying wages, etc, which is exactly what happened when the
FTP was created. Not only this but the plays that were produced and performed
had extremely “left-wing” ideas, such as, “Waiting for Lefty” written by
Clifford Odets. This play provoked many democratic ideas of creating civil
unions, and standing up to “the man”. This play became widely known and hugely
popular throughout the states. So is it propaganda? Some definitions of
‘propaganda’ would suggest that it is propaganda, saying that the plays were
wrongly determining the role of the Republican Party
paid for by the opposite political party. Others might say absolutely not, the
government was not forcing an opinion on anyone. The plays were stories of
hard-working Americans, spreading no rumors, or false ideas. Sadly the answer
to this question is most likely determined by a personal political party. Our
vision is impaired by our own ideas and the media that surrounds us.
This is a picture from the hit, "Waiting for Lefty" which also made it on Broadway.
Just a picture from a normal theater in business because of the Federal Theater.
The WPA helped the Federal Theater, when it came down to providing jobs for actors, as well as other artists.
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