32 April 1980 Marxism Today

HISTORY PAMPHLETS personal radicalism to a wider political play 'Destiny', which was also eventually John Attfield writes: Tommy Jackson, who process and became a revolutionary. She was televised, Pam Gems' 'Piaf, which is now in died in 1955, was among the best-loved of offered several jobs in the theatre when her the West End and going soon to Broadway, Communist Party publicists, and was a production of her own adaptation of and Peter Whelan's 'Captain Swing', which leading Marxist activist long before its Dostoevsky's 'Notes From Underground' tells of the fight waged by agricultural foundation in 1920. His Ireland Her Own is came to the West End having won a prize at labourers in the 1830s. She also helped still in print after 33 years. He was born in the National Student Drama Festival. The prepare the ground for the opening of The 1879, and Our History 73, T A Jackson— A offer she accepted was to be the 'Girl Friday' Warehouse, the companion small theatre to Centenary Appreciation', just published, The Other Place in , at which plays contains two essays in his memory. The first, such as Edward Bond's 'The Bundle' by his daughter Vivien Morton, provides an originated. intimate account of 'TAJ's' life, political She researched her productions work and writings. The second, by Stuart scrupulously and worked tremendously hard Macintyre, shows his place in a remarkable during rehearsals to the point of exhaustion. line of self-taught working-class intellectuals Her rare ability to create a volatile rehearsal associated with the Marxist movement, now situation in which actors could explore for largely disappeared. It points to the frequent themselves but on equal terms with each isolation of Marxist theoretical work from other and with the director has been actual working-class activity as a problem for acknowledged by many leading players, today for which Jackson's life story holds including Sheila Allen, , lessons. Patrick Stewart, George Baker and Tony Our History 72, 'The People's Theatre in of a leading Royal Shakespeare Company Church. She bridged the classical and the Bristol, 1930-45', published at the same time, director in Stratford-upon-Avon, and, modern, heightening a tradition rather than is an account by Angela Tuckett of the work despite the chores, this gave her the opening breaking it, and above all, she wanted to tell of the Bristol Unity Players and its precursor into the world in which she felt most at home exciting stories in a simple, direct way to a the Workers' Theatre Movement. The — the theatre. wider audience than was usually the case with history of left theatre has remained largely She became an assistant director, worked the RSC. unexplored until recently (articles on WTM on the RSC's mobile 'guerilla' unit Buzz Goodbody believed in cheap seats in History Workshop Journal 4, and on Unity Theatregoround, and directed six main and gearing the RSC's work to the Theatre in the recent book on Culture and productions for the Company, gradually community and school students but Crisis in the 30s*). This study sheds important finding a style that developed out of the satire understood that her attempts to close the light on the movement, the technical and and subversive showbiz of the early days into culture gap were modest. She did not reject artistic innovation its represented, and its a hard-edged realism that has its roots in theatre as middle class. She recognised the contribution to the struggles for popular English radical dissent. After staging a much role culture played in forming values, and the unity in the 1930s and 40s. maligned but hugely entertaining 'King special role theatre had within that culture. Both pamphlets cost 45p (plus lip John', which drew on a Marxist view of She wanted to resolve its contradictions from postage) from the Communist Party History political power and the images of the nursery, a progressive standpoint, believing that to Group, 16 King Street, London WC2E 8HY. and presenting a gripping production of abandon the dominant national companies Membership of the Group is £3.50 per year Trevor Griffiths' play 'Occupations' about would be to leave them more at the mercy of (£2.00 for OAPs and students), including Gramsci and the Turin car workers, her main ruling ideology. However, the RSC was a receipt of Our History and the Group's contribution was to fight for and open the man's world unused to a woman director (two discussion journal Our History Journal. small theatre in Stratford called The Other women have directed for the Company since, *Edited by Jon Clark and others, Lawrence Place, and to establish it as a serious, but only one show each). Buzz Goodbody was &Wishart, 1979, £7.50. challenging venue. determined to make it in that competitive It was here that she directed 'Lear' and set-up, drawing a lot of strength from the Buzz Goodbody '' with a new stress on the domestic Women's Movement and the Women's Colin Chambers writes: In a survey of the 70s, side of the plays, showing the connection Street Theatre Group of which she was a The Times drama critic Irving Wardle between family and power structure by founder member. But she paid a high price at described a production of 'Hamlet' as 'an understanding the class basis of the societies the age of 28. Her work, though, lives on in astounding revelation of the most excavated that were being written about. Politics came the many actors, designers and directors play in the world, ranking with 's alive as relationships between real people, whom she influenced and who influenced "A Midsummer Night's Dream" as the key and, in making the characters believable in her, and particularly in the survival of The classical production of the decade'. He was the close-up conditions of the tiny theatre, Other Place as one of the liveliest theatres in referring to the work of director Buzz started a tradition of imaginative Shake­ the country. An annual award was instituted Goodbody, a Communist and feminist, who speare production that continued with after her death for a Director at the National killed herself five years ago this month before 's 'Macbeth' with Ian McKellen Union of Students Drama Festival. seeing the tremendous critical and audience and Judi Dench that was seen on television, [A book by Colin Chambers about Buzz reaction to 'Hamlet' of which Wardle's and 's re-appraisal of 'The Goodbody entitled Other Spaces: New Theatre tribute is just one of the latest. Merchant of Venice'. and the RSC will be published shortly]. Educated at Roedean and Sussex In opening up a classical company such as University, Buzz Goodbody rebelled against the RSC to the influence of the fringe, Buzz Contributions to Notes (brief please) are her background like many of her generation Goodbody paved the way for future welcome. We need copy before the 1st of the in the 60s, but saw the need to link her productions like David Edgar's anti-fascist month preceding publication.