IRONDALE ENSEMBLE PROJECTNEWSNEWS Fall 1997 Special “Brecht” Edition Volume 1 No

Home , Stefan Brecht, The Mother (Brecht play)

IRONDALE ENSEMBLE PROJECTNEWSNEWS Fall 1997 Special “Brecht” Edition Volume 1 No. 2 MMARXARX MMEETSEETS MMARXARX ININ MMOTHEROTHER OFOF AA PPLALAYY The Mother Notes Toward A Program A Brecht-Free Environment by Brian Johnstone aspect of this admirable lehrstÜcke - by Terry Greiss French or another of the major play or parable. For like a secular saint's publishing houses. However when we Brian Johnstone is a professor at play, THE MOTHER is a parable, In 1985, we found ourselves tried to re-secure the rights a few Carnegie Mellon University and the close to such Christian parallels as involved in a series of frustrating months later, in an attempt to bring foremost scholar of Ibsen. He is the the similar earthy The Pilgrim's phone calls and meetings with the back the production in repertory, we author of a book “The Ibsen Cycle”. Progress: it dramatizes the moment of estate of Bertolt Brecht over the rights were turned down flat. No explanation THE MOTHER (1932) is a dramatic 'revelation' that comes to Pelegea, to perform his play Galileo. Because was given, other than, " The Brecht parable. It sets out the stages of then the suffering, vilification and mis- this anecdote may have some ironic people don't want the play done". Pelagea Vlassova's quest for libera- Refusing to accept this as the definitive tion: the liberation of her own identity answer, I asked how I might speak per- through her service to the cause - or sonally to the Brecht People, for if they faith - to material forces of an oppres- only knew what good work we were sive capitalist system and the habits doing and how well we represented of ignorance and unthinking collusion Brecht's legacy to New York City, sure- within us that maintain this system in ly they would change their minds. power over our lives. Pelagea's exem- It turned out that the People was a plary project of enlightened action and person. The Brecht Person, Stefan self- realization can never be complet- Brecht, (son of Bertolt), was represented, for its process, a praxis that con- ed by People, an office of lawyers. tinually must change with new circum- Jerrold Couture, the lawyer for stances and new challenges. This Stefan Brecht, and I got to know each means that her dramatic identity com- other quite well during the following bines resolute determination with an month. After turning down my request instinctive flexibility and adaptability. verbally, over the telephone, I asked if Pelagea so easily could have been Irondale might make a written propos- insufferably self-righteous, dogmatic, al to Mr. Brecht The proposal was exuding philistine "peasant shrewd- focused around the three major ideas, ness" to confound effete intellectuals. which I thought were great selling Instead we see her learning through points: Irondale was a permanent devastation: we follow her eruptions ensemble and could therefore do jus- of outrage, her sympathetic under- understanding that, like any saint, she connections to our current project, I am tice to the work because of the extend- standing of the limitations of others, must undergo on behalf of her faith happy to relate it here, as I have at so ed amount of development time we together with her unembarassment at during her path to a difficult salvation. many dinner parties since that time. had to spend on it; we were introduc- lying, being devious, disingenuous, Pelegea can even absorb her son's We had performed Galileo earlier ing new audiences to Brecht's work by unscrupulous, when it is manifestly loss within the larger purpose which that same year for 4 weeks. We were presenting free matinees to NYC high the best tactic of the moment. Rather now consumes her life. Like all an unknown company, in an unknown school students; and, the possibility than an ideological cipher she is a drama, the play is concerned less to theater. There was little chance of that we would tour the play after its multi-dimensional character. convert the unbeliever than to having the play reviewed, much less New York run. A week later I received The process by which Brecht sets strengthen, make subtle and illumi- making any money at the box office so a phone call from Mr. Couture: "Stefan out the stages of this evolution of her nate the devotion of the ranks of the we had no trouble at all securing the was very impressed with your propos- character and gets the audience to faithful. rights to perform the play. I think we al," he said. "Especially the part about collude in it is not the least wonderful Continued on page 2 purchased them through Samuel Continued on page 2

RONDALE Non Profit I Organization Ensemble Project U.S. Postage Paid P.O. Box 1314; Old Chelsea Station New York, NY New York, New York 10011 5443 www.irondale.org

Theater for the New City 155 First Avenue (Between 9th & 10th Streets) November 19 - December 20 Call for Reservations: (212) 633 1292 Wednesday - Saturdays, 8 PM Tickets: $15.00 $10.00 for students/seniors/Passports to Off Broadway TDF accepted Cont. from Page 1 - The Mother... twisted humor of the situation) thereby Cont. from Page 1 - A Brecht Free Environment week run. The play opened with a re- By eliminating subjective psycholo- understanding even better the seduc- bringing the kids to see Brecht and enactment of the phone call between gy, that vaguely indicated 'inward- tions of power to guard against. creating new audiences for his work. me and Jerry Couture, (I got to play ness' of bourgeois theatre, Brecht can Such a scene - and there are many He would like to see the production Jerry), and then I told the audience: reveal the subtlety and complexity of like it in THE MOTHER - is typical of though, before he makes a decision." "So we cannot do Galileo objectively observed, sociological Brecht's subtlety: where he might We had to perform the play for him and tonight,because we are forbidden to characterization. These choices of have presented a merely stereotypical then he would decide whether or not do so by the Brecht Estate. We did elimination are as effective as remov- character and action, instead he we could perform it for anyone else. rehearse the play for a long time how- ing three-dimensionality, chiaroscuro makes the dramatic situation as inter- (My continued reminders to Mr. ever. If we could've performed Galileo, and perspective from modern paint- esting, as multilayered, as any 'psy- Couture that we had already done it it would have looked a lot like this...." ing. Identities and the relationships chological' realism. Another example once, just a few months ago, seemed And we performed Galileo. between them, are suddenly revealed is the teacher Vessovchikov's evolu- to have no bearing on this at all. That I am amazed sometimes, by the in their naked essentiality as social tion from his scornful intellectual alien- was then, this is now.) adversarial relationships that Irondale and economic elements and forces. ation to his gradual reluctant commit- So we rented the theater for a night, finds itself in, with organizations and Brecht directs our attention to the ment to the cause. Scene 7, where rented the costumes, rigged some people who represent the causes objective nature of the situations Pelegea visits her son in prison, is a makeshift lights and invited an audi- which we sincerely believe. faced by his heroine: what are the little masterpiece of theatrical dialec- ence so Stefan wouldn't be lonely. He We are staunch believers in the right and wrong choices facing her tics. Under the eyes of the watchful arrived, clicked his heels in greeting, honor and necessity of unions -- yet and how will she respond to them? guard, she plays the role of unenlight- and the show began. After Act One we find ourselves the "bad boy" of our When the audience finds itself ened mother, lamenting her passively Stefan left. As he was heading for the own union, Actors' Equity Association, assenting to the choice Pelegea hopeless condition and reproaching door, Mr. Couture, (now Jerry to me) more often than not. We are a com- makes, the situation is grasped in its her son. Not only does this have the assured me, "he loved it. Loved it . pany that considers Brecht to be its practical result of gain- Call me the middle of ing the names: it next week and I'll have demonstrates to the an answer for you. " audience the path Since he did not tell us Pelegea has actually that we couldn't finish traveled since the the play that evening, beginning of the play, we did. from the impotent 'trag- The other invited ic' mother figure of con- guests stayed. ventional lore to the rev- "Hello, Terry? This is olutionary who can us Jerry Couture speak- her resources of native ing." cunning for the cause. "Hi, Jerry. How are Pelegea virtually you?" becomes two charac- "Fine." ters on-stage at the "Good." same time: the revolu- "I just want to tell you tionary mother and the once again, how much pre-revolutionary one Stefan liked the produc- she is parodying and tion." has left far behind. "I'm glad. It would One of the unstated have been great for him messages of the play is to have seen the whole that qualities in Pelagea thing," that could only be reac- "Yes...well, he was tionary and destructive very sorry. He had when used for unen- another engagement lightened purposes: her that evening." cunning, her capacity "I understand. Well for deceit, for devious- I'm glad he liked it. So revealed urgency and complexity. ness; become major virtues when we can go ahead with the production?" touchstone playwright. Brecht's politi- What saves this process from being recruited into 'the cause'. Pelagea has " Yes. Stefan will be happy to grant cal ideology as well as the style of act- an exalted form of Marxist laboratory the same qualities of Brecht's other you the rights to perform Galileo any- ing and the techniques of theatrical experiment - with Pelegea as the sub- mother, Anna Fierling in MOTHER where outside New York City." production that Brecht so brilliantly ject of an ideological Skinner box of COURAGE AND HER CHILDREN. A Long Pause created are at the core of Irondale's Stimuli and response- is the convinc- But in the latter play, we see these "What does that mean?" performance vocabulary. Yet we ingly down-to-earth humanity of same qualities degenerate into self- "It means you can do the play out- found ourselves opposing his son, Brecht's portraiture, not only of destructive incoherence. Anna side New York" (surely the "keeper of the flame" of Pelegea but of the surrounding char- Fierling's little victories and triumphs "Not on East 13th Street?" Brecht's legacy) in the Battle to Keep acters in the play. For Brecht is both a over the small situations she shrewdly "That would be considered part of New York Brecht Free. What are the poet and a wonderfully shrewd and confronts, with the same resources of New York City" lessons to be learned? It may be affectionate observer of human native intelligence that Pelegea pos- "And...." hubris on our part to hold ourselves up nature. Not the least admirable and sesses, are devastatingly swallowed "And you can't do it in New York as students of Brecht. We may have enjoyable aspect of THE MOTHER is up in the larger catastrophe which, City." misunderstood the entire philosophical the vein of shrewd humor, rising to unlike Pelagea, she fails to compre- "You just told me how much he liked underpinnings of his plays. Perhaps high comedy, that counterpoints its hend or confront and which ultimately the production" we should study with others who serious 'message'. destroys her. "Yes he did. His decision has noth- seem to understand them better. The Even Brecht's 'villain's' are enticing- Brecht's dramatic method provides ing to do with the quality of your work. other day, I went to buy a video tape ly rendered, as in Scene 2 where the the pleasure we experience when we Stefan has decided to keep New York for my two year old son Liam, and I Police Commissioner, in a scene grasp a situation on its many levels. 'Brecht-Free' for awhile. You are free may have found a new mentor in familiar in African American ghetto or These levels include an enlightened to tour the show." Brechtian philosophy. Walt Disney the Occupied Territories, sets about and amused perception of human "Stefan Brecht, wants to keep New Productions has withdrawn the rights destroying Pelagea's possessions frailties which is a finely 'steadying' York 'Brecht Free'? to Snow White and Sleeping Beauty and undertakes a little lehrstÜcke of dimension to the frequent pathos of "Stefan feels that the rights to the until 2001. The United States will be his own, immensely enjoying the the dramatic situations. Brecht arrived plays will be more valuable and attract fairy tale-free for the next 4 years. demonstration of his power to his vic- at this multilayered, finely controlled, high-profile productions, if he with- tims. The man's behavior is despica- and sophisticated dramaturgy - which holds them for a few years. I'm sure ble; yet his enjoyment is gratuitously is hardly ever simplistic didacticism - you can understand that." My task, I considered, to spontaneous, and therefore a after a long apprenticeship in writing "Stefan is the son of Bertolt Brecht report a great historical figure To the advance guard of redeemable element of his human drama, in which he was able to syn- isn't he? It seems odd that the son of humanity nature: a moment where the humanity a Comm...." thesize the anarchic and even lawless For emulation. he shares with his victims is glimpsed energies of his earliest plays, begin- "Let me know what you decide to through the distorting social role he ning with BAAL and extending to do. Goodbye!" Brecht, "Letter to the has taken on. Brecht's belief is that all THREE PENNY OPERA, with the new After a brief discussion among the Theater Union" characters contain within themselves intellectual discipline he imposed on company members about whether or such seeds of their salvation. The himself in the lehrstÜcke. THE MOTH- not to do the play in Newark, and rent If you make people laugh audience might even feel some guilty ER is the last of the lehrstŸÜcke and a bus for our audience, we opened two they listen. collusion in the Police Commissioner's already looks forward to - in fact is weeks later with a production adver- pleasure (especially when this is essential to - the huge achievement of tised in the Village Voice as NOT Bill Irwin demonstrated by an actor enjoying the his later work in exile. GALILEO, in New York City, for a 2

2 TEACHING AS A REFLECTION OF THE POLITICS OF IRONDALE Irondale

By Michael-David Gordon that person indulging in real that builds listening skills as got to share at least for a Activities & Patrena Murry inquiry and discovery. Often well as the art of conversa- brief time, the "ah-ha" November 19-December 20 in the classroom for tion. Five people get up, moment and to decide for The Mother by Bertolt Brecht "The best way to keep instance, all of the young including the young woman themselves if it rang true. your cows is to give them a people are facing front and a guy trembling with What took place in that September 4-December 31 wide pasture" (communication with the anger and throwing his hat classroom can remind us of Irondale Adolescent AIDS/HIV -Buddha back of someone's head?) as a result of her statement. the inherent power of cre- Project for the NYC in rows (ah, military). They After a number of starts dur- ative discovery. That frag- Department of Health EDUCATE -- To provide must raise their hand if they ing which the group is side ile, raw, unpredictable 2 sites: YWCA, Brooklyn with information for a par- want to speak and a premi- coached to stay within the power to take in informa- Camelot Residential (Staten ticular purpose um (often unspoken) is put rules, the various warring tion and work through to a Island) Every Tuesday and THINK -- to reason or on having the 'right' answer. factions, essentially men conclusion. One of my col- Thursday reflect, to ponder. There seems to be little versus women, began to lis- leagues, a former Job Subvert -- to completely room for what we have ten to each by objectifying Corps student, expressed it September - May overthrow come to call the 'ah ha' their arguments, ideas, and well. "Sometimes it's more TAPCo (Theater Arts -Encyclopedia moment -- that moment thoughts, even though emo- honest not to give us the Production Company, a new Britannica when one uncovers a truth tions were at high pitch. answer." By helping people school in District 10, The or arrives at a conclusion by During the wrap-up at the establish a space where Bronx) and Irondale Empire These three words go to working through an issue or end of class, one guy stood true risk taking can occur; State Partnership, student the heart of the role that a problem. to proclaim, "I ain't never where, through trial, effort, workshops and staff develop- teaching plays in the politi- The year is 1996, spring, gonna spend no $175 just and telling the truth, we ment, investigating how theater can be used as true cur- cal and artistic philosophy in a bustling high school in so I can get some play (a can create an alternative to riculum integration. of Irondale. The act of sup- the South Bronx. This writer lover)." Someone else the fist or the gun as a porting, encouraging, and in is simultaneously leading chimed in with "That's all means of establishing October - May some cases, tricking people and being led on a wild ride they do, they make you order. New York City Museum (so-called "young people" through the rather think you need to have When we work on a play, School Professional as well as "adults") in devel- Byzantine social structure something, otherwise you one of our goals is to pro- Development for educators as oping and strengthening the of the school (a process ref- got no game (ability to vide ourselves as well as part of the New York City capacity to look at and ana- ereed to as "given' up the attract). It's all bullshit. I our audience, with a the- Partnership with the lyze the world is, in our 411"). One young woman, just gotta keep lookin' in atre experience that hap- Annenberg Foundation opinion, a highly subversive very stylishly dressed, the mirror . That's what's pens moment-to-moment act. One of the reasons leaps up and says "I ain't up." When I asked him who that leads us to consider, January - May that we are sometimes even hearin' no nigger tryin' "they" were, he responded to ponder, to challenge and Alternative High School looked upon with a cocked to kick it to me if the dogs with a sardonic chuckle. question our world as we NYSCA Residencies at five eyebrow is that on some are screaming." "You know who I'm talking perceive it. Teaching is a high schools under Off Site level people inherently (Translation - If the guy about - ESPN, ABC, CBS, way for us to stay out of Educational Provisions know that we are there to lacks up-to- the minute FOX - the 'Letter People.'" what I call actor-land, that cause trouble by encourag- footwear, no date.) An Understand, I'm not sug- place where one Job Corps April 29 - May 23 ing the asking of questions. explosion of noise -- gesting that there was total student put so eloquently, Degenerate Art At times the work that we do screaming, chairs scrapping harmony in the room ("Stop "Ain't about nothin'." It's a a company created work using in schools, prisons, Job the floor, books slamming, frontin' (lying), you know way to keep the work and the infamous art exhibition in Corps sites, drug rehabilita- laughter expletives, finger- you'll throw down the the politics connected and Munich in 1937. Irondale will tion centers (and other insti- snapping, growling, etc. ducats to get with her."), informing each other as look at the artist as the degree tutions deemed at times not Through this chaotic, but as a group, they were well as the community of tolerance in any society to matter), feels not unlike almost out of control wall of able to explore the impact beyond the theater walls. March 4, 1997 being trapped between two sound I suggest that we that consumerist culture The hope is that the teach- Irondale's 15th Anniversary giant walls and desperately play a round of "Repeat has on their ability to be ing can act as a bridge trying to keep them from What I Said". The rules of with each other and make between the company and August 23- September 6 crushing you. This struggle the game are to repeat, in an analysis of the situation, the community, keeping Irondale Summer Workshop exists however, not on a your own words, the point of thereby subverting the pre- the dialogue going Retreat movie soundstage but here the previous speaker to vailing culture of television between the two. Then the Camp Winnebago in New York with real actors their satisfaction before supported thoughtless- work can be about some- Fayette, ME (us -- as well as the stu- responding. This is a game ness/non-reflection. They thing. dents we go on discovery with). It is a struggle to challenge the existing system that encourages -- no, demands, a kind of mindless capitulation to shallow thoughtlessness. A world that slowly, almost imper- ceptibly, winnows away a person's ability to objectively consider or weigh their real experience leaving one open to the vagaries of the prevailing social, cultural, and political winds. When we walk into an institution to teach, it is more often than not a place that depends on a certain amount of order to run day to day. There is a group that lays down the rules (adults who have a measure of relative economic, social, and political power). These rules are set up to be fol- lowed by other people inhabiting that world (mainly younger people without the benefits of power). It is often a place that, while on the surface stress- es the development of the 'educated' person, does much to stand in the way of

3 Eight Questions From the Acting Company to Jim, Like "Why Are We Doing a Communist Play? By Jim Neisen capitalist state. The laissez- class struggle depicted in Or it may just be a factor we're ogy of music videos, but he faire guys played around with "The Mother" without not used to thinking about. found "rough" theater equiva- 1. What do you find to be it here a century or so ago, but appearing to be patroniz- Besides this it is vital for the lents for them--rapidly cutting the most challenging part to they quickly realized that it was ing? actor to look for the universal between a series of short this play to make it meaning- going to destroy everything In his theoretical writings connections in the role, the scenes, changing styles ful to a 1997 audience? because of its inherent drive Brecht often discusses the elements of humanity and (everything from vaudeville to It's vital that we find a way to for short term goals. Under a need of actors to "criticize" or commonality which transcend opera), the unexpected and connect the play to an truly capitalist system you take a politically aware view- the ethnic, gender, or class unique use of music. All of American sensibility. Much of need to make profit now or point of the characters they particulars of the various char- these techniques and more our own labor history has been you're out. Business a hun- are playing. The key word acters. are used in The Mother to suppressed, as has the role of dred years ago realized what here is aware. Is it possible to 4. What can this play, and reengage and reinvigorate the American Communists in this could lead to, so much of ever play a role without pre- by extension theater, say to audience. securing basic rights we now the regulatory apparatus was senting a viewpoint towards an audience that is to a large 5. What is the function take for granted, things like the put under business control. the character? Often this pro- extent saddled with an MTV and style of music in end of child labor, unemploy- What we've ended up with at cess though is unconscious or attention span? Brecht's plays? What are ment insurance and work- the moment is a system of intuitive. We might satirize a Brecht was very aware of the different ways choral man's comp. The challenge quasi-capitalism in which profit character we believe to be less the problem. After all, interludes are generally for the audience is to get past has been privatized but cost intelligent or sophisticated or Germany had it's own MTV at sung, spoken, or per- the labels. Brecht frames and risk to these huge compa- crueler than ourselves. This the time in the form of the formed? Is there a particu- much of his action as a strug- nies has been socialized (the may be a way of reassuring an mindless, romantic, total the- lar style of singing used? Is gle between the forces of com- savings and loan bailout). audience that, "I, the actor, am ater extravaganzas that were the music as important as munism and capitalists. In 2. How is this play unique not really like this stupid, nasty being put on all over the place. the lyric? What about audi-

today's world both those terms from other Brecht pieces? creation you see before you." Brecht didn't have the technol- Continued on page 6 carry a tremendous amount of For one thing it was the last baggage. We automatically of his plays to be staged in equate these words with other Germany before the advent of words that have no logical Hitler, who immediately had it connection to them per se. banned. Something that is Communism has become syn- very significant is that of all the onymous with totalitarianism complex dramatic figures and capitalism with democra- Brecht conceived in his cy. Bush and Reagan were Marxist period (1929-1956), always going on about, "free Vlassova the Mother stands men and free markets" as if out as the one near-totally they were one thing. A great positive character. more than political and media propagan- that, she is not stupid lecher- da machine has used tremen- ous, Philistine, or a combina- dous time and energy these tion of these qualities. She is last few years to tell us that the intelligent and she is a mother- war between capitalism and ly woman, where his earlier democracy and communism is females tended to be either over and that capitalism has the sex toys of powerful men won. Well in the first place or grotesque and crude. Here there has never been a truly for the first time the problems communist state (a country in of a woman become Brecht's which the means of production main concern. are democratically employed 3. How can a company of for the good of its citizens) and New York theater artists por- there has never been a truly tray the type of working Molly Hickok; “Conversations in Exile”, 1997 A History of the I.W.W. By John Silvers & Amy was ripe for the rise of a new box; particularly since most nickname for an IWW mem- militant of the IWW's to be McKenna kind of labor union and on IWW members such as for- ber) could do so. The strategy jailed, Wesley Everest was At the turn of this century, June 27, 1905, organizers eigners, women, minors and worked and by 1918 member- taken from his cell and cas- the quality of life of millions of gathered in Chicago to form non-whites were prevented ship had grown to over trated before being lynched by the workers in the U.S. was in the Industrial Workers of the from voting. 100,000. The IWW began to Legionnaire vigilantes. Seven the hands of a few industrial World. The IWW was unique The IWW strove to estab- be increasingly effective, win- of the Wobblies were subse- elite interested only in maxi- for its inclusion of all ning tremendous support quently convicted of second- mizing their profits at the workers regardless of among harvest workers, degree murder in the deaths expense of those who pro- race, sex, skill, nationali- lumberjacks, miners, of the Legionnaires while no duced the very commodities ty, or political affiliation. longshoremen, and Legionnaires were indicted in they sold. With labor at a sur- With its preamble pro- mariners. the death of Everest or the plus, many were forced to ride claiming that "the work- However, they tena- raid on the IWW hall. the rails in search of jobs; if ing class and the employ- ciously fought strikes for Centralia defendants were not lucky enough to secure work, ing class have nothing in which the IWW became freed until 1933. the wages were at subsis- common," they set out to renowned were met with The IWW today is a mere tence levels and conditions create "One Big fierce attacks by employ- shadow of what it was in 1945 dangerously unhealthful. Union,"that would "forev- ers and government. Joe and '46 during its hey-day. While the primary labor orga- er crumble the stolen Hill organized Utah con- Membership has slipped into nization at the time, the 25- power of the master struction workers against the hundreds, while the larger year-old American Federation class." Rather than trying the Mormon Church and trade unions focus mainly on of Labor (AFL), had made to get a bigger slice of subsequently was framed issues of money, and virtually some headway in improving the existing pie through and executed for the mur- neglect the issues of human certain working conditions, the reformatory means, the der of a Utah grocer. rights. However, vestiges of AFL excluded non-whites, IWW sought to bake a One of the more famous the IWW's work; such as women, the unskilled, and whole new pie for the cases of injustice unemployment insurance still immigrants; in effect, the workers, seeking, in occurred when the exist. The Wobblie legacy majority of workers. effect, a reordering of American Legion raided lives on in the songs and art The recent ascent and society. Their plan was to lish viable local units through the IWW hall in Centralia, work of the rank and file, who decline of the Populist Party (a organize the rank and file to a mobile job delegate system, Washington on November 11, amid immense adversity, kept reformist third political party bring about the "abolition of which sent organizers directly 1919. Gunfire was exchanged fighting for social change. dedicated to ending the the wage system" via direct to migratory worksites. Dues between hundreds of They were men and women of league between big business actions at the point of produc- were kept minimal, and for Wobblies and about 1,000 action, who ambodied the and government) introduced tion. Public speaking, slow- some minority groups dues Legionaires and company spirit evoked in the will of their radical, socialist ideas to the downs, strikes, and sabotage were even waived, to ensure gunmen. Four Legionnaires comrade, Joe Hill, when he collective conscience of the were seen to be more effec- that every worker who wanted were killed and 10 Wobblies proclaimed "Don't mourn... workers of America. The time tive than power at the ballot to become a "Wobblie" (the were imprisoned. The most Organize!"

4 Patriotism & Communism in the Fight Against Unions by Maria Knapp and Michael be permitted to hinder "essen- could take advantage of the Goodfriend tial war production." To sup- "unusual market opportunities port management, the govern- [for ] or merchants and pro- The United States has a ment initiated a series of ducers in foreign markets." long history of dissension actions. They created govern- The world changed drasti- between Labor and ment sponsored unions, such cally during WWI. The Management. Both parties as the "4-L" union of lumber Bolshevik revolution in Russia have an arsenal of weapons workers organized by the US inspired communism in other at their disposal. In the 1900's, Army. The members of the countries. The general strikes two of the strongest weapons government unions were in the united states along with used by management to required to sign a no-strike the revolutionary activity in sway public opinion against pledge. Any worker who per- Europe combined to raise the strikers were patriotism sisted in striking, they could public fears about the integrity and the threat of communism. be barred from war-related of the social fabric. Managers Patriotism was a major work for a year. This would excited the public fears by force against the unions. mean the worker was no associating the leaders of the Opponents of the labor move- longer exempt from the draft. unions with the Bolshevik rev- ment used the onset of WWI After WWI, when the steel olution. A general strike in to slow its momentum. To workers tried to unionize, Seattle in February of 1919 begin with, they blocked the patriotism was again used created a fear of "contamina- most effective tool of the labor against them. President tion" through the wartime con- movement: the strike. They Wilson pleaded for an industri- tact with Europe and the virus “I don’t care what kind of communist you are... claimed that strikes could not al peace so that Americans Continued on page 7 You reds are all the same to me...”

new theatre going public, the that come to mind, Vaudeville working class. Vaudeville comedy had cer- The word vaudeville has tain stylistic elements which by Sarah Dacey-Charles French origins and was proba- lent itself perfectly to political and Damen Scranton bly derived from the popular commentary and satire. The songs of "Vau de Vire" (trans- themes of comedic sketches Vaudeville was a popular lated as the Valley of the Vivre were taken from daily life. The entertainment form developed river in Normandy). Vaudeville protagonist was not a king or in the 19th century to please entertainment consisted of noble, but rather the common the sensibilities of the working unconnected musical, dance, man, who was often portrayed class who lived in the bur- comedy, and specialty acts. as a victim of persecution or geoning cities of Europe and Big-time variety ranged from as an outcast of society pitted the United States. By the turn opera to slapstick comedy, against authority. Inherent in of the century, the society from ballet to juggling, and the comedy was a criticism of changed by social and indus- from tragedian drama to cir- the society that is to blame. trial revolution generated a cus acts. It may have Also, in the protagonist's need for a change in theatrical appeared to have just been a struggle to overcome insur- expression. The French mish-mash of entertainment, mountable odds was a sym- Revolution successfully but it was actually highly struc- bolic resistance to the status buried the aristocratic tradition tured. For example, each quo. Although the acting style of Neo-classism in the arts. show typically started with a was not what we recognize Additionally the industrial rev- "dumb show" of acrobats and today as realism, the audi- olution brought on a mass cyclists giving time for late- ence nevertheless found the migration of laborers from the comers to take their seats. characters easily identifiable. country to the urban centers. The ordering of the following The quintessential vaudevil- Thus, music hall, burlesque, acts were formulaic to ensure lian hero was a clown. The vaudeville, and cabaret were variety, pace, and showcasing clown is the every man who born catering to the tastes of a of the star attractions. has simple pleasures and sim- Vaudeville was a ple needs: food, sex, dignity, demanding art and the power to control his form, for each own destiny. The obvious par- performer no allels between the clown on matter how stage and oppressed individu- famous al in the audience were under- appeared for lined by vaudeville's lack of a only once in the fourth wall. The actor's rela- show for a maxi- tionship to his audience is Terry Greiss, Paul Lazar, Pat Russell in a rough theater “Ubu” 1985 mum of twenty immediate. They are equal minutes. This partners in a shared experi- Famous People Who Were Influenced put the artist in a ence. or Inspired by Marx (Incomplete List) win all/lose all Vaudeville is what Peter situation where Brook terms "rough theater." Gorki Brecht there was no It is rough, bare bones theater, Chagall Gandhi room for error. If absent of style, and directly Meyerhold Castro he wanted to opposed to pomp, pretense, survive, his tim- tradition, or authority. It is joy- Camus John XXIII ing, delivery, ous meant to delight and De Gaulle Neruda and showman- sometimes vulgar unafraid to Pasternak Stalin ship had to be offend. It is a theater of delight impeccable. and a theater of social con- Kandinsky Faulkner Consequently, sciousness for as it entertains Darwin Nehru some of our it also asks society to laugh Orwell Peter Seeger most accom- and look at itself. plished comedi- Today, vaudeville may be Chaplin Helen Keller ans originally more a part of our culture Mao Zapata worked and than it is a part of our theater. Bertrand Russell Freud honed their craft Stanislovsky and the adoption in Vaudeville. W. of naturalistic acting changed Curie Hemingway C. Fields, Milton the nature of the stage. When Stravinsky Ho-Chi-Minn Berle, George vaudeville houses became Bunuel Huxley Burns and Gracie motion picture arcades, and Allen, Bob Hope, strip-tease parlors in 40's and Thomas Mann Picasso and Groucho Marx 50's, theater lost a form that Proust G.B. Shaw are a few such had helped bind it to the work- Jody Reiss, Paul Lazar; “Happy End”, 1990 comic geniuses Continued on page 7

5 Continued from Page 4 - Eight Questions... 7. The play is likely to ence participation? If songs appeal to people who value THE KONCEPT AND ROUGH THEATER are beautiful or pleasing to socialist ideals. Is the play by Ken Rothchild thing in rough conditions is like one time or another plucked a the ear does that undercut designed by Brecht to reach a revolution, for anything that piece of furniture off the their message? How do those who's minds have "I can take any empty space comes to hand can be turned streets, or materials out of a musical styles/influences of been closed by anti-social- and call it a bare stage..." into a weapon.... In the luxury dumpster. Weeks of careful folk, musical theater, art ist/propaganda? If so, how? Thus begins Peter Brook's of the high-class theater, research are thrown out the song, limmerick or Cabaret If not how do you intend to seminal work of the theater, everything can be of a window to make a place for a come into play? reach such audience mem- "The Empty Space". Written piece...The popular theater, Salvation Army purchase. Whoa! Lot of questions bers? 30 years ago, no statement freed of unity of style, actually And poverty is not just the lack here. Let's take them one at a If your mind is closed, by carries as deep -- nor as literal speaks a very sophisticated of money to purchase the time. 1): see answer to imme- definition there’s no room for -- a truth as this when speak- and stylish language: a popu- exact right thing. Lack of suffi- diate preceding question. 2): anything new to get in. If you ing of today's under-financed lar audience usually has no cient resources for labor to Lots of them. This also relates come because you already non-commercial progressive difficulty in accepting inconsis- carry out ideas has an equally to the previous question. value socialist ideals (did I hear theater. (For that matter it tencies of accent and dress, or decisive nature in what can or Musically Brecht and his vari- preaching to the converted?) might be even closer to the in darting between mime and cannot be done. ous music collaborators that's ok. Sometimes we just truth to say "We are often dialogue, realism and sugges- There is always a tension at (Weill, Dessau, Eisler, among need to hang out for a couple required to take any empty tion." work between the perceived others) were always playing of hours with other people who space ...etc.") And on these and necessities of the piece, and around with this. To begin with feel the way we do about stuff, stages, these empty spaces, "The Rough Theatre has the received necessities of they didn't work within a small especially in these times. For one can still see a melange of apparently no style, no con- poverty. The true needs of the musical palette. The style of those whose minds are open the four variations of theater ventions, no limitations -- in production are often buffeted songs within almost any given but haven't thought about all Brook described: The Holy practice, it has all three." between these two determi- score range from Dixieland to the ideas the play puts forth, Theater, The Immediate, The A designer doesn't nants; but it is each moment's art song. (Brecht threatened "bring on the lobster!" Rough, and yes, as always, approach a design for a pro- central need, the thing that to cancel the 8. Can The Deadly. When one first duction with the intention of makes each particular moment original produc- communism reads this, one might take it to creating a "Rough Theater work, that determines a choice. tion of exist in prac- mean that there are four dis- look": necessity is the driving Whatever makes a moment Threepenny tice among a tinct types of theater produc- force behind any design. work is grabbed, and in under- Opera when the large popula- tion, that one could look at a Designers are often taught to financed theater, as often as producer want- tion of show and plunk it neatly into devise a "concept", an over- not, will be something totally ed to cut the human either column A, B, C, or D. arching idea for the style and unexpected. Consistency of choral ode at the beings, and Theater, of course, is never visual texture of the play. A style is put on hold. As Brook end of the play if so, why that neat. In reality there are concept is a codified way of said "putting over something in because he did- hasn't it? only two choices: one can finding the necessities of a rough conditions is like a revo- n't see how it fit Yes (no only be concerned with given piece. This concept can lution, for anything that comes in with the rest of beating whether theater is alive and "in be a metaphor, or a socio-eco- to hand can be turned into a the music.) Even around the the moment", or whether it is nomic backdrop, or a visual- weapon". One throws off the within an individ- bush here) deadly. In any given show that ization of an emotion or mood, yoke of the Koncept and the ual song Brecht Marx forceful- avoids the Deadly one is likely or some combination of the moment lives. This the essence and his compos- ly argued that to see a mix of the Holy, above, or something all of Rough Theater, where er often came up capitalism is Immediate, and Rough: pro- together different from the poverty is neither virtue nor with melodies incapable of portions depending on each above: what is taught however vice, but is merely a guide to featuring radical resolving the show's characteristics. is that it is necessarily a unify- the inevitable. Rough Theater changes in reg- problems of Irondale tends to have a high ing force, a glue, so to speak, can't be contrived, for then it is ister. The effect humanity. As percentage of the Rough, but that helps hold the event no longer driven by necessity. of this was to call attention to long as the system goes on what is meant by that? together. A problem can arise, If one consciously works the singer's technique as well developing, everything will go The Concise Oxford defines however, when one mistakes towards a Rough Theater pro- as the content of the song. from bad to worse . . . a deca- the word "rough" the concept for the central duction it is no longer rough, it Another way that he employed dent empire spreading like a (ruf) a., adv., n., & v.t. 1. a. principle, as opposed to keep- is "Rough", a style as suscepti- the famous alienization effect. plague everywhere . . . All sys- having uneven or irregular sur- ing in mind it is only a tool to ble to deadly application as any 3): Ugly singing. The voice tems which carry the destruc- face, not smooth or level or understanding: the tail wags other. does what is necessary to ful- tive seeds of class war will polished, diversified or broken the dog. In these cases the The conundrum of Rough fill the music without a sense eventually disappear... But by prominences, hairy, shag- "concept" becomes a straight- Theater is that any impulse of artlessness. 4): The music before going under, they gy, coarse in texture, rugged ... jacket; this reversal is some- towards conscious application often contrasts to the lyric, i.e. defend themselves to the 2. not mild or quiet or gentle, times jokingly referred to as destroys its power. (This is not A beautiful melody under- death like savage wounded unrestrained, violent, stormy, the "Koncept". unlike the idea that an unlimit- scores vicious lyrics. The beasts, until the up and com- boisterous, disorderly, riotous, Rough Theater is born of ed budget, while nice, music draws us in emotionally ing system administers the inconsiderate, harsh, unfeel- poverty, and poverty has its removes the need to search while the lyric speaks to a coup-de-grace. From a histori- ing, unpleasant, severe, grat- own language of necessity. for the inevitable, necessary whole different part of our con- cal standpoint we’ve seen this ing, taxing, astringent Today's theater in the store- choice.) One must let the work sciousness. 5): They don't theory played out over the And Brook describes the fronts, basements, street cor- develop, let each moment sing along or clap in rhythm. great wave of time as the Rough Theater thusly: ners echoes the courtyards of reveal itself, and never attempt 6): Not the way he contrasts world has moved successively "The Rough Theatre is close Elizabethan times, the to force the what eventually the melody with the lyric. They from primitive community to to the people:...it is usually dis- groundlings milling around a will become apparent as the keep waking the audience up, slave states to feudal states to tinguished by the lack of what makeshift stage, the necessary choice. Rough change their perspective, and the capitalist system. is called style. Style needs Commedia of the piazza. Theater is always an evolu- advance the story "by whatev- Eventually capitalism must leisure: putting over some- Every designer I know has at tion, never a concept. er means necessary. retreat before the newer and 6. How do you convince fairer system of socialism. Of an audience that's it's fun to course this will not happen on think hard? its own. Capital will attempt to You can't. We can expose resist its own downfall. The them to a wildly entertaining rich will never freely surrender play chock full of ideas. Then their wealth and privileges. they get it or they don't, It's This is where the old slogan like lobster. I can invite you "workers of the world, unite" over for dinner, cook them to comes in. Only the working perfection and put them in class--as an organized class-- front of you with all the trim- can mount a successful oppo- mings including bib. If you've sition. But a mass party isn't never had them before, I built over night. The first step might be able to persuade to must be to convince the work- taste them, or maybe you will er that only unity will give him anyway out of a sense of com- the means to change. Those mon courtesy. But then you're on the bottom (which means on your own. You like them or most of us) must become you don't. You either get lob- aware of our power and of the ster or you sit there with this fact that capitalism will never ugly dead red thing on your solve our problems. We must plate that you wish somebody realize what socialism can would take away. Brecht is offer. In short . . .we got to get “Conversations in Exile” Irondale Ensemble Project, 1987 like lobster. politicized.

6 Continued from Page 5 - Communism into the apartment. ness. There was a wave of of "radicalism". Although the During the 1930's unions anti-imperialist insurrection in four day strike was orderly, were tightly controlled exclu- the world from China and disciplined, and peaceful, the sive groups organized along Korea, Indochina and the mayor, Ole Hanson called in by the specific job that one Philippines. To protect the Federal troops. He did. The development of the American business interests denounced the strikers as Congress of Industrial abroad it was necessary to communist revolutionaries Organizations organized the suppress domestic opposition who" want to take possession workers by industry, with all to a foreign policy defeat the of our Great American workers in a plant belonging Communists and create a Government and try to dupli- to the same union. Employers national unity for militarization cate the anarchy of Russia." were still not pleased with the of the budget. The system, so Isolated acts of terrorism development of the unions, shaken in the thirties, had fueled the publics fear of com- but it was easier to negotiate learned that war production munism. Business leaders with a union than "wildcat could bring stability and high suggested a terrorist conspir- strikes", strikes which were profits. Around 1960, the acy. The state and federal called by the workers and run effort to break up the government moved against by the rank and file. The Communist-radical upsurge communism. Attorney Communist party supported of the New Deal and Wartime General A. Mitchell Palmer the CIO because it developed years seemed successful. created a General regular relations between the The Communist party was in Intelligence Division of the union and the employers. It disarray - its leaders in jail, its Justice Departments Bureau also influenced the CIO to membership shrunken, its of Investigation naming 24 organize blacks in the mass influence in the trade union year old J Edgar Hoover production areas. movement small. The trade head. A .5 million dollar bud- The 1950's were a frighten- union movement became get was allotted to "ferret" out ing time for American busi- conservative. revolutionaries. Coal Operators claimed that the strike threatened by the work- … the object is to discredit learning by present- ers had been directly order by Lenin and Trotsky, and ing it as not enjoyable. But in fact of course it is Steven Cross & Paul Lazar “The Threepenny Opera”, 1988 financed by Moscow. The enjoyment that is being discredited by the deliber- Continued from Page 5 - Vaudeville with a real pigeon looking at National Association of ate suggestion that one learns nothing from it. One ing class for decades. And as her. The audience could even Manufacturers were able to theaters around the country see her from inside the apart- break the steel strike by label- only needs to look around and see the function continue to struggle economi- ment, with Ricky sitting on a ing the entire labor movement allotted to learning in bourgeois society. It cally, theatre companies sofa reading the newspaper as communist. Eventually, the amounts to the buying of materially useful items struggle with the idea that in the foreground. This is labor movement was crippled. middle and upper-class the- vaudeville and this is how The unions splintered and of knowledge. The purchase has to take place atergoers want to be enter- Lucy, Carol Burnette, Monty member ship fell. Employees before the individual enters the process of produc- tained and not shaken by the Python, Jerry Seinfield, the equated closed chops with tion. Its field is immaturity. To admit that I am still lapels. Even today's creators of the Simpsons, foreign radicalism by referring Broadway musicals (which and others have kept to open shops as the incapable of something that is part of my profes- contain many of the perfor- vaudeville alive, so to speak. "American Plan." sion, in other words to allow myself to be caught mance elements of In the theater, however, The Communist party in the up in learning, is equivalent to confessing that I vaudeville: song and dance; there is not much vaudeville United States did play an strong archetypes) have lost anymore. It is limited to active role in the organization am unfit to meet competition and that I must not virtually all of their political improvisational groups, and of the unions. While member- be allowed credit. The man who comes to the the- content, and are in many to those who have a true ship dropped during the Red ater for entertainment refuses to let himself be ways less "Vaudevillian" than social agenda and are out Scare of the 1920's, it rose the preacher with his micro- there doing educational skits again during the Depression. 'treated like a school boy' once again because he phone, gaudy signs, and half- at community organizations. Since the government was remembers the fearful torments with which the gathered crowd in the middle In the 70's Cesar Chevez led unable to help them, the peo- 'knowledge' used to be hammered into the youth of Times Square. a movement in California that ple began to organize them But it makes sense that led to the formation of the selves. Barter systems were of the bourgeoisie. vaudeville made the leap to American Farm Laborers, set up with fisherman trading film and, especially, televi- using political sketches an their catch for fruits and veg- -- Brecht sion. Vaudeville is largely the backs of flatbed trucks to etables. The Communist visual, using lots of physical spread the word. Vaudevillian Party helped to organize the shapes and images to con- groups such as Teatro Workers Alliance in cities vey political meaning. It also Compesino and the San around the country. The often relies on a specific Francisco Mime Troupe have Workers Alliance would gath- place to create context, the somehow found the marriage er in the streets as the police A German's View of Brecht seventh story window ledge, between entertainment and evicted people. As soon as by Mimi Levy performed Brecht's plays and for instance. On TV, Lucille political activism, but it is the police were gone, they considered him highly influ- Ball could be on a real ledge rare. would carry everything back Mimi, a native of Germany, ential, but the political state- is currently a design intern ments were viewed different- with Irondale. ly. The welfare state was considered as a way to obtain The way Brecht's theater social justice, not commu- plays are presented in nism. Germany has changed in the In the same way that the last years. In 1989, the Berlin West German political sys- Wall fell down leading to the tem became the dominant reunification of East and system in reunited Germany West Germany into one capi- after 1989, the West German talistic welfare state. Brecht way of playing Brecht directed in the eastern part of became the dominant way. Berlin in his own theater the Although Brecht's plays are Berliner Ensemble (which no longer directed the way he continued in his style after his did, they are still a dominant death), where they performed force in the German theatre. primarily his plays. All facets Brecht's political statements of his plays could be explored can not be found in either as his political opinions were modern productions of his shared by the spectators. plays, or in new German The productions were so plays, his means of convey- excellent, that they were con- ing his views, the sidered as a kind of measur- 'Verfremdungs Effect' has ing pole in the East and West influenced German theater alike. In the West, theaters permanently. Robin Kurtz, Josh Taylor, Paul Ellis, Michael David-Baird Gordon; A rough theater “You Can’t Win”, 1994

7 Our Mailing List Is No Longer a Well Kept Secret A Word About Our Box Office Policy Here are 4 ways you can guarantee that you’ll continue to receive The In a climate in which success is based upon the reality of Irondale Ensemble Project News. You’ll also hear from us about perfor- the market place, Irondale is once again proud to announce mances, special events and other Irondale activities. that we are successfully ignoring that reality. 1. Call our office (212) 633-1292 & leave a message with your name & address. With costs of production totaling $100,000 and a potential audience capacity of 2000, we would have to charge $50.00 a ticket and sell out each night to break even. So we won't 2. E-mail us at IrondalerT @aol.com even attempt to do so. It is our belief that anyone who wants to attend the theater should be able to afford it. Therefore, we 3. Tear off this part of the page and send it to us have settled upon the following ticket prices: c/o Irondale Ensemble Project Thursday night - "Pay what you can afford" --that means no PO Box 1314 Old Chelsea Station minimum and no maximum -- your choice! New York, NY 10011 All other performances $15.00 general admission. If your a student with a valid ID or a senior citizen, or if you hold a 4. Visit our web site at www.irondale.org. Passport to Off Broadway, your discount ticket price is $10.00. We are committed to bringing you provocative, challenging and innovative theater. We look forward to the partic- Name ipation of a diverse and exciting audience. We hope our ticket prices make that possible for everyone. Address Phone number (optional) THE COMPANY CHOREOGRAPHER Jim Neisen Anne Bassen And Now for the Pitch Terry Greiss WITH Ken Rothchild The Walter Thompson There's not a theater on stage or in one of our edu- promise you that your Maria Knapp Orchestra company in the country cational programs for at-risk money will be used well Michael-David Gordon who can't use your money. youth, that you feel is impor- and that our work will honor Sarah Dacey Charles BOARD OF TRUSTEES Many of you have already tant, then please give us your your faith in Irondale. All heard from most of them in support. We think that we are contributions are fully John Silvers Barbara Hauben Ross, New York City. If you can doing some unusual, innova- deductible to the extent Patrena Murray President help to support any theater tive and necessary work with provided by law -- Thank Damen Scranton Andrew D. Lewis that means something to the art of theater. Your partici- you. Amy Elizabeth McKenna Rory Greiss you, that's just better for all pation has already begun by Please send your gift to: Michael Goodfriend Jay Kasminsky of us. So if you already do, reading this. You can play a Irondale Herrick Goldman Lillian Brady thank you -- if you don't, more active role by being in PO Box 1314 Christianne Myers you should. the audience and by making a Old Chelsea Station Mimi Levy PRODUCTION PHOTOS If you find something contribution in the amount NY NY 10011-1314 Gerry Goodstein here in the newsletter, or that you can afford. We DRAMATURGE Brian Johnstone GRAPHIC DESIGN Lisa J. Dempsey

T OP TEN REASONS THAT VAUDEVILLE IS A SUBVERSIVE, COMMUNIST ARTFORM

10. No one knows how to spell Vaudeville. 9. Makes fun of authority 8. Most vaudevillians are poor. 7. It killed them at the Palace. 6. Red noses, Red Buttons, Red Skelton 5. Vaudeville gets us in touch with our dark side. 4. Seltzer is a commie drink because it's drunk by Russians 3. The best exploding cigars come from Havana. 2. Exit Stage Left

And the number one reason that Vaudeville is a Subversive, Communist Artform is:

1. The Marx Brothers

Once I get my hooks on a theater I shall hire two clowns. They will perform in the interval and pre- tend to be spectators. They will bandy opinions about the play and about members of the audience. The hit of the week will be parodied. The clowns will laugh about any hero as about a private individual. The idea would be to bring reality back to the things on stage. For God's sake, it's the things that need to be criticized--the actions, words, gestures-- not their execution.

From Brecht's diary

Molly Hickok and Company; “The Threepenny Opera”, 1988