{"links":{"self":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog.json?f%5Baccess_subjects%5D%5B%5D=Theater+--+United+States+--+History+--+20th+century","last":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog.json?f%5Baccess_subjects%5D%5B%5D=Theater+--+United+States+--+History+--+20th+century\u0026page=1"},"meta":{"pages":{"current_page":1,"next_page":null,"prev_page":null,"total_pages":1,"limit_value":10,"offset_value":0,"total_count":5,"first_page?":true,"last_page?":true}},"data":[{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_164","type":"collection","attributes":{"title":"Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection","creator":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_164#creator","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"Goldman, Arnold","label":"Creator"}},"abstract_or_scope":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_164#abstract_or_scope","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"Consists of research materials, mainly photocopies, of research on \"Injunction Granted\" published in Minnesota Review in 1973.","label":"Abstract Or Scope"}},"breadcrumbs":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_164#breadcrumbs","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_164","ead_ssi":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_164","_root_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_164","_nest_parent_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_164","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/GMU/repositories_2_resources_164.xml","title_filing_ssi":"Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection","title_ssm":["Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection"],"title_tesim":["Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection"],"unitdate_ssm":["1931-1973"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["1931-1973"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["C0173","/repositories/2/resources/164"],"text":["C0173","/repositories/2/resources/164","Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection","Living newspaper","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Interviews","Theater","Theater and society","Theater -- United States","Performing arts","Correspondence","There are no access restrictions.","Arranged by subject into one series.","Arnold Goldman was a writer and professor of English and American literature. Born in Swampscott, MA, Goldman received degrees from both Harvard University and Yale University. Goldman taught at the Universities of Manchester, Sussex, and Keele in the United Kingdom, where he also served as Professor of American Studies. Much of Goldman's work focused on the writings of author James Joyce.","Processing and EAD markup completed by Hal Barthold in 2011. Finding aid updated by Amanda Brent in February 2019.","The Special Collections Research Center also holds the Federal Theatre Project collection.","Consists of research materials, mainly photocopies, of research on \"Injunction Granted\" published in Minnesota Review in 1973. Includes correspondence with Living Newspaper actors and interviews with Arthur Arent and Joseph Losey which occurred in the late 1960s and early 1970s. There is also other correspondence about the research, scripts, and research notes. Also, there are 3 black and white 8 x 10\" prints of a \"Injunction Granted\" performance, probably in the 1930s.","The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)","Consists of research materials, mainly photocopies, of research on \"Injunction Granted\" published in Minnesota Review in 1973.","George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","Goldman, Arnold","Arent, Arthur","Losey, Joseph","English"],"unitid_tesim":["C0173","/repositories/2/resources/164"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection"],"collection_title_tesim":["Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection"],"collection_ssim":["Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection"],"repository_ssm":["George Mason University"],"repository_ssim":["George Mason University"],"creator_ssm":["Goldman, Arnold"],"creator_ssim":["Goldman, Arnold"],"creator_persname_ssim":["Goldman, Arnold"],"creators_ssim":["Goldman, Arnold"],"access_terms_ssm":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)"],"acqinfo_ssim":["Donated by Arnold Goldman in 2009."],"access_subjects_ssim":["Living newspaper","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Interviews","Theater","Theater and society","Theater -- United States","Performing arts","Correspondence"],"access_subjects_ssm":["Living newspaper","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Interviews","Theater","Theater and society","Theater -- United States","Performing arts","Correspondence"],"has_online_content_ssim":["false"],"extent_ssm":["0.5 Linear Feet 1 box"],"extent_tesim":["0.5 Linear Feet 1 box"],"genreform_ssim":["Correspondence"],"date_range_isim":[1931,1932,1933,1934,1935,1936,1937,1938,1939,1940,1941,1942,1943,1944,1945,1946,1947,1948,1949,1950,1951,1952,1953,1954,1955,1956,1957,1958,1959,1960,1961,1962,1963,1964,1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973],"accessrestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThere are no access restrictions.\u003c/p\u003e"],"accessrestrict_heading_ssm":["Access Restrictions"],"accessrestrict_tesim":["There are no access restrictions."],"arrangement_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eArranged by subject into one series.\u003c/p\u003e"],"arrangement_heading_ssm":["Arrangement"],"arrangement_tesim":["Arranged by subject into one series."],"bioghist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eArnold Goldman was a writer and professor of English and American literature. Born in Swampscott, MA, Goldman received degrees from both Harvard University and Yale University. Goldman taught at the Universities of Manchester, Sussex, and Keele in the United Kingdom, where he also served as Professor of American Studies. Much of Goldman's work focused on the writings of author James Joyce.\u003c/p\u003e"],"bioghist_heading_ssm":["Biographical Note"],"bioghist_tesim":["Arnold Goldman was a writer and professor of English and American literature. Born in Swampscott, MA, Goldman received degrees from both Harvard University and Yale University. Goldman taught at the Universities of Manchester, Sussex, and Keele in the United Kingdom, where he also served as Professor of American Studies. Much of Goldman's work focused on the writings of author James Joyce."],"prefercite_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eArnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection, C0173, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.\u003c/p\u003e"],"prefercite_tesim":["Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection, C0173, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries."],"processinfo_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eProcessing and EAD markup completed by Hal Barthold in 2011. Finding aid updated by Amanda Brent in February 2019.\u003c/p\u003e"],"processinfo_heading_ssm":["Processing Information"],"processinfo_tesim":["Processing and EAD markup completed by Hal Barthold in 2011. Finding aid updated by Amanda Brent in February 2019."],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Special Collections Research Center also holds the Federal Theatre Project collection.\u003c/p\u003e"],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Material"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["The Special Collections Research Center also holds the Federal Theatre Project collection."],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eConsists of research materials, mainly photocopies, of research on \"Injunction Granted\" published in Minnesota Review in 1973. Includes correspondence with Living Newspaper actors and interviews with Arthur Arent and Joseph Losey which occurred in the late 1960s and early 1970s. There is also other correspondence about the research, scripts, and research notes. Also, there are 3 black and white 8 x 10\" prints of a \"Injunction Granted\" performance, probably in the 1930s.\u003c/p\u003e"],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Content"],"scopecontent_tesim":["Consists of research materials, mainly photocopies, of research on \"Injunction Granted\" published in Minnesota Review in 1973. Includes correspondence with Living Newspaper actors and interviews with Arthur Arent and Joseph Losey which occurred in the late 1960s and early 1970s. There is also other correspondence about the research, scripts, and research notes. Also, there are 3 black and white 8 x 10\" prints of a \"Injunction Granted\" performance, probably in the 1930s."],"userestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)\u003c/p\u003e"],"userestrict_heading_ssm":["Use Restrictions"],"userestrict_tesim":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)"],"abstract_html_tesm":["\u003cabstract id=\"aspace_e7a75b7b6ff59b344922c4a792a07ffa\" label=\"Abstract\"\u003eConsists of research materials, mainly photocopies, of research on \"Injunction Granted\" published in Minnesota Review in 1973.\u003c/abstract\u003e"],"abstract_tesim":["Consists of research materials, mainly photocopies, of research on \"Injunction Granted\" published in Minnesota Review in 1973."],"names_coll_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","Arent, Arthur","Losey, Joseph"],"names_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","Goldman, Arnold","Arent, Arthur","Losey, Joseph"],"corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"persname_ssim":["Goldman, Arnold","Arent, Arthur","Losey, Joseph"],"language_ssim":["English"],"descrules_ssm":["Describing Archives: A Content Standard"],"total_component_count_is":7,"online_item_count_is":0,"component_level_isim":[0],"sort_isi":0,"timestamp":"2026-05-01T00:25:37.310Z","collection":{"numFound":1,"start":0,"numFoundExact":true,"docs":[{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_164","ead_ssi":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_164","_root_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_164","_nest_parent_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_164","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/GMU/repositories_2_resources_164.xml","title_filing_ssi":"Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection","title_ssm":["Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection"],"title_tesim":["Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection"],"unitdate_ssm":["1931-1973"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["1931-1973"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["C0173","/repositories/2/resources/164"],"text":["C0173","/repositories/2/resources/164","Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection","Living newspaper","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Interviews","Theater","Theater and society","Theater -- United States","Performing arts","Correspondence","There are no access restrictions.","Arranged by subject into one series.","Arnold Goldman was a writer and professor of English and American literature. Born in Swampscott, MA, Goldman received degrees from both Harvard University and Yale University. Goldman taught at the Universities of Manchester, Sussex, and Keele in the United Kingdom, where he also served as Professor of American Studies. Much of Goldman's work focused on the writings of author James Joyce.","Processing and EAD markup completed by Hal Barthold in 2011. Finding aid updated by Amanda Brent in February 2019.","The Special Collections Research Center also holds the Federal Theatre Project collection.","Consists of research materials, mainly photocopies, of research on \"Injunction Granted\" published in Minnesota Review in 1973. Includes correspondence with Living Newspaper actors and interviews with Arthur Arent and Joseph Losey which occurred in the late 1960s and early 1970s. There is also other correspondence about the research, scripts, and research notes. Also, there are 3 black and white 8 x 10\" prints of a \"Injunction Granted\" performance, probably in the 1930s.","The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)","Consists of research materials, mainly photocopies, of research on \"Injunction Granted\" published in Minnesota Review in 1973.","George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","Goldman, Arnold","Arent, Arthur","Losey, Joseph","English"],"unitid_tesim":["C0173","/repositories/2/resources/164"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection"],"collection_title_tesim":["Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection"],"collection_ssim":["Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection"],"repository_ssm":["George Mason University"],"repository_ssim":["George Mason University"],"creator_ssm":["Goldman, Arnold"],"creator_ssim":["Goldman, Arnold"],"creator_persname_ssim":["Goldman, Arnold"],"creators_ssim":["Goldman, Arnold"],"access_terms_ssm":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)"],"acqinfo_ssim":["Donated by Arnold Goldman in 2009."],"access_subjects_ssim":["Living newspaper","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Interviews","Theater","Theater and society","Theater -- United States","Performing arts","Correspondence"],"access_subjects_ssm":["Living newspaper","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Interviews","Theater","Theater and society","Theater -- United States","Performing arts","Correspondence"],"has_online_content_ssim":["false"],"extent_ssm":["0.5 Linear Feet 1 box"],"extent_tesim":["0.5 Linear Feet 1 box"],"genreform_ssim":["Correspondence"],"date_range_isim":[1931,1932,1933,1934,1935,1936,1937,1938,1939,1940,1941,1942,1943,1944,1945,1946,1947,1948,1949,1950,1951,1952,1953,1954,1955,1956,1957,1958,1959,1960,1961,1962,1963,1964,1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973],"accessrestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThere are no access restrictions.\u003c/p\u003e"],"accessrestrict_heading_ssm":["Access Restrictions"],"accessrestrict_tesim":["There are no access restrictions."],"arrangement_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eArranged by subject into one series.\u003c/p\u003e"],"arrangement_heading_ssm":["Arrangement"],"arrangement_tesim":["Arranged by subject into one series."],"bioghist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eArnold Goldman was a writer and professor of English and American literature. Born in Swampscott, MA, Goldman received degrees from both Harvard University and Yale University. Goldman taught at the Universities of Manchester, Sussex, and Keele in the United Kingdom, where he also served as Professor of American Studies. Much of Goldman's work focused on the writings of author James Joyce.\u003c/p\u003e"],"bioghist_heading_ssm":["Biographical Note"],"bioghist_tesim":["Arnold Goldman was a writer and professor of English and American literature. Born in Swampscott, MA, Goldman received degrees from both Harvard University and Yale University. Goldman taught at the Universities of Manchester, Sussex, and Keele in the United Kingdom, where he also served as Professor of American Studies. Much of Goldman's work focused on the writings of author James Joyce."],"prefercite_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eArnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection, C0173, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.\u003c/p\u003e"],"prefercite_tesim":["Arnold Goldman Living Newspaper collection, C0173, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries."],"processinfo_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eProcessing and EAD markup completed by Hal Barthold in 2011. Finding aid updated by Amanda Brent in February 2019.\u003c/p\u003e"],"processinfo_heading_ssm":["Processing Information"],"processinfo_tesim":["Processing and EAD markup completed by Hal Barthold in 2011. Finding aid updated by Amanda Brent in February 2019."],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Special Collections Research Center also holds the Federal Theatre Project collection.\u003c/p\u003e"],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Material"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["The Special Collections Research Center also holds the Federal Theatre Project collection."],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eConsists of research materials, mainly photocopies, of research on \"Injunction Granted\" published in Minnesota Review in 1973. Includes correspondence with Living Newspaper actors and interviews with Arthur Arent and Joseph Losey which occurred in the late 1960s and early 1970s. There is also other correspondence about the research, scripts, and research notes. Also, there are 3 black and white 8 x 10\" prints of a \"Injunction Granted\" performance, probably in the 1930s.\u003c/p\u003e"],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Content"],"scopecontent_tesim":["Consists of research materials, mainly photocopies, of research on \"Injunction Granted\" published in Minnesota Review in 1973. Includes correspondence with Living Newspaper actors and interviews with Arthur Arent and Joseph Losey which occurred in the late 1960s and early 1970s. There is also other correspondence about the research, scripts, and research notes. Also, there are 3 black and white 8 x 10\" prints of a \"Injunction Granted\" performance, probably in the 1930s."],"userestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)\u003c/p\u003e"],"userestrict_heading_ssm":["Use Restrictions"],"userestrict_tesim":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)"],"abstract_html_tesm":["\u003cabstract id=\"aspace_e7a75b7b6ff59b344922c4a792a07ffa\" label=\"Abstract\"\u003eConsists of research materials, mainly photocopies, of research on \"Injunction Granted\" published in Minnesota Review in 1973.\u003c/abstract\u003e"],"abstract_tesim":["Consists of research materials, mainly photocopies, of research on \"Injunction Granted\" published in Minnesota Review in 1973."],"names_coll_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","Arent, Arthur","Losey, Joseph"],"names_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","Goldman, Arnold","Arent, Arthur","Losey, Joseph"],"corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"persname_ssim":["Goldman, Arnold","Arent, Arthur","Losey, Joseph"],"language_ssim":["English"],"descrules_ssm":["Describing Archives: A Content Standard"],"total_component_count_is":7,"online_item_count_is":0,"component_level_isim":[0],"sort_isi":0,"timestamp":"2026-05-01T00:25:37.310Z"}]}},"label":"Breadcrumbs"}}},"links":{"self":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_164"}},{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_326","type":"collection","attributes":{"title":"Federal Theatre Project photograph collection","creator":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_326#creator","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","label":"Creator"}},"abstract_or_scope":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_326#abstract_or_scope","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"This collection consists of graphic materials relating to Federal Theatre Project productions from 1936 to 1939 across the United States, with the majority from New York City and Roslyn, New York, San Diego and San Francisco, California, and Chicago, Illinois. The collection is mostly comprised of black and white photographs ranging in size from 4x5 to 11x14 and duplicate prints, as well as a few negatives.","label":"Abstract Or Scope"}},"breadcrumbs":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_326#breadcrumbs","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_326","ead_ssi":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_326","_root_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_326","_nest_parent_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_326","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/GMU/repositories_2_resources_326.xml","title_ssm":["Federal Theatre Project photograph collection"],"title_tesim":["Federal Theatre Project photograph collection"],"unitdate_ssm":["1936-1939"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["1936-1939"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["C0205","/repositories/2/resources/326"],"text":["C0205","/repositories/2/resources/326","Federal Theatre Project photograph collection","Actors -- United States","Children's theater","Photography -- Negatives","Portraits","Theater -- New York (State) -- New York","Performing arts","Theater","Theater -- United States","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Photographs","Collection is open to research.","The costumes and set designs are also available as a series in the  .\nThere are photographs from this collection and other FTP collections in the  \nThere are also 35 mm microfiche negatives made from original Federal Theatre Project photographs in the early 1980s.","This collection is organized into three series. Series one is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city; by surname; or by subject. Series two is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city, or by subject. Series three is arranged alphabetically by surname.","Series Series 1: Production Photographs, 1936-1939 Series 2: Oversize Production Photographs,1936-1939 Series 3: Portraits, 1936-1939 Series 4: Microfiche, 1936-1939 Series 5: Printing Materials, 1936-1939","Organized in 1935, The Federal Theatre Project flourished as the first and only federally sponsored and subsidized theater program in the United States until its end in 1939. The FTP was a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided employment for large numbers of artists, writers, and performers during the Great Depression (1929-1939). Directed by Hallie Flanagan (1880-1969), the FTP provided employment for theatrical professionals throughout the United States during the Great Depression.  Actors, playwrights, scene designers and builders, seamstresses, lighting experts, ushers, box-office men, and stagehands all found employment through the FTP.","Like many New Deal programs implemented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Federal Theatre Project was intended not only to benefit its participants, but also to enrich the condition of the nation. Theater was a distinguished part of American popular culture, but the economic downturn of the Depression had bankrupted the entire theater industry. As the theater houses closed down, the nation was left without an outlet for theatrical creativity. According to Hallie Flanagan, this hurt the nation as much as it hurt the theater industry - indeed, the nation was their audience and the theater could provide entertaining distractions from the effects of Depression as well as offer commentary on present conditions.","But it was not enough to simply return to the pre-Depression concept of theater. In the first meeting with her staff Flanagan expressed her willingness to follow Roosevelt's experimental approach to public policy: \"In a changing world, a world of experiment, the stage too must experiment - with ideas, with the psychological relationship of men and women, with color and light.... The theatre must grow up.\"","Flanagan pursued her ideal of developing the relationship between the Federal Theatre and the federal government: \"Any theatre sponsored by the government of the United States should do no plays of a cheap, trivial, outworn or vulgar nature, but only such plays as the Government can stand proudly behind in a planned theatrical program, national in scope, regional in emphasis, and American in democratic attitude.\" To Flanagan, it was imperative that this new theater should be progressive and experimental, yet within a patriotic and informative framework.","The productions that best embodied Flanagan's views on theater were the Living Newspapers. These hard-hitting, poignant plays dealt with contemporary factual material, dramatizing issues such as housing, agriculture, labor, and destitution. Always ending on an upbeat note, Living Newspapers underscored the importance of hard work and morality in overcoming difficult times. Living Newspaper titles include: Triple A Plowed Under, Injunction Granted, One Third of a Nation, and Spirochete.","The Federal Theatre was noted for employing black Americans at a time when the Federal Government did not actively protect the rights of minorities. The \"Negro Theater\" (as it was called in the 1930s) was an established industry before the Depression, and it greatly contributed to the success of the Federal Theatre Project. Some of the most spectacular productions were put on by black theater professionals, for example: Macbeth, Haiti, Turpentine, Run Little Chillun, and The Trial of Dr. Beck.","Processed by Monica Johnson and Joey Romeo in 2012. EAD markup completed by Monica Johnson and Joey Romeo in 2012. Finding aid updated by Robert Vay and Amanda Menjivar in February 2023.","Special Collections Research Center holds the Federal Theatre Project collection, which includes numerous personal and organizational records as well as oral histories.","This collection consists of graphic materials relating to Federal Theatre Project productions from 1936 to 1939 across the United States, with the majority from New York City and Roslyn, New York, San Diego and San Francisco, California, and Chicago, Illinois. The collection is mostly comprised of black and white photographs ranging in size from 4x5 to 11x14 and duplicate prints, as well as a few negatives. ","Series one is titled Production Photographs. The series is comprised of photographs and negatives relating to productions, the majority of which are scene shots and portraits of employees, but the series also includes portraits of well-known figures of the day such as Eleanor Roosevelt and the Scottsboro Boys, and prints of audiences, caravan theater, children's theater, circus, community theater presentation, marionette construction, office personnel, posters, radio performances, rehearsals, sets, behind-the-scenes techniques, vaudeville, and workshops. Included are scene and stage production shots from living newspaper productions, such as \"Triple-A Plowed Under,\" \"Injunction Granted,\" \"1935,\" \"One-Third of a Nation,\" \"Power,\" and \"Spirochete,\" as well as from the Negro, Yiddish, and Radio units. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 1 to 82. It is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city; by surname; or by subject. Some of the subjects included are audience, circus, dance, marionette, publicity, set, technical, theatres, and workshops.  Duplicates can be found both within folders and across folders (more than one folder with the same heading); oversize duplicates are included in series two.","Series two is titled Oversize Production Photographs. The series is comprised of photographs relating to productions, including scene shots, stage and set shots, and portraits. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 83 to 88. The series is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city, or by subject. This series includes oversize duplicates from photographs contained in series one and series three.","Series three is titled Portraits. The series is comprised of headshots and portraits of actors, actresses, and directors involved in Federal Theatre productions. The series includes portraits of unidentified actors and actresses from various plays, such as \"It Can't Happen Here,\" \"No More Peace,\" \"Power,\" \"Sing for Your Supper,\" \"Processional,\" etc. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 88 to 93. The series is arranged alphabetically by surname. Duplicates can be found both within folders and across folders (more than one folder with the same heading); oversize duplicates are included in series two.","Series four is titled Microfiche. The series contains microfiche featuring a variety of subjects that are related to the Federal Theater Project. Each file contains at least one negative and one positive of each subject with most of the files having duplicates. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 95 to 104. It is arranged alphabetically by production title, by surname, or by subject. Some of the subjects included are actors, actresses, authors, audience, circus, dance, directors, employees, marionette, publicity, scenes, set, technical, theatres, and workshops.","Series five is titled Printing Materials. This series is split into three subseries: Zinc Plates and Mats, Woodblocks, and Mimeographs.This series contains zinc plates, mats, mimeographs and woodblocks that were used in the production of publications for the Federal Theater Project. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 105 to 112. The series is arranged alphabetically starting with productions and then going into portraits.","The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)","This collection consists of graphic materials relating to Federal Theatre Project productions from 1936 to 1939 across the United States, with the majority from New York City and Roslyn, New York, San Diego and San Francisco, California, and Chicago, Illinois. The collection is mostly comprised of black and white photographs ranging in size from 4x5 to 11x14 and duplicate prints, as well as a few negatives.","\nR 45, C 5, S 1 - C 6, S 7\n\n\nR 46, C 1, S 2 - S 4\n\n\nOS R 1, C 1, S 6\n","George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","English"],"unitid_tesim":["C0205","/repositories/2/resources/326"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Federal Theatre Project photograph collection"],"collection_title_tesim":["Federal Theatre Project photograph collection"],"collection_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project photograph collection"],"repository_ssm":["George Mason University"],"repository_ssim":["George Mason University"],"creator_ssm":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"creator_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"creator_corpname_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"creators_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"access_terms_ssm":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)"],"acqinfo_ssim":["Donated by the Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, and acquired through purchase."],"access_subjects_ssim":["Actors -- United States","Children's theater","Photography -- Negatives","Portraits","Theater -- New York (State) -- New York","Performing arts","Theater","Theater -- United States","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Photographs"],"access_subjects_ssm":["Actors -- United States","Children's theater","Photography -- Negatives","Portraits","Theater -- New York (State) -- New York","Performing arts","Theater","Theater -- United States","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Photographs"],"has_online_content_ssim":["false"],"extent_ssm":["47 Linear Feet 112 boxes"],"extent_tesim":["47 Linear Feet 112 boxes"],"genreform_ssim":["Photographs"],"date_range_isim":[1936,1937,1938,1939],"accessrestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eCollection is open to research.\u003c/p\u003e"],"accessrestrict_heading_ssm":["Access Restrictions"],"accessrestrict_tesim":["Collection is open to research."],"altformavail_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe costumes and set designs are also available as a series in the \u003cextptr href=\"https://mars.gmu.edu/handle/1920/3478\" title=\"FTP digital collection\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e.\nThere are photographs from this collection and other FTP collections in the \u003cextptr href=\"http://images.gmu.edu/luna/servlet/GMUDPSdps~23~23\" title=\"Federal Theatre Project collection\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\nThere are also 35 mm microfiche negatives made from original Federal Theatre Project photographs in the early 1980s.\u003c/p\u003e"],"altformavail_heading_ssm":["Alternative Form Available"],"altformavail_tesim":["The costumes and set designs are also available as a series in the  .\nThere are photographs from this collection and other FTP collections in the  \nThere are also 35 mm microfiche negatives made from original Federal Theatre Project photographs in the early 1980s."],"arrangement_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThis collection is organized into three series. Series one is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city; by surname; or by subject. Series two is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city, or by subject. Series three is arranged alphabetically by surname.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003clist type=\"ordered\"\u003e\n      \u003chead\u003eSeries\u003c/head\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 1: Production Photographs, 1936-1939\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 2: Oversize Production Photographs,1936-1939\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 3: Portraits, 1936-1939\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 4: Microfiche, 1936-1939\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 5: Printing Materials, 1936-1939\u003c/item\u003e\n    \u003c/list\u003e"],"arrangement_heading_ssm":["Arrangement"],"arrangement_tesim":["This collection is organized into three series. Series one is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city; by surname; or by subject. Series two is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city, or by subject. Series three is arranged alphabetically by surname.","Series Series 1: Production Photographs, 1936-1939 Series 2: Oversize Production Photographs,1936-1939 Series 3: Portraits, 1936-1939 Series 4: Microfiche, 1936-1939 Series 5: Printing Materials, 1936-1939"],"bioghist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eOrganized in 1935, The Federal Theatre Project flourished as the first and only federally sponsored and subsidized theater program in the United States until its end in 1939. The FTP was a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided employment for large numbers of artists, writers, and performers during the Great Depression (1929-1939). Directed by Hallie Flanagan (1880-1969), the FTP provided employment for theatrical professionals throughout the United States during the Great Depression.  Actors, playwrights, scene designers and builders, seamstresses, lighting experts, ushers, box-office men, and stagehands all found employment through the FTP.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eLike many New Deal programs implemented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Federal Theatre Project was intended not only to benefit its participants, but also to enrich the condition of the nation. Theater was a distinguished part of American popular culture, but the economic downturn of the Depression had bankrupted the entire theater industry. As the theater houses closed down, the nation was left without an outlet for theatrical creativity. According to Hallie Flanagan, this hurt the nation as much as it hurt the theater industry - indeed, the nation was their audience and the theater could provide entertaining distractions from the effects of Depression as well as offer commentary on present conditions.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eBut it was not enough to simply return to the pre-Depression concept of theater. In the first meeting with her staff Flanagan expressed her willingness to follow Roosevelt's experimental approach to public policy: \"In a changing world, a world of experiment, the stage too must experiment - with ideas, with the psychological relationship of men and women, with color and light.... The theatre must grow up.\"\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eFlanagan pursued her ideal of developing the relationship between the Federal Theatre and the federal government: \"Any theatre sponsored by the government of the United States should do no plays of a cheap, trivial, outworn or vulgar nature, but only such plays as the Government can stand proudly behind in a planned theatrical program, national in scope, regional in emphasis, and American in democratic attitude.\" To Flanagan, it was imperative that this new theater should be progressive and experimental, yet within a patriotic and informative framework.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eThe productions that best embodied Flanagan's views on theater were the Living Newspapers. These hard-hitting, poignant plays dealt with contemporary factual material, dramatizing issues such as housing, agriculture, labor, and destitution. Always ending on an upbeat note, Living Newspapers underscored the importance of hard work and morality in overcoming difficult times. Living Newspaper titles include: Triple A Plowed Under, Injunction Granted, One Third of a Nation, and Spirochete.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eThe Federal Theatre was noted for employing black Americans at a time when the Federal Government did not actively protect the rights of minorities. The \"Negro Theater\" (as it was called in the 1930s) was an established industry before the Depression, and it greatly contributed to the success of the Federal Theatre Project. Some of the most spectacular productions were put on by black theater professionals, for example: Macbeth, Haiti, Turpentine, Run Little Chillun, and The Trial of Dr. Beck.\u003c/p\u003e"],"bioghist_heading_ssm":["Historical Note"],"bioghist_tesim":["Organized in 1935, The Federal Theatre Project flourished as the first and only federally sponsored and subsidized theater program in the United States until its end in 1939. The FTP was a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided employment for large numbers of artists, writers, and performers during the Great Depression (1929-1939). Directed by Hallie Flanagan (1880-1969), the FTP provided employment for theatrical professionals throughout the United States during the Great Depression.  Actors, playwrights, scene designers and builders, seamstresses, lighting experts, ushers, box-office men, and stagehands all found employment through the FTP.","Like many New Deal programs implemented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Federal Theatre Project was intended not only to benefit its participants, but also to enrich the condition of the nation. Theater was a distinguished part of American popular culture, but the economic downturn of the Depression had bankrupted the entire theater industry. As the theater houses closed down, the nation was left without an outlet for theatrical creativity. According to Hallie Flanagan, this hurt the nation as much as it hurt the theater industry - indeed, the nation was their audience and the theater could provide entertaining distractions from the effects of Depression as well as offer commentary on present conditions.","But it was not enough to simply return to the pre-Depression concept of theater. In the first meeting with her staff Flanagan expressed her willingness to follow Roosevelt's experimental approach to public policy: \"In a changing world, a world of experiment, the stage too must experiment - with ideas, with the psychological relationship of men and women, with color and light.... The theatre must grow up.\"","Flanagan pursued her ideal of developing the relationship between the Federal Theatre and the federal government: \"Any theatre sponsored by the government of the United States should do no plays of a cheap, trivial, outworn or vulgar nature, but only such plays as the Government can stand proudly behind in a planned theatrical program, national in scope, regional in emphasis, and American in democratic attitude.\" To Flanagan, it was imperative that this new theater should be progressive and experimental, yet within a patriotic and informative framework.","The productions that best embodied Flanagan's views on theater were the Living Newspapers. These hard-hitting, poignant plays dealt with contemporary factual material, dramatizing issues such as housing, agriculture, labor, and destitution. Always ending on an upbeat note, Living Newspapers underscored the importance of hard work and morality in overcoming difficult times. Living Newspaper titles include: Triple A Plowed Under, Injunction Granted, One Third of a Nation, and Spirochete.","The Federal Theatre was noted for employing black Americans at a time when the Federal Government did not actively protect the rights of minorities. The \"Negro Theater\" (as it was called in the 1930s) was an established industry before the Depression, and it greatly contributed to the success of the Federal Theatre Project. Some of the most spectacular productions were put on by black theater professionals, for example: Macbeth, Haiti, Turpentine, Run Little Chillun, and The Trial of Dr. Beck."],"prefercite_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eFederal Theatre Project Photographs, C0205, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.\u003c/p\u003e"],"prefercite_tesim":["Federal Theatre Project Photographs, C0205, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries."],"processinfo_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eProcessed by Monica Johnson and Joey Romeo in 2012. EAD markup completed by Monica Johnson and Joey Romeo in 2012. Finding aid updated by Robert Vay and Amanda Menjivar in February 2023.\u003c/p\u003e"],"processinfo_heading_ssm":["Processing Information"],"processinfo_tesim":["Processed by Monica Johnson and Joey Romeo in 2012. EAD markup completed by Monica Johnson and Joey Romeo in 2012. Finding aid updated by Robert Vay and Amanda Menjivar in February 2023."],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eSpecial Collections Research Center holds the Federal Theatre Project collection, which includes numerous personal and organizational records as well as oral histories.\u003c/p\u003e"],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Material"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["Special Collections Research Center holds the Federal Theatre Project collection, which includes numerous personal and organizational records as well as oral histories."],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThis collection consists of graphic materials relating to Federal Theatre Project productions from 1936 to 1939 across the United States, with the majority from New York City and Roslyn, New York, San Diego and San Francisco, California, and Chicago, Illinois. The collection is mostly comprised of black and white photographs ranging in size from 4x5 to 11x14 and duplicate prints, as well as a few negatives. \u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries one is titled Production Photographs. The series is comprised of photographs and negatives relating to productions, the majority of which are scene shots and portraits of employees, but the series also includes portraits of well-known figures of the day such as Eleanor Roosevelt and the Scottsboro Boys, and prints of audiences, caravan theater, children's theater, circus, community theater presentation, marionette construction, office personnel, posters, radio performances, rehearsals, sets, behind-the-scenes techniques, vaudeville, and workshops. Included are scene and stage production shots from living newspaper productions, such as \"Triple-A Plowed Under,\" \"Injunction Granted,\" \"1935,\" \"One-Third of a Nation,\" \"Power,\" and \"Spirochete,\" as well as from the Negro, Yiddish, and Radio units. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 1 to 82. It is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city; by surname; or by subject. Some of the subjects included are audience, circus, dance, marionette, publicity, set, technical, theatres, and workshops.  Duplicates can be found both within folders and across folders (more than one folder with the same heading); oversize duplicates are included in series two.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries two is titled Oversize Production Photographs. The series is comprised of photographs relating to productions, including scene shots, stage and set shots, and portraits. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 83 to 88. The series is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city, or by subject. This series includes oversize duplicates from photographs contained in series one and series three.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries three is titled Portraits. The series is comprised of headshots and portraits of actors, actresses, and directors involved in Federal Theatre productions. The series includes portraits of unidentified actors and actresses from various plays, such as \"It Can't Happen Here,\" \"No More Peace,\" \"Power,\" \"Sing for Your Supper,\" \"Processional,\" etc. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 88 to 93. The series is arranged alphabetically by surname. Duplicates can be found both within folders and across folders (more than one folder with the same heading); oversize duplicates are included in series two.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries four is titled Microfiche. The series contains microfiche featuring a variety of subjects that are related to the Federal Theater Project. Each file contains at least one negative and one positive of each subject with most of the files having duplicates. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 95 to 104. It is arranged alphabetically by production title, by surname, or by subject. Some of the subjects included are actors, actresses, authors, audience, circus, dance, directors, employees, marionette, publicity, scenes, set, technical, theatres, and workshops.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries five is titled Printing Materials. This series is split into three subseries: Zinc Plates and Mats, Woodblocks, and Mimeographs.This series contains zinc plates, mats, mimeographs and woodblocks that were used in the production of publications for the Federal Theater Project. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 105 to 112. The series is arranged alphabetically starting with productions and then going into portraits.\u003c/p\u003e"],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Content"],"scopecontent_tesim":["This collection consists of graphic materials relating to Federal Theatre Project productions from 1936 to 1939 across the United States, with the majority from New York City and Roslyn, New York, San Diego and San Francisco, California, and Chicago, Illinois. The collection is mostly comprised of black and white photographs ranging in size from 4x5 to 11x14 and duplicate prints, as well as a few negatives. ","Series one is titled Production Photographs. The series is comprised of photographs and negatives relating to productions, the majority of which are scene shots and portraits of employees, but the series also includes portraits of well-known figures of the day such as Eleanor Roosevelt and the Scottsboro Boys, and prints of audiences, caravan theater, children's theater, circus, community theater presentation, marionette construction, office personnel, posters, radio performances, rehearsals, sets, behind-the-scenes techniques, vaudeville, and workshops. Included are scene and stage production shots from living newspaper productions, such as \"Triple-A Plowed Under,\" \"Injunction Granted,\" \"1935,\" \"One-Third of a Nation,\" \"Power,\" and \"Spirochete,\" as well as from the Negro, Yiddish, and Radio units. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 1 to 82. It is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city; by surname; or by subject. Some of the subjects included are audience, circus, dance, marionette, publicity, set, technical, theatres, and workshops.  Duplicates can be found both within folders and across folders (more than one folder with the same heading); oversize duplicates are included in series two.","Series two is titled Oversize Production Photographs. The series is comprised of photographs relating to productions, including scene shots, stage and set shots, and portraits. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 83 to 88. The series is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city, or by subject. This series includes oversize duplicates from photographs contained in series one and series three.","Series three is titled Portraits. The series is comprised of headshots and portraits of actors, actresses, and directors involved in Federal Theatre productions. The series includes portraits of unidentified actors and actresses from various plays, such as \"It Can't Happen Here,\" \"No More Peace,\" \"Power,\" \"Sing for Your Supper,\" \"Processional,\" etc. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 88 to 93. The series is arranged alphabetically by surname. Duplicates can be found both within folders and across folders (more than one folder with the same heading); oversize duplicates are included in series two.","Series four is titled Microfiche. The series contains microfiche featuring a variety of subjects that are related to the Federal Theater Project. Each file contains at least one negative and one positive of each subject with most of the files having duplicates. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 95 to 104. It is arranged alphabetically by production title, by surname, or by subject. Some of the subjects included are actors, actresses, authors, audience, circus, dance, directors, employees, marionette, publicity, scenes, set, technical, theatres, and workshops.","Series five is titled Printing Materials. This series is split into three subseries: Zinc Plates and Mats, Woodblocks, and Mimeographs.This series contains zinc plates, mats, mimeographs and woodblocks that were used in the production of publications for the Federal Theater Project. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 105 to 112. The series is arranged alphabetically starting with productions and then going into portraits."],"userestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)\u003c/p\u003e"],"userestrict_heading_ssm":["Use Restrictions"],"userestrict_tesim":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)"],"abstract_html_tesm":["\u003cabstract id=\"aspace_f5b0d867296cd5f5a7d9d818b302d6d9\" label=\"Abstract\"\u003eThis collection consists of graphic materials relating to Federal Theatre Project productions from 1936 to 1939 across the United States, with the majority from New York City and Roslyn, New York, San Diego and San Francisco, California, and Chicago, Illinois. The collection is mostly comprised of black and white photographs ranging in size from 4x5 to 11x14 and duplicate prints, as well as a few negatives.\u003c/abstract\u003e"],"abstract_tesim":["This collection consists of graphic materials relating to Federal Theatre Project productions from 1936 to 1939 across the United States, with the majority from New York City and Roslyn, New York, San Diego and San Francisco, California, and Chicago, Illinois. The collection is mostly comprised of black and white photographs ranging in size from 4x5 to 11x14 and duplicate prints, as well as a few negatives."],"physloc_html_tesm":["\u003cphysloc id=\"aspace_306ca932fdff8272ef5beb3b37fe58f1\"\u003e\nR 45, C 5, S 1 - C 6, S 7\n\n\nR 46, C 1, S 2 - S 4\n\n\nOS R 1, C 1, S 6\n\u003c/physloc\u003e"],"physloc_tesim":["\nR 45, C 5, S 1 - C 6, S 7\n\n\nR 46, C 1, S 2 - S 4\n\n\nOS R 1, C 1, S 6\n"],"names_coll_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"names_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"language_ssim":["English"],"descrules_ssm":["Describing Archives: A Content Standard"],"total_component_count_is":3844,"online_item_count_is":0,"component_level_isim":[0],"sort_isi":0,"timestamp":"2026-05-01T00:25:37.310Z","collection":{"numFound":1,"start":0,"numFoundExact":true,"docs":[{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_326","ead_ssi":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_326","_root_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_326","_nest_parent_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_326","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/GMU/repositories_2_resources_326.xml","title_ssm":["Federal Theatre Project photograph collection"],"title_tesim":["Federal Theatre Project photograph collection"],"unitdate_ssm":["1936-1939"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["1936-1939"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["C0205","/repositories/2/resources/326"],"text":["C0205","/repositories/2/resources/326","Federal Theatre Project photograph collection","Actors -- United States","Children's theater","Photography -- Negatives","Portraits","Theater -- New York (State) -- New York","Performing arts","Theater","Theater -- United States","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Photographs","Collection is open to research.","The costumes and set designs are also available as a series in the  .\nThere are photographs from this collection and other FTP collections in the  \nThere are also 35 mm microfiche negatives made from original Federal Theatre Project photographs in the early 1980s.","This collection is organized into three series. Series one is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city; by surname; or by subject. Series two is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city, or by subject. Series three is arranged alphabetically by surname.","Series Series 1: Production Photographs, 1936-1939 Series 2: Oversize Production Photographs,1936-1939 Series 3: Portraits, 1936-1939 Series 4: Microfiche, 1936-1939 Series 5: Printing Materials, 1936-1939","Organized in 1935, The Federal Theatre Project flourished as the first and only federally sponsored and subsidized theater program in the United States until its end in 1939. The FTP was a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided employment for large numbers of artists, writers, and performers during the Great Depression (1929-1939). Directed by Hallie Flanagan (1880-1969), the FTP provided employment for theatrical professionals throughout the United States during the Great Depression.  Actors, playwrights, scene designers and builders, seamstresses, lighting experts, ushers, box-office men, and stagehands all found employment through the FTP.","Like many New Deal programs implemented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Federal Theatre Project was intended not only to benefit its participants, but also to enrich the condition of the nation. Theater was a distinguished part of American popular culture, but the economic downturn of the Depression had bankrupted the entire theater industry. As the theater houses closed down, the nation was left without an outlet for theatrical creativity. According to Hallie Flanagan, this hurt the nation as much as it hurt the theater industry - indeed, the nation was their audience and the theater could provide entertaining distractions from the effects of Depression as well as offer commentary on present conditions.","But it was not enough to simply return to the pre-Depression concept of theater. In the first meeting with her staff Flanagan expressed her willingness to follow Roosevelt's experimental approach to public policy: \"In a changing world, a world of experiment, the stage too must experiment - with ideas, with the psychological relationship of men and women, with color and light.... The theatre must grow up.\"","Flanagan pursued her ideal of developing the relationship between the Federal Theatre and the federal government: \"Any theatre sponsored by the government of the United States should do no plays of a cheap, trivial, outworn or vulgar nature, but only such plays as the Government can stand proudly behind in a planned theatrical program, national in scope, regional in emphasis, and American in democratic attitude.\" To Flanagan, it was imperative that this new theater should be progressive and experimental, yet within a patriotic and informative framework.","The productions that best embodied Flanagan's views on theater were the Living Newspapers. These hard-hitting, poignant plays dealt with contemporary factual material, dramatizing issues such as housing, agriculture, labor, and destitution. Always ending on an upbeat note, Living Newspapers underscored the importance of hard work and morality in overcoming difficult times. Living Newspaper titles include: Triple A Plowed Under, Injunction Granted, One Third of a Nation, and Spirochete.","The Federal Theatre was noted for employing black Americans at a time when the Federal Government did not actively protect the rights of minorities. The \"Negro Theater\" (as it was called in the 1930s) was an established industry before the Depression, and it greatly contributed to the success of the Federal Theatre Project. Some of the most spectacular productions were put on by black theater professionals, for example: Macbeth, Haiti, Turpentine, Run Little Chillun, and The Trial of Dr. Beck.","Processed by Monica Johnson and Joey Romeo in 2012. EAD markup completed by Monica Johnson and Joey Romeo in 2012. Finding aid updated by Robert Vay and Amanda Menjivar in February 2023.","Special Collections Research Center holds the Federal Theatre Project collection, which includes numerous personal and organizational records as well as oral histories.","This collection consists of graphic materials relating to Federal Theatre Project productions from 1936 to 1939 across the United States, with the majority from New York City and Roslyn, New York, San Diego and San Francisco, California, and Chicago, Illinois. The collection is mostly comprised of black and white photographs ranging in size from 4x5 to 11x14 and duplicate prints, as well as a few negatives. ","Series one is titled Production Photographs. The series is comprised of photographs and negatives relating to productions, the majority of which are scene shots and portraits of employees, but the series also includes portraits of well-known figures of the day such as Eleanor Roosevelt and the Scottsboro Boys, and prints of audiences, caravan theater, children's theater, circus, community theater presentation, marionette construction, office personnel, posters, radio performances, rehearsals, sets, behind-the-scenes techniques, vaudeville, and workshops. Included are scene and stage production shots from living newspaper productions, such as \"Triple-A Plowed Under,\" \"Injunction Granted,\" \"1935,\" \"One-Third of a Nation,\" \"Power,\" and \"Spirochete,\" as well as from the Negro, Yiddish, and Radio units. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 1 to 82. It is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city; by surname; or by subject. Some of the subjects included are audience, circus, dance, marionette, publicity, set, technical, theatres, and workshops.  Duplicates can be found both within folders and across folders (more than one folder with the same heading); oversize duplicates are included in series two.","Series two is titled Oversize Production Photographs. The series is comprised of photographs relating to productions, including scene shots, stage and set shots, and portraits. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 83 to 88. The series is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city, or by subject. This series includes oversize duplicates from photographs contained in series one and series three.","Series three is titled Portraits. The series is comprised of headshots and portraits of actors, actresses, and directors involved in Federal Theatre productions. The series includes portraits of unidentified actors and actresses from various plays, such as \"It Can't Happen Here,\" \"No More Peace,\" \"Power,\" \"Sing for Your Supper,\" \"Processional,\" etc. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 88 to 93. The series is arranged alphabetically by surname. Duplicates can be found both within folders and across folders (more than one folder with the same heading); oversize duplicates are included in series two.","Series four is titled Microfiche. The series contains microfiche featuring a variety of subjects that are related to the Federal Theater Project. Each file contains at least one negative and one positive of each subject with most of the files having duplicates. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 95 to 104. It is arranged alphabetically by production title, by surname, or by subject. Some of the subjects included are actors, actresses, authors, audience, circus, dance, directors, employees, marionette, publicity, scenes, set, technical, theatres, and workshops.","Series five is titled Printing Materials. This series is split into three subseries: Zinc Plates and Mats, Woodblocks, and Mimeographs.This series contains zinc plates, mats, mimeographs and woodblocks that were used in the production of publications for the Federal Theater Project. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 105 to 112. The series is arranged alphabetically starting with productions and then going into portraits.","The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)","This collection consists of graphic materials relating to Federal Theatre Project productions from 1936 to 1939 across the United States, with the majority from New York City and Roslyn, New York, San Diego and San Francisco, California, and Chicago, Illinois. The collection is mostly comprised of black and white photographs ranging in size from 4x5 to 11x14 and duplicate prints, as well as a few negatives.","\nR 45, C 5, S 1 - C 6, S 7\n\n\nR 46, C 1, S 2 - S 4\n\n\nOS R 1, C 1, S 6\n","George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","English"],"unitid_tesim":["C0205","/repositories/2/resources/326"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Federal Theatre Project photograph collection"],"collection_title_tesim":["Federal Theatre Project photograph collection"],"collection_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project photograph collection"],"repository_ssm":["George Mason University"],"repository_ssim":["George Mason University"],"creator_ssm":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"creator_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"creator_corpname_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"creators_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"access_terms_ssm":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)"],"acqinfo_ssim":["Donated by the Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, and acquired through purchase."],"access_subjects_ssim":["Actors -- United States","Children's theater","Photography -- Negatives","Portraits","Theater -- New York (State) -- New York","Performing arts","Theater","Theater -- United States","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Photographs"],"access_subjects_ssm":["Actors -- United States","Children's theater","Photography -- Negatives","Portraits","Theater -- New York (State) -- New York","Performing arts","Theater","Theater -- United States","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Photographs"],"has_online_content_ssim":["false"],"extent_ssm":["47 Linear Feet 112 boxes"],"extent_tesim":["47 Linear Feet 112 boxes"],"genreform_ssim":["Photographs"],"date_range_isim":[1936,1937,1938,1939],"accessrestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eCollection is open to research.\u003c/p\u003e"],"accessrestrict_heading_ssm":["Access Restrictions"],"accessrestrict_tesim":["Collection is open to research."],"altformavail_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe costumes and set designs are also available as a series in the \u003cextptr href=\"https://mars.gmu.edu/handle/1920/3478\" title=\"FTP digital collection\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e.\nThere are photographs from this collection and other FTP collections in the \u003cextptr href=\"http://images.gmu.edu/luna/servlet/GMUDPSdps~23~23\" title=\"Federal Theatre Project collection\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\nThere are also 35 mm microfiche negatives made from original Federal Theatre Project photographs in the early 1980s.\u003c/p\u003e"],"altformavail_heading_ssm":["Alternative Form Available"],"altformavail_tesim":["The costumes and set designs are also available as a series in the  .\nThere are photographs from this collection and other FTP collections in the  \nThere are also 35 mm microfiche negatives made from original Federal Theatre Project photographs in the early 1980s."],"arrangement_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThis collection is organized into three series. Series one is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city; by surname; or by subject. Series two is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city, or by subject. Series three is arranged alphabetically by surname.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003clist type=\"ordered\"\u003e\n      \u003chead\u003eSeries\u003c/head\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 1: Production Photographs, 1936-1939\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 2: Oversize Production Photographs,1936-1939\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 3: Portraits, 1936-1939\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 4: Microfiche, 1936-1939\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 5: Printing Materials, 1936-1939\u003c/item\u003e\n    \u003c/list\u003e"],"arrangement_heading_ssm":["Arrangement"],"arrangement_tesim":["This collection is organized into three series. Series one is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city; by surname; or by subject. Series two is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city, or by subject. Series three is arranged alphabetically by surname.","Series Series 1: Production Photographs, 1936-1939 Series 2: Oversize Production Photographs,1936-1939 Series 3: Portraits, 1936-1939 Series 4: Microfiche, 1936-1939 Series 5: Printing Materials, 1936-1939"],"bioghist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eOrganized in 1935, The Federal Theatre Project flourished as the first and only federally sponsored and subsidized theater program in the United States until its end in 1939. The FTP was a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided employment for large numbers of artists, writers, and performers during the Great Depression (1929-1939). Directed by Hallie Flanagan (1880-1969), the FTP provided employment for theatrical professionals throughout the United States during the Great Depression.  Actors, playwrights, scene designers and builders, seamstresses, lighting experts, ushers, box-office men, and stagehands all found employment through the FTP.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eLike many New Deal programs implemented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Federal Theatre Project was intended not only to benefit its participants, but also to enrich the condition of the nation. Theater was a distinguished part of American popular culture, but the economic downturn of the Depression had bankrupted the entire theater industry. As the theater houses closed down, the nation was left without an outlet for theatrical creativity. According to Hallie Flanagan, this hurt the nation as much as it hurt the theater industry - indeed, the nation was their audience and the theater could provide entertaining distractions from the effects of Depression as well as offer commentary on present conditions.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eBut it was not enough to simply return to the pre-Depression concept of theater. In the first meeting with her staff Flanagan expressed her willingness to follow Roosevelt's experimental approach to public policy: \"In a changing world, a world of experiment, the stage too must experiment - with ideas, with the psychological relationship of men and women, with color and light.... The theatre must grow up.\"\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eFlanagan pursued her ideal of developing the relationship between the Federal Theatre and the federal government: \"Any theatre sponsored by the government of the United States should do no plays of a cheap, trivial, outworn or vulgar nature, but only such plays as the Government can stand proudly behind in a planned theatrical program, national in scope, regional in emphasis, and American in democratic attitude.\" To Flanagan, it was imperative that this new theater should be progressive and experimental, yet within a patriotic and informative framework.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eThe productions that best embodied Flanagan's views on theater were the Living Newspapers. These hard-hitting, poignant plays dealt with contemporary factual material, dramatizing issues such as housing, agriculture, labor, and destitution. Always ending on an upbeat note, Living Newspapers underscored the importance of hard work and morality in overcoming difficult times. Living Newspaper titles include: Triple A Plowed Under, Injunction Granted, One Third of a Nation, and Spirochete.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eThe Federal Theatre was noted for employing black Americans at a time when the Federal Government did not actively protect the rights of minorities. The \"Negro Theater\" (as it was called in the 1930s) was an established industry before the Depression, and it greatly contributed to the success of the Federal Theatre Project. Some of the most spectacular productions were put on by black theater professionals, for example: Macbeth, Haiti, Turpentine, Run Little Chillun, and The Trial of Dr. Beck.\u003c/p\u003e"],"bioghist_heading_ssm":["Historical Note"],"bioghist_tesim":["Organized in 1935, The Federal Theatre Project flourished as the first and only federally sponsored and subsidized theater program in the United States until its end in 1939. The FTP was a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided employment for large numbers of artists, writers, and performers during the Great Depression (1929-1939). Directed by Hallie Flanagan (1880-1969), the FTP provided employment for theatrical professionals throughout the United States during the Great Depression.  Actors, playwrights, scene designers and builders, seamstresses, lighting experts, ushers, box-office men, and stagehands all found employment through the FTP.","Like many New Deal programs implemented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Federal Theatre Project was intended not only to benefit its participants, but also to enrich the condition of the nation. Theater was a distinguished part of American popular culture, but the economic downturn of the Depression had bankrupted the entire theater industry. As the theater houses closed down, the nation was left without an outlet for theatrical creativity. According to Hallie Flanagan, this hurt the nation as much as it hurt the theater industry - indeed, the nation was their audience and the theater could provide entertaining distractions from the effects of Depression as well as offer commentary on present conditions.","But it was not enough to simply return to the pre-Depression concept of theater. In the first meeting with her staff Flanagan expressed her willingness to follow Roosevelt's experimental approach to public policy: \"In a changing world, a world of experiment, the stage too must experiment - with ideas, with the psychological relationship of men and women, with color and light.... The theatre must grow up.\"","Flanagan pursued her ideal of developing the relationship between the Federal Theatre and the federal government: \"Any theatre sponsored by the government of the United States should do no plays of a cheap, trivial, outworn or vulgar nature, but only such plays as the Government can stand proudly behind in a planned theatrical program, national in scope, regional in emphasis, and American in democratic attitude.\" To Flanagan, it was imperative that this new theater should be progressive and experimental, yet within a patriotic and informative framework.","The productions that best embodied Flanagan's views on theater were the Living Newspapers. These hard-hitting, poignant plays dealt with contemporary factual material, dramatizing issues such as housing, agriculture, labor, and destitution. Always ending on an upbeat note, Living Newspapers underscored the importance of hard work and morality in overcoming difficult times. Living Newspaper titles include: Triple A Plowed Under, Injunction Granted, One Third of a Nation, and Spirochete.","The Federal Theatre was noted for employing black Americans at a time when the Federal Government did not actively protect the rights of minorities. The \"Negro Theater\" (as it was called in the 1930s) was an established industry before the Depression, and it greatly contributed to the success of the Federal Theatre Project. Some of the most spectacular productions were put on by black theater professionals, for example: Macbeth, Haiti, Turpentine, Run Little Chillun, and The Trial of Dr. Beck."],"prefercite_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eFederal Theatre Project Photographs, C0205, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.\u003c/p\u003e"],"prefercite_tesim":["Federal Theatre Project Photographs, C0205, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries."],"processinfo_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eProcessed by Monica Johnson and Joey Romeo in 2012. EAD markup completed by Monica Johnson and Joey Romeo in 2012. Finding aid updated by Robert Vay and Amanda Menjivar in February 2023.\u003c/p\u003e"],"processinfo_heading_ssm":["Processing Information"],"processinfo_tesim":["Processed by Monica Johnson and Joey Romeo in 2012. EAD markup completed by Monica Johnson and Joey Romeo in 2012. Finding aid updated by Robert Vay and Amanda Menjivar in February 2023."],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eSpecial Collections Research Center holds the Federal Theatre Project collection, which includes numerous personal and organizational records as well as oral histories.\u003c/p\u003e"],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Material"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["Special Collections Research Center holds the Federal Theatre Project collection, which includes numerous personal and organizational records as well as oral histories."],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThis collection consists of graphic materials relating to Federal Theatre Project productions from 1936 to 1939 across the United States, with the majority from New York City and Roslyn, New York, San Diego and San Francisco, California, and Chicago, Illinois. The collection is mostly comprised of black and white photographs ranging in size from 4x5 to 11x14 and duplicate prints, as well as a few negatives. \u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries one is titled Production Photographs. The series is comprised of photographs and negatives relating to productions, the majority of which are scene shots and portraits of employees, but the series also includes portraits of well-known figures of the day such as Eleanor Roosevelt and the Scottsboro Boys, and prints of audiences, caravan theater, children's theater, circus, community theater presentation, marionette construction, office personnel, posters, radio performances, rehearsals, sets, behind-the-scenes techniques, vaudeville, and workshops. Included are scene and stage production shots from living newspaper productions, such as \"Triple-A Plowed Under,\" \"Injunction Granted,\" \"1935,\" \"One-Third of a Nation,\" \"Power,\" and \"Spirochete,\" as well as from the Negro, Yiddish, and Radio units. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 1 to 82. It is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city; by surname; or by subject. Some of the subjects included are audience, circus, dance, marionette, publicity, set, technical, theatres, and workshops.  Duplicates can be found both within folders and across folders (more than one folder with the same heading); oversize duplicates are included in series two.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries two is titled Oversize Production Photographs. The series is comprised of photographs relating to productions, including scene shots, stage and set shots, and portraits. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 83 to 88. The series is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city, or by subject. This series includes oversize duplicates from photographs contained in series one and series three.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries three is titled Portraits. The series is comprised of headshots and portraits of actors, actresses, and directors involved in Federal Theatre productions. The series includes portraits of unidentified actors and actresses from various plays, such as \"It Can't Happen Here,\" \"No More Peace,\" \"Power,\" \"Sing for Your Supper,\" \"Processional,\" etc. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 88 to 93. The series is arranged alphabetically by surname. Duplicates can be found both within folders and across folders (more than one folder with the same heading); oversize duplicates are included in series two.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries four is titled Microfiche. The series contains microfiche featuring a variety of subjects that are related to the Federal Theater Project. Each file contains at least one negative and one positive of each subject with most of the files having duplicates. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 95 to 104. It is arranged alphabetically by production title, by surname, or by subject. Some of the subjects included are actors, actresses, authors, audience, circus, dance, directors, employees, marionette, publicity, scenes, set, technical, theatres, and workshops.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries five is titled Printing Materials. This series is split into three subseries: Zinc Plates and Mats, Woodblocks, and Mimeographs.This series contains zinc plates, mats, mimeographs and woodblocks that were used in the production of publications for the Federal Theater Project. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 105 to 112. The series is arranged alphabetically starting with productions and then going into portraits.\u003c/p\u003e"],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Content"],"scopecontent_tesim":["This collection consists of graphic materials relating to Federal Theatre Project productions from 1936 to 1939 across the United States, with the majority from New York City and Roslyn, New York, San Diego and San Francisco, California, and Chicago, Illinois. The collection is mostly comprised of black and white photographs ranging in size from 4x5 to 11x14 and duplicate prints, as well as a few negatives. ","Series one is titled Production Photographs. The series is comprised of photographs and negatives relating to productions, the majority of which are scene shots and portraits of employees, but the series also includes portraits of well-known figures of the day such as Eleanor Roosevelt and the Scottsboro Boys, and prints of audiences, caravan theater, children's theater, circus, community theater presentation, marionette construction, office personnel, posters, radio performances, rehearsals, sets, behind-the-scenes techniques, vaudeville, and workshops. Included are scene and stage production shots from living newspaper productions, such as \"Triple-A Plowed Under,\" \"Injunction Granted,\" \"1935,\" \"One-Third of a Nation,\" \"Power,\" and \"Spirochete,\" as well as from the Negro, Yiddish, and Radio units. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 1 to 82. It is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city; by surname; or by subject. Some of the subjects included are audience, circus, dance, marionette, publicity, set, technical, theatres, and workshops.  Duplicates can be found both within folders and across folders (more than one folder with the same heading); oversize duplicates are included in series two.","Series two is titled Oversize Production Photographs. The series is comprised of photographs relating to productions, including scene shots, stage and set shots, and portraits. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 83 to 88. The series is arranged alphabetically by production title, state and city, or by subject. This series includes oversize duplicates from photographs contained in series one and series three.","Series three is titled Portraits. The series is comprised of headshots and portraits of actors, actresses, and directors involved in Federal Theatre productions. The series includes portraits of unidentified actors and actresses from various plays, such as \"It Can't Happen Here,\" \"No More Peace,\" \"Power,\" \"Sing for Your Supper,\" \"Processional,\" etc. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 88 to 93. The series is arranged alphabetically by surname. Duplicates can be found both within folders and across folders (more than one folder with the same heading); oversize duplicates are included in series two.","Series four is titled Microfiche. The series contains microfiche featuring a variety of subjects that are related to the Federal Theater Project. Each file contains at least one negative and one positive of each subject with most of the files having duplicates. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 95 to 104. It is arranged alphabetically by production title, by surname, or by subject. Some of the subjects included are actors, actresses, authors, audience, circus, dance, directors, employees, marionette, publicity, scenes, set, technical, theatres, and workshops.","Series five is titled Printing Materials. This series is split into three subseries: Zinc Plates and Mats, Woodblocks, and Mimeographs.This series contains zinc plates, mats, mimeographs and woodblocks that were used in the production of publications for the Federal Theater Project. The series is dated from 1936 to 1939 and is contained in boxes 105 to 112. The series is arranged alphabetically starting with productions and then going into portraits."],"userestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)\u003c/p\u003e"],"userestrict_heading_ssm":["Use Restrictions"],"userestrict_tesim":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)"],"abstract_html_tesm":["\u003cabstract id=\"aspace_f5b0d867296cd5f5a7d9d818b302d6d9\" label=\"Abstract\"\u003eThis collection consists of graphic materials relating to Federal Theatre Project productions from 1936 to 1939 across the United States, with the majority from New York City and Roslyn, New York, San Diego and San Francisco, California, and Chicago, Illinois. The collection is mostly comprised of black and white photographs ranging in size from 4x5 to 11x14 and duplicate prints, as well as a few negatives.\u003c/abstract\u003e"],"abstract_tesim":["This collection consists of graphic materials relating to Federal Theatre Project productions from 1936 to 1939 across the United States, with the majority from New York City and Roslyn, New York, San Diego and San Francisco, California, and Chicago, Illinois. The collection is mostly comprised of black and white photographs ranging in size from 4x5 to 11x14 and duplicate prints, as well as a few negatives."],"physloc_html_tesm":["\u003cphysloc id=\"aspace_306ca932fdff8272ef5beb3b37fe58f1\"\u003e\nR 45, C 5, S 1 - C 6, S 7\n\n\nR 46, C 1, S 2 - S 4\n\n\nOS R 1, C 1, S 6\n\u003c/physloc\u003e"],"physloc_tesim":["\nR 45, C 5, S 1 - C 6, S 7\n\n\nR 46, C 1, S 2 - S 4\n\n\nOS R 1, C 1, S 6\n"],"names_coll_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"names_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"language_ssim":["English"],"descrules_ssm":["Describing Archives: A Content Standard"],"total_component_count_is":3844,"online_item_count_is":0,"component_level_isim":[0],"sort_isi":0,"timestamp":"2026-05-01T00:25:37.310Z"}]}},"label":"Breadcrumbs"}}},"links":{"self":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_326"}},{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_602","type":"collection","attributes":{"title":"Living Stage records","abstract_or_scope":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_602#abstract_or_scope","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"The Living Stage records documents the Living Stage Theatre Company, founded by Robert Alexander as an offshoot of Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. The records were created from 1965-2001.","label":"Abstract Or Scope"}},"breadcrumbs":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_602#breadcrumbs","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_602","ead_ssi":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_602","_root_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_602","_nest_parent_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_602","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/GMU/repositories_2_resources_602.xml","title_filing_ssi":"Living Stage records","title_ssm":["Living Stage records"],"title_tesim":["Living Stage records"],"unitdate_ssm":["1965-2001"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["1965-2001"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["C0277","/repositories/2/resources/602"],"text":["C0277","/repositories/2/resources/602","Living Stage records","Washington (D.C.)","Acting","People with mental disabilities -- Services for -- United States","Performance art -- Photographs","Public schools -- Virginia","Radicalism -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Students -- Photographs","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- Washington (D.C.)","Theater programs","Playscript","There are no access restrictions on Series 1 and 2. Please see the Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements note for access information on Series 3.","The collection is divided into three series, each of which is divided into subseries.","Series Series 1: Administrative and Financial Files, 1965-2000 (Boxes 1-56) Series 2: Artistic and Workshop Files, 1966-2001 (Boxes 57-85) Series 3: Audiovisual and Photographic Materials, 1967-1999 (Boxes 86-106)","The Living Stage Theatre Company began in 1966 as a venture of Arena Stage and Robert Alexander. Known from 1966-1968 as The Children's Theatre, the Living Stage from the beginning dedicated itself to programming with a social consciousness and a desire to effect societal change through performance. Robert Alexander was the theatre's founder and until 1995 its director. Alexander brought an adapted street and guerilla theater style to the D.C. area after becoming disenchanted with traditional theatre's \"middle-class\" audience. The Living Stage provided training to actors in the art of improvisational theater through tuition free schooling during the summers, as well as through weekend long workshop training for social workers, teachers, and other professionals throughout their 9 month season. While most of the Stage's workshops were held on site at schools, museums, and prisons, the Living Stage did have its own formal space in Washington, D.C. on 14th and T Streets NW. The Living Stage put on productions across Northern Virginia in schools, youth homes, and even prisons like the Lorton Penitentiary. Senior members of the company, like Jennifer Nelson and Oran Sandel helped to send the Living Stage across the country as well. Their efforts were largely funded through vigorous campaigning for grants and fund raising through the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and other private foundations. The Living Stage also received substantial financial assistance from its parent company, the Washington Drama Society, Inc. ","The Living Stage performance style consisted of \"The Jam,\" \"The Performance,\" and \"The Workshop,\" a three part study that was used at most of their venues. The first part, or \"Jam,\" consisted of actors working with their audience to \"rap,\" make music, and \"jam\" through spoken or sung words accompanied by instrumentals typically provided by audience members. The actors then moved into the \"performance\" itself. During the performance the actors put on an improvised theater production directed by a senior member of the cast and assisted by one or two audience members. The \"Workshop\" began from there; during the workshop, the audience took over the scene, while still directed by the actors, and was encouraged to make it their own. Audiences gave their opinions and thoughts on each performance in the form of production reports that were collected by the Living Stage. ","The projects that the Living Stage put on typically dealt with controversial and sensitive topics like race, economic inequality, the dangers of an overzealous American foreign policy, the atom bomb, violence, and freedom. The \"Baltimore Incident\" of 1971 is an excellent example of how controversial these productions could be. No matter how mixed opinions were, the Living Stage always elicited a reaction with their improvisational performances. During the 1980s the Living Stage began to reach out extensively to local initiatives like The District's Alcohol and Drug Abuse Services Administration and created their own Community Services Project in order to continue to bring theater and creativity to underserved sections of society. The Living Stage championed New Left ideals like equality and social justice throughout the Reagan years, despite some criticisms about their message being \"anachronistic.\"","The organization began to sunset in the first half of the 1990s as many of its founding and senior members took their skills elsewhere. Robert Alexander himself left in 1995 to start educating people in the art of improvisational theater full time. Jennifer Nelson, David Matthew Proctor, Ezra Knight, and others began to filter away in the 1990s to pursue their own acting goals and the Living Stage would officially close its doors in 2002.","The Special Collections Research Center does not have the equipment necessary to watch or listen to all audiovisual material in Series 3. Additional time and money may be required to digitize this material for access.","Processing completed by Nick Welsh and Elizabeth Beckman in 2016. EAD markup completed by Nick Welsh in June 2016. Finding aid updated by Amanda Menjivar in March 2025.","The Special Collections Research Center holds several collections of personal papers of individuals involved with the Living Stage Theater Company, including the Zelda Fichandler papers, the Thomas C. Fichandler papers, and the Ken Kitch papers. It also holds the Arena Stage records.","The Living Stage records consists of material spanning the length of the organization's history from 1965, when the Living Stage was known as the Children's Theatre, to 2001. Included in the records are administrative files, financial papers, grant requests and applications, correspondence, workshop reports and scripts, as well as audiovisual and photographic materials.","Series 1: Administrative and Financial Files (1965-2000) includes documents relating to the day to day running of the Living Stage Theatre Company as well as programming, project planning, financials, budgets, grants, press releases and printed documents. It is divided further into 4 subseries. Subseries 1.1 Policies, Planning, and Development includes the administrative files of the Living Stage including season summaries by date, long range plans, meeting minutes, and Community Service Project information. Subseries 1.2 Grants and Foundations contains all materials related to grant requests, endowments (including the National Endowment for the Arts), and donations made by both large charitable organizations and private donors. Subseries 1.3 Financials and Correspondence includes budget materials, expense reports, and benefit information, as well as correspondence between members of the LSTC, memos, and fan mail (called \"love letters\") from schools and other workshop sites. Subseries 1.4 Public Relations and Printed Pieces consist of various publications made by the Living Stage such as their newsletters and advertisements, as well as transcripts of speeches made by LSTC executives and press releases promoting the Living Stage.","Series 2: Artistic and Workshop Files (1966-2001), which is split into 3 subseries, contains the creative aspects of the Living Stage, including details about residencies and the personnel of the Company, as well as workshop reports, scripts, and \"Jams.\" Subseries 2.1 Residency and Personnel Files contains all documents related to the people of the Living Stage, including casting information and details about out of state residencies (including those in Stockholm, Boston, Pittsburgh, New York and others). Subseries 2.2 Production Reports and Workshops encompasses the output of the Living Stage Theatre Company in the form of workshops, which are series of performances put on at schools, museums, and communities, and the production reports which sought to analyze audience reception of and reaction to these performances. Look to the \"Baltimore Incident\" for an excellent example of how contentious and revolutionary the Living Stage's performances were. Subseries 2.3 Production Files and Scripts, while small, contains items related to the Living Stage's \"Jams\" including scripts, research, and other assorted play files. ","Series 3: Audiovisual and Photographic Materials (1967-1999) includes all photos, negatives, and film of the Living Stage or their productions. It is divided into three subseries. Subseries 3.1 Photographic Materials includes various photos and negatives showing the cast of the Living Stage at various times, as well as production stills. Unfortunately, the majority of these are undated or have little in the way of description. Subseries 3.2 Audio and film reels includes tapings of various workshops and productions mostly from the 1970s and 1980s. Subseries 3.3 Audio and video tapes contains cassette, VHS, Betamax, and U-matic tapes either used by the Living Stage for performances or made by/about the Living Stage.","The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)","The Living Stage records documents the Living Stage Theatre Company, founded by Robert Alexander as an offshoot of Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. The records were created from 1965-2001.","R 52, C 6, S 3 - R 53, C 2, S 6\n\nMap Case 8.2","George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","English"],"unitid_tesim":["C0277","/repositories/2/resources/602"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Living Stage records"],"collection_title_tesim":["Living Stage records"],"collection_ssim":["Living Stage records"],"repository_ssm":["George Mason University"],"repository_ssim":["George Mason University"],"geogname_ssm":["Washington (D.C.)"],"geogname_ssim":["Washington (D.C.)"],"places_ssim":["Washington (D.C.)"],"access_terms_ssm":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)"],"acqinfo_ssim":["Donated by Arena Stage in 2000."],"access_subjects_ssim":["Acting","People with mental disabilities -- Services for -- United States","Performance art -- Photographs","Public schools -- Virginia","Radicalism -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Students -- Photographs","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- Washington (D.C.)","Theater programs","Playscript"],"access_subjects_ssm":["Acting","People with mental disabilities -- Services for -- United States","Performance art -- Photographs","Public schools -- Virginia","Radicalism -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Students -- Photographs","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- Washington (D.C.)","Theater programs","Playscript"],"has_online_content_ssim":["false"],"extent_ssm":["48.0 Linear Feet 106 boxes"],"extent_tesim":["48.0 Linear Feet 106 boxes"],"genreform_ssim":["Playscript"],"date_range_isim":[1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978,1979,1980,1981,1982,1983,1984,1985,1986,1987,1988,1989,1990,1991,1992,1993,1994,1995,1996,1997,1998,1999,2000,2001],"accessrestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThere are no access restrictions on Series 1 and 2. Please see the Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements note for access information on Series 3.\u003c/p\u003e"],"accessrestrict_heading_ssm":["Access Restrictions"],"accessrestrict_tesim":["There are no access restrictions on Series 1 and 2. Please see the Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements note for access information on Series 3."],"arrangement_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe collection is divided into three series, each of which is divided into subseries.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003clist type=\"ordered\"\u003e\n      \u003chead\u003eSeries\u003c/head\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 1: Administrative and Financial Files, 1965-2000 (Boxes 1-56)\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 2: Artistic and Workshop Files, 1966-2001 (Boxes 57-85)\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 3: Audiovisual and Photographic Materials, 1967-1999 (Boxes 86-106)\u003c/item\u003e\n    \u003c/list\u003e"],"arrangement_heading_ssm":["Arrangement"],"arrangement_tesim":["The collection is divided into three series, each of which is divided into subseries.","Series Series 1: Administrative and Financial Files, 1965-2000 (Boxes 1-56) Series 2: Artistic and Workshop Files, 1966-2001 (Boxes 57-85) Series 3: Audiovisual and Photographic Materials, 1967-1999 (Boxes 86-106)"],"bioghist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Living Stage Theatre Company began in 1966 as a venture of Arena Stage and Robert Alexander. Known from 1966-1968 as The Children's Theatre, the Living Stage from the beginning dedicated itself to programming with a social consciousness and a desire to effect societal change through performance. Robert Alexander was the theatre's founder and until 1995 its director. Alexander brought an adapted street and guerilla theater style to the D.C. area after becoming disenchanted with traditional theatre's \"middle-class\" audience. The Living Stage provided training to actors in the art of improvisational theater through tuition free schooling during the summers, as well as through weekend long workshop training for social workers, teachers, and other professionals throughout their 9 month season. While most of the Stage's workshops were held on site at schools, museums, and prisons, the Living Stage did have its own formal space in Washington, D.C. on 14th and T Streets NW. The Living Stage put on productions across Northern Virginia in schools, youth homes, and even prisons like the Lorton Penitentiary. Senior members of the company, like Jennifer Nelson and Oran Sandel helped to send the Living Stage across the country as well. Their efforts were largely funded through vigorous campaigning for grants and fund raising through the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and other private foundations. The Living Stage also received substantial financial assistance from its parent company, the Washington Drama Society, Inc. \u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eThe Living Stage performance style consisted of \"The Jam,\" \"The Performance,\" and \"The Workshop,\" a three part study that was used at most of their venues. The first part, or \"Jam,\" consisted of actors working with their audience to \"rap,\" make music, and \"jam\" through spoken or sung words accompanied by instrumentals typically provided by audience members. The actors then moved into the \"performance\" itself. During the performance the actors put on an improvised theater production directed by a senior member of the cast and assisted by one or two audience members. The \"Workshop\" began from there; during the workshop, the audience took over the scene, while still directed by the actors, and was encouraged to make it their own. Audiences gave their opinions and thoughts on each performance in the form of production reports that were collected by the Living Stage. \u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eThe projects that the Living Stage put on typically dealt with controversial and sensitive topics like race, economic inequality, the dangers of an overzealous American foreign policy, the atom bomb, violence, and freedom. The \"Baltimore Incident\" of 1971 is an excellent example of how controversial these productions could be. No matter how mixed opinions were, the Living Stage always elicited a reaction with their improvisational performances. During the 1980s the Living Stage began to reach out extensively to local initiatives like The District's Alcohol and Drug Abuse Services Administration and created their own Community Services Project in order to continue to bring theater and creativity to underserved sections of society. The Living Stage championed New Left ideals like equality and social justice throughout the Reagan years, despite some criticisms about their message being \"anachronistic.\"\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eThe organization began to sunset in the first half of the 1990s as many of its founding and senior members took their skills elsewhere. Robert Alexander himself left in 1995 to start educating people in the art of improvisational theater full time. Jennifer Nelson, David Matthew Proctor, Ezra Knight, and others began to filter away in the 1990s to pursue their own acting goals and the Living Stage would officially close its doors in 2002.\u003c/p\u003e"],"bioghist_heading_ssm":["Historical Information"],"bioghist_tesim":["The Living Stage Theatre Company began in 1966 as a venture of Arena Stage and Robert Alexander. Known from 1966-1968 as The Children's Theatre, the Living Stage from the beginning dedicated itself to programming with a social consciousness and a desire to effect societal change through performance. Robert Alexander was the theatre's founder and until 1995 its director. Alexander brought an adapted street and guerilla theater style to the D.C. area after becoming disenchanted with traditional theatre's \"middle-class\" audience. The Living Stage provided training to actors in the art of improvisational theater through tuition free schooling during the summers, as well as through weekend long workshop training for social workers, teachers, and other professionals throughout their 9 month season. While most of the Stage's workshops were held on site at schools, museums, and prisons, the Living Stage did have its own formal space in Washington, D.C. on 14th and T Streets NW. The Living Stage put on productions across Northern Virginia in schools, youth homes, and even prisons like the Lorton Penitentiary. Senior members of the company, like Jennifer Nelson and Oran Sandel helped to send the Living Stage across the country as well. Their efforts were largely funded through vigorous campaigning for grants and fund raising through the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and other private foundations. The Living Stage also received substantial financial assistance from its parent company, the Washington Drama Society, Inc. ","The Living Stage performance style consisted of \"The Jam,\" \"The Performance,\" and \"The Workshop,\" a three part study that was used at most of their venues. The first part, or \"Jam,\" consisted of actors working with their audience to \"rap,\" make music, and \"jam\" through spoken or sung words accompanied by instrumentals typically provided by audience members. The actors then moved into the \"performance\" itself. During the performance the actors put on an improvised theater production directed by a senior member of the cast and assisted by one or two audience members. The \"Workshop\" began from there; during the workshop, the audience took over the scene, while still directed by the actors, and was encouraged to make it their own. Audiences gave their opinions and thoughts on each performance in the form of production reports that were collected by the Living Stage. ","The projects that the Living Stage put on typically dealt with controversial and sensitive topics like race, economic inequality, the dangers of an overzealous American foreign policy, the atom bomb, violence, and freedom. The \"Baltimore Incident\" of 1971 is an excellent example of how controversial these productions could be. No matter how mixed opinions were, the Living Stage always elicited a reaction with their improvisational performances. During the 1980s the Living Stage began to reach out extensively to local initiatives like The District's Alcohol and Drug Abuse Services Administration and created their own Community Services Project in order to continue to bring theater and creativity to underserved sections of society. The Living Stage championed New Left ideals like equality and social justice throughout the Reagan years, despite some criticisms about their message being \"anachronistic.\"","The organization began to sunset in the first half of the 1990s as many of its founding and senior members took their skills elsewhere. Robert Alexander himself left in 1995 to start educating people in the art of improvisational theater full time. Jennifer Nelson, David Matthew Proctor, Ezra Knight, and others began to filter away in the 1990s to pursue their own acting goals and the Living Stage would officially close its doors in 2002."],"phystech_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Special Collections Research Center does not have the equipment necessary to watch or listen to all audiovisual material in Series 3. Additional time and money may be required to digitize this material for access.\u003c/p\u003e"],"phystech_heading_ssm":["Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements"],"phystech_tesim":["The Special Collections Research Center does not have the equipment necessary to watch or listen to all audiovisual material in Series 3. Additional time and money may be required to digitize this material for access."],"prefercite_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eLiving Stage records, C0277, Special Collections Reserch Center, George Mason University Libraries.\u003c/p\u003e"],"prefercite_tesim":["Living Stage records, C0277, Special Collections Reserch Center, George Mason University Libraries."],"processinfo_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eProcessing completed by Nick Welsh and Elizabeth Beckman in 2016. EAD markup completed by Nick Welsh in June 2016. Finding aid updated by Amanda Menjivar in March 2025.\u003c/p\u003e"],"processinfo_heading_ssm":["Processing Information"],"processinfo_tesim":["Processing completed by Nick Welsh and Elizabeth Beckman in 2016. EAD markup completed by Nick Welsh in June 2016. Finding aid updated by Amanda Menjivar in March 2025."],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Special Collections Research Center holds several collections of personal papers of individuals involved with the Living Stage Theater Company, including the Zelda Fichandler papers, the Thomas C. Fichandler papers, and the Ken Kitch papers. It also holds the Arena Stage records.\u003c/p\u003e"],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Material"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["The Special Collections Research Center holds several collections of personal papers of individuals involved with the Living Stage Theater Company, including the Zelda Fichandler papers, the Thomas C. Fichandler papers, and the Ken Kitch papers. It also holds the Arena Stage records."],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Living Stage records consists of material spanning the length of the organization's history from 1965, when the Living Stage was known as the Children's Theatre, to 2001. Included in the records are administrative files, financial papers, grant requests and applications, correspondence, workshop reports and scripts, as well as audiovisual and photographic materials.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries 1: Administrative and Financial Files (1965-2000) includes documents relating to the day to day running of the Living Stage Theatre Company as well as programming, project planning, financials, budgets, grants, press releases and printed documents. It is divided further into 4 subseries. Subseries 1.1 Policies, Planning, and Development includes the administrative files of the Living Stage including season summaries by date, long range plans, meeting minutes, and Community Service Project information. Subseries 1.2 Grants and Foundations contains all materials related to grant requests, endowments (including the National Endowment for the Arts), and donations made by both large charitable organizations and private donors. Subseries 1.3 Financials and Correspondence includes budget materials, expense reports, and benefit information, as well as correspondence between members of the LSTC, memos, and fan mail (called \"love letters\") from schools and other workshop sites. Subseries 1.4 Public Relations and Printed Pieces consist of various publications made by the Living Stage such as their newsletters and advertisements, as well as transcripts of speeches made by LSTC executives and press releases promoting the Living Stage.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries 2: Artistic and Workshop Files (1966-2001), which is split into 3 subseries, contains the creative aspects of the Living Stage, including details about residencies and the personnel of the Company, as well as workshop reports, scripts, and \"Jams.\" Subseries 2.1 Residency and Personnel Files contains all documents related to the people of the Living Stage, including casting information and details about out of state residencies (including those in Stockholm, Boston, Pittsburgh, New York and others). Subseries 2.2 Production Reports and Workshops encompasses the output of the Living Stage Theatre Company in the form of workshops, which are series of performances put on at schools, museums, and communities, and the production reports which sought to analyze audience reception of and reaction to these performances. Look to the \"Baltimore Incident\" for an excellent example of how contentious and revolutionary the Living Stage's performances were. Subseries 2.3 Production Files and Scripts, while small, contains items related to the Living Stage's \"Jams\" including scripts, research, and other assorted play files. \u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries 3: Audiovisual and Photographic Materials (1967-1999) includes all photos, negatives, and film of the Living Stage or their productions. It is divided into three subseries. Subseries 3.1 Photographic Materials includes various photos and negatives showing the cast of the Living Stage at various times, as well as production stills. Unfortunately, the majority of these are undated or have little in the way of description. Subseries 3.2 Audio and film reels includes tapings of various workshops and productions mostly from the 1970s and 1980s. Subseries 3.3 Audio and video tapes contains cassette, VHS, Betamax, and U-matic tapes either used by the Living Stage for performances or made by/about the Living Stage.\u003c/p\u003e"],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Content"],"scopecontent_tesim":["The Living Stage records consists of material spanning the length of the organization's history from 1965, when the Living Stage was known as the Children's Theatre, to 2001. Included in the records are administrative files, financial papers, grant requests and applications, correspondence, workshop reports and scripts, as well as audiovisual and photographic materials.","Series 1: Administrative and Financial Files (1965-2000) includes documents relating to the day to day running of the Living Stage Theatre Company as well as programming, project planning, financials, budgets, grants, press releases and printed documents. It is divided further into 4 subseries. Subseries 1.1 Policies, Planning, and Development includes the administrative files of the Living Stage including season summaries by date, long range plans, meeting minutes, and Community Service Project information. Subseries 1.2 Grants and Foundations contains all materials related to grant requests, endowments (including the National Endowment for the Arts), and donations made by both large charitable organizations and private donors. Subseries 1.3 Financials and Correspondence includes budget materials, expense reports, and benefit information, as well as correspondence between members of the LSTC, memos, and fan mail (called \"love letters\") from schools and other workshop sites. Subseries 1.4 Public Relations and Printed Pieces consist of various publications made by the Living Stage such as their newsletters and advertisements, as well as transcripts of speeches made by LSTC executives and press releases promoting the Living Stage.","Series 2: Artistic and Workshop Files (1966-2001), which is split into 3 subseries, contains the creative aspects of the Living Stage, including details about residencies and the personnel of the Company, as well as workshop reports, scripts, and \"Jams.\" Subseries 2.1 Residency and Personnel Files contains all documents related to the people of the Living Stage, including casting information and details about out of state residencies (including those in Stockholm, Boston, Pittsburgh, New York and others). Subseries 2.2 Production Reports and Workshops encompasses the output of the Living Stage Theatre Company in the form of workshops, which are series of performances put on at schools, museums, and communities, and the production reports which sought to analyze audience reception of and reaction to these performances. Look to the \"Baltimore Incident\" for an excellent example of how contentious and revolutionary the Living Stage's performances were. Subseries 2.3 Production Files and Scripts, while small, contains items related to the Living Stage's \"Jams\" including scripts, research, and other assorted play files. ","Series 3: Audiovisual and Photographic Materials (1967-1999) includes all photos, negatives, and film of the Living Stage or their productions. It is divided into three subseries. Subseries 3.1 Photographic Materials includes various photos and negatives showing the cast of the Living Stage at various times, as well as production stills. Unfortunately, the majority of these are undated or have little in the way of description. Subseries 3.2 Audio and film reels includes tapings of various workshops and productions mostly from the 1970s and 1980s. Subseries 3.3 Audio and video tapes contains cassette, VHS, Betamax, and U-matic tapes either used by the Living Stage for performances or made by/about the Living Stage."],"userestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)\u003c/p\u003e"],"userestrict_heading_ssm":["Use Restrictions"],"userestrict_tesim":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)"],"abstract_html_tesm":["\u003cabstract id=\"aspace_ref348\"\u003eThe Living Stage records documents the Living Stage Theatre Company, founded by Robert Alexander as an offshoot of Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. The records were created from 1965-2001.\u003c/abstract\u003e"],"abstract_tesim":["The Living Stage records documents the Living Stage Theatre Company, founded by Robert Alexander as an offshoot of Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. The records were created from 1965-2001."],"physloc_html_tesm":["\u003cphysloc id=\"aspace_e176c0c8972614dd614b2ea45cfacaaf\"\u003eR 52, C 6, S 3 - R 53, C 2, S 6\n\nMap Case 8.2\u003c/physloc\u003e"],"physloc_tesim":["R 52, C 6, S 3 - R 53, C 2, S 6\n\nMap Case 8.2"],"names_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center"],"corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center"],"language_ssim":["English"],"descrules_ssm":["Describing Archives: A Content Standard"],"total_component_count_is":1502,"online_item_count_is":0,"component_level_isim":[0],"sort_isi":0,"timestamp":"2026-05-01T00:33:57.755Z","collection":{"numFound":1,"start":0,"numFoundExact":true,"docs":[{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_602","ead_ssi":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_602","_root_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_602","_nest_parent_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_602","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/GMU/repositories_2_resources_602.xml","title_filing_ssi":"Living Stage records","title_ssm":["Living Stage records"],"title_tesim":["Living Stage records"],"unitdate_ssm":["1965-2001"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["1965-2001"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["C0277","/repositories/2/resources/602"],"text":["C0277","/repositories/2/resources/602","Living Stage records","Washington (D.C.)","Acting","People with mental disabilities -- Services for -- United States","Performance art -- Photographs","Public schools -- Virginia","Radicalism -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Students -- Photographs","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- Washington (D.C.)","Theater programs","Playscript","There are no access restrictions on Series 1 and 2. Please see the Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements note for access information on Series 3.","The collection is divided into three series, each of which is divided into subseries.","Series Series 1: Administrative and Financial Files, 1965-2000 (Boxes 1-56) Series 2: Artistic and Workshop Files, 1966-2001 (Boxes 57-85) Series 3: Audiovisual and Photographic Materials, 1967-1999 (Boxes 86-106)","The Living Stage Theatre Company began in 1966 as a venture of Arena Stage and Robert Alexander. Known from 1966-1968 as The Children's Theatre, the Living Stage from the beginning dedicated itself to programming with a social consciousness and a desire to effect societal change through performance. Robert Alexander was the theatre's founder and until 1995 its director. Alexander brought an adapted street and guerilla theater style to the D.C. area after becoming disenchanted with traditional theatre's \"middle-class\" audience. The Living Stage provided training to actors in the art of improvisational theater through tuition free schooling during the summers, as well as through weekend long workshop training for social workers, teachers, and other professionals throughout their 9 month season. While most of the Stage's workshops were held on site at schools, museums, and prisons, the Living Stage did have its own formal space in Washington, D.C. on 14th and T Streets NW. The Living Stage put on productions across Northern Virginia in schools, youth homes, and even prisons like the Lorton Penitentiary. Senior members of the company, like Jennifer Nelson and Oran Sandel helped to send the Living Stage across the country as well. Their efforts were largely funded through vigorous campaigning for grants and fund raising through the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and other private foundations. The Living Stage also received substantial financial assistance from its parent company, the Washington Drama Society, Inc. ","The Living Stage performance style consisted of \"The Jam,\" \"The Performance,\" and \"The Workshop,\" a three part study that was used at most of their venues. The first part, or \"Jam,\" consisted of actors working with their audience to \"rap,\" make music, and \"jam\" through spoken or sung words accompanied by instrumentals typically provided by audience members. The actors then moved into the \"performance\" itself. During the performance the actors put on an improvised theater production directed by a senior member of the cast and assisted by one or two audience members. The \"Workshop\" began from there; during the workshop, the audience took over the scene, while still directed by the actors, and was encouraged to make it their own. Audiences gave their opinions and thoughts on each performance in the form of production reports that were collected by the Living Stage. ","The projects that the Living Stage put on typically dealt with controversial and sensitive topics like race, economic inequality, the dangers of an overzealous American foreign policy, the atom bomb, violence, and freedom. The \"Baltimore Incident\" of 1971 is an excellent example of how controversial these productions could be. No matter how mixed opinions were, the Living Stage always elicited a reaction with their improvisational performances. During the 1980s the Living Stage began to reach out extensively to local initiatives like The District's Alcohol and Drug Abuse Services Administration and created their own Community Services Project in order to continue to bring theater and creativity to underserved sections of society. The Living Stage championed New Left ideals like equality and social justice throughout the Reagan years, despite some criticisms about their message being \"anachronistic.\"","The organization began to sunset in the first half of the 1990s as many of its founding and senior members took their skills elsewhere. Robert Alexander himself left in 1995 to start educating people in the art of improvisational theater full time. Jennifer Nelson, David Matthew Proctor, Ezra Knight, and others began to filter away in the 1990s to pursue their own acting goals and the Living Stage would officially close its doors in 2002.","The Special Collections Research Center does not have the equipment necessary to watch or listen to all audiovisual material in Series 3. Additional time and money may be required to digitize this material for access.","Processing completed by Nick Welsh and Elizabeth Beckman in 2016. EAD markup completed by Nick Welsh in June 2016. Finding aid updated by Amanda Menjivar in March 2025.","The Special Collections Research Center holds several collections of personal papers of individuals involved with the Living Stage Theater Company, including the Zelda Fichandler papers, the Thomas C. Fichandler papers, and the Ken Kitch papers. It also holds the Arena Stage records.","The Living Stage records consists of material spanning the length of the organization's history from 1965, when the Living Stage was known as the Children's Theatre, to 2001. Included in the records are administrative files, financial papers, grant requests and applications, correspondence, workshop reports and scripts, as well as audiovisual and photographic materials.","Series 1: Administrative and Financial Files (1965-2000) includes documents relating to the day to day running of the Living Stage Theatre Company as well as programming, project planning, financials, budgets, grants, press releases and printed documents. It is divided further into 4 subseries. Subseries 1.1 Policies, Planning, and Development includes the administrative files of the Living Stage including season summaries by date, long range plans, meeting minutes, and Community Service Project information. Subseries 1.2 Grants and Foundations contains all materials related to grant requests, endowments (including the National Endowment for the Arts), and donations made by both large charitable organizations and private donors. Subseries 1.3 Financials and Correspondence includes budget materials, expense reports, and benefit information, as well as correspondence between members of the LSTC, memos, and fan mail (called \"love letters\") from schools and other workshop sites. Subseries 1.4 Public Relations and Printed Pieces consist of various publications made by the Living Stage such as their newsletters and advertisements, as well as transcripts of speeches made by LSTC executives and press releases promoting the Living Stage.","Series 2: Artistic and Workshop Files (1966-2001), which is split into 3 subseries, contains the creative aspects of the Living Stage, including details about residencies and the personnel of the Company, as well as workshop reports, scripts, and \"Jams.\" Subseries 2.1 Residency and Personnel Files contains all documents related to the people of the Living Stage, including casting information and details about out of state residencies (including those in Stockholm, Boston, Pittsburgh, New York and others). Subseries 2.2 Production Reports and Workshops encompasses the output of the Living Stage Theatre Company in the form of workshops, which are series of performances put on at schools, museums, and communities, and the production reports which sought to analyze audience reception of and reaction to these performances. Look to the \"Baltimore Incident\" for an excellent example of how contentious and revolutionary the Living Stage's performances were. Subseries 2.3 Production Files and Scripts, while small, contains items related to the Living Stage's \"Jams\" including scripts, research, and other assorted play files. ","Series 3: Audiovisual and Photographic Materials (1967-1999) includes all photos, negatives, and film of the Living Stage or their productions. It is divided into three subseries. Subseries 3.1 Photographic Materials includes various photos and negatives showing the cast of the Living Stage at various times, as well as production stills. Unfortunately, the majority of these are undated or have little in the way of description. Subseries 3.2 Audio and film reels includes tapings of various workshops and productions mostly from the 1970s and 1980s. Subseries 3.3 Audio and video tapes contains cassette, VHS, Betamax, and U-matic tapes either used by the Living Stage for performances or made by/about the Living Stage.","The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)","The Living Stage records documents the Living Stage Theatre Company, founded by Robert Alexander as an offshoot of Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. The records were created from 1965-2001.","R 52, C 6, S 3 - R 53, C 2, S 6\n\nMap Case 8.2","George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","English"],"unitid_tesim":["C0277","/repositories/2/resources/602"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Living Stage records"],"collection_title_tesim":["Living Stage records"],"collection_ssim":["Living Stage records"],"repository_ssm":["George Mason University"],"repository_ssim":["George Mason University"],"geogname_ssm":["Washington (D.C.)"],"geogname_ssim":["Washington (D.C.)"],"places_ssim":["Washington (D.C.)"],"access_terms_ssm":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)"],"acqinfo_ssim":["Donated by Arena Stage in 2000."],"access_subjects_ssim":["Acting","People with mental disabilities -- Services for -- United States","Performance art -- Photographs","Public schools -- Virginia","Radicalism -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Students -- Photographs","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- Washington (D.C.)","Theater programs","Playscript"],"access_subjects_ssm":["Acting","People with mental disabilities -- Services for -- United States","Performance art -- Photographs","Public schools -- Virginia","Radicalism -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Students -- Photographs","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- Washington (D.C.)","Theater programs","Playscript"],"has_online_content_ssim":["false"],"extent_ssm":["48.0 Linear Feet 106 boxes"],"extent_tesim":["48.0 Linear Feet 106 boxes"],"genreform_ssim":["Playscript"],"date_range_isim":[1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978,1979,1980,1981,1982,1983,1984,1985,1986,1987,1988,1989,1990,1991,1992,1993,1994,1995,1996,1997,1998,1999,2000,2001],"accessrestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThere are no access restrictions on Series 1 and 2. Please see the Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements note for access information on Series 3.\u003c/p\u003e"],"accessrestrict_heading_ssm":["Access Restrictions"],"accessrestrict_tesim":["There are no access restrictions on Series 1 and 2. Please see the Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements note for access information on Series 3."],"arrangement_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe collection is divided into three series, each of which is divided into subseries.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003clist type=\"ordered\"\u003e\n      \u003chead\u003eSeries\u003c/head\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 1: Administrative and Financial Files, 1965-2000 (Boxes 1-56)\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 2: Artistic and Workshop Files, 1966-2001 (Boxes 57-85)\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 3: Audiovisual and Photographic Materials, 1967-1999 (Boxes 86-106)\u003c/item\u003e\n    \u003c/list\u003e"],"arrangement_heading_ssm":["Arrangement"],"arrangement_tesim":["The collection is divided into three series, each of which is divided into subseries.","Series Series 1: Administrative and Financial Files, 1965-2000 (Boxes 1-56) Series 2: Artistic and Workshop Files, 1966-2001 (Boxes 57-85) Series 3: Audiovisual and Photographic Materials, 1967-1999 (Boxes 86-106)"],"bioghist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Living Stage Theatre Company began in 1966 as a venture of Arena Stage and Robert Alexander. Known from 1966-1968 as The Children's Theatre, the Living Stage from the beginning dedicated itself to programming with a social consciousness and a desire to effect societal change through performance. Robert Alexander was the theatre's founder and until 1995 its director. Alexander brought an adapted street and guerilla theater style to the D.C. area after becoming disenchanted with traditional theatre's \"middle-class\" audience. The Living Stage provided training to actors in the art of improvisational theater through tuition free schooling during the summers, as well as through weekend long workshop training for social workers, teachers, and other professionals throughout their 9 month season. While most of the Stage's workshops were held on site at schools, museums, and prisons, the Living Stage did have its own formal space in Washington, D.C. on 14th and T Streets NW. The Living Stage put on productions across Northern Virginia in schools, youth homes, and even prisons like the Lorton Penitentiary. Senior members of the company, like Jennifer Nelson and Oran Sandel helped to send the Living Stage across the country as well. Their efforts were largely funded through vigorous campaigning for grants and fund raising through the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and other private foundations. The Living Stage also received substantial financial assistance from its parent company, the Washington Drama Society, Inc. \u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eThe Living Stage performance style consisted of \"The Jam,\" \"The Performance,\" and \"The Workshop,\" a three part study that was used at most of their venues. The first part, or \"Jam,\" consisted of actors working with their audience to \"rap,\" make music, and \"jam\" through spoken or sung words accompanied by instrumentals typically provided by audience members. The actors then moved into the \"performance\" itself. During the performance the actors put on an improvised theater production directed by a senior member of the cast and assisted by one or two audience members. The \"Workshop\" began from there; during the workshop, the audience took over the scene, while still directed by the actors, and was encouraged to make it their own. Audiences gave their opinions and thoughts on each performance in the form of production reports that were collected by the Living Stage. \u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eThe projects that the Living Stage put on typically dealt with controversial and sensitive topics like race, economic inequality, the dangers of an overzealous American foreign policy, the atom bomb, violence, and freedom. The \"Baltimore Incident\" of 1971 is an excellent example of how controversial these productions could be. No matter how mixed opinions were, the Living Stage always elicited a reaction with their improvisational performances. During the 1980s the Living Stage began to reach out extensively to local initiatives like The District's Alcohol and Drug Abuse Services Administration and created their own Community Services Project in order to continue to bring theater and creativity to underserved sections of society. The Living Stage championed New Left ideals like equality and social justice throughout the Reagan years, despite some criticisms about their message being \"anachronistic.\"\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eThe organization began to sunset in the first half of the 1990s as many of its founding and senior members took their skills elsewhere. Robert Alexander himself left in 1995 to start educating people in the art of improvisational theater full time. Jennifer Nelson, David Matthew Proctor, Ezra Knight, and others began to filter away in the 1990s to pursue their own acting goals and the Living Stage would officially close its doors in 2002.\u003c/p\u003e"],"bioghist_heading_ssm":["Historical Information"],"bioghist_tesim":["The Living Stage Theatre Company began in 1966 as a venture of Arena Stage and Robert Alexander. Known from 1966-1968 as The Children's Theatre, the Living Stage from the beginning dedicated itself to programming with a social consciousness and a desire to effect societal change through performance. Robert Alexander was the theatre's founder and until 1995 its director. Alexander brought an adapted street and guerilla theater style to the D.C. area after becoming disenchanted with traditional theatre's \"middle-class\" audience. The Living Stage provided training to actors in the art of improvisational theater through tuition free schooling during the summers, as well as through weekend long workshop training for social workers, teachers, and other professionals throughout their 9 month season. While most of the Stage's workshops were held on site at schools, museums, and prisons, the Living Stage did have its own formal space in Washington, D.C. on 14th and T Streets NW. The Living Stage put on productions across Northern Virginia in schools, youth homes, and even prisons like the Lorton Penitentiary. Senior members of the company, like Jennifer Nelson and Oran Sandel helped to send the Living Stage across the country as well. Their efforts were largely funded through vigorous campaigning for grants and fund raising through the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and other private foundations. The Living Stage also received substantial financial assistance from its parent company, the Washington Drama Society, Inc. ","The Living Stage performance style consisted of \"The Jam,\" \"The Performance,\" and \"The Workshop,\" a three part study that was used at most of their venues. The first part, or \"Jam,\" consisted of actors working with their audience to \"rap,\" make music, and \"jam\" through spoken or sung words accompanied by instrumentals typically provided by audience members. The actors then moved into the \"performance\" itself. During the performance the actors put on an improvised theater production directed by a senior member of the cast and assisted by one or two audience members. The \"Workshop\" began from there; during the workshop, the audience took over the scene, while still directed by the actors, and was encouraged to make it their own. Audiences gave their opinions and thoughts on each performance in the form of production reports that were collected by the Living Stage. ","The projects that the Living Stage put on typically dealt with controversial and sensitive topics like race, economic inequality, the dangers of an overzealous American foreign policy, the atom bomb, violence, and freedom. The \"Baltimore Incident\" of 1971 is an excellent example of how controversial these productions could be. No matter how mixed opinions were, the Living Stage always elicited a reaction with their improvisational performances. During the 1980s the Living Stage began to reach out extensively to local initiatives like The District's Alcohol and Drug Abuse Services Administration and created their own Community Services Project in order to continue to bring theater and creativity to underserved sections of society. The Living Stage championed New Left ideals like equality and social justice throughout the Reagan years, despite some criticisms about their message being \"anachronistic.\"","The organization began to sunset in the first half of the 1990s as many of its founding and senior members took their skills elsewhere. Robert Alexander himself left in 1995 to start educating people in the art of improvisational theater full time. Jennifer Nelson, David Matthew Proctor, Ezra Knight, and others began to filter away in the 1990s to pursue their own acting goals and the Living Stage would officially close its doors in 2002."],"phystech_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Special Collections Research Center does not have the equipment necessary to watch or listen to all audiovisual material in Series 3. Additional time and money may be required to digitize this material for access.\u003c/p\u003e"],"phystech_heading_ssm":["Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements"],"phystech_tesim":["The Special Collections Research Center does not have the equipment necessary to watch or listen to all audiovisual material in Series 3. Additional time and money may be required to digitize this material for access."],"prefercite_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eLiving Stage records, C0277, Special Collections Reserch Center, George Mason University Libraries.\u003c/p\u003e"],"prefercite_tesim":["Living Stage records, C0277, Special Collections Reserch Center, George Mason University Libraries."],"processinfo_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eProcessing completed by Nick Welsh and Elizabeth Beckman in 2016. EAD markup completed by Nick Welsh in June 2016. Finding aid updated by Amanda Menjivar in March 2025.\u003c/p\u003e"],"processinfo_heading_ssm":["Processing Information"],"processinfo_tesim":["Processing completed by Nick Welsh and Elizabeth Beckman in 2016. EAD markup completed by Nick Welsh in June 2016. Finding aid updated by Amanda Menjivar in March 2025."],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Special Collections Research Center holds several collections of personal papers of individuals involved with the Living Stage Theater Company, including the Zelda Fichandler papers, the Thomas C. Fichandler papers, and the Ken Kitch papers. It also holds the Arena Stage records.\u003c/p\u003e"],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Material"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["The Special Collections Research Center holds several collections of personal papers of individuals involved with the Living Stage Theater Company, including the Zelda Fichandler papers, the Thomas C. Fichandler papers, and the Ken Kitch papers. It also holds the Arena Stage records."],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Living Stage records consists of material spanning the length of the organization's history from 1965, when the Living Stage was known as the Children's Theatre, to 2001. Included in the records are administrative files, financial papers, grant requests and applications, correspondence, workshop reports and scripts, as well as audiovisual and photographic materials.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries 1: Administrative and Financial Files (1965-2000) includes documents relating to the day to day running of the Living Stage Theatre Company as well as programming, project planning, financials, budgets, grants, press releases and printed documents. It is divided further into 4 subseries. Subseries 1.1 Policies, Planning, and Development includes the administrative files of the Living Stage including season summaries by date, long range plans, meeting minutes, and Community Service Project information. Subseries 1.2 Grants and Foundations contains all materials related to grant requests, endowments (including the National Endowment for the Arts), and donations made by both large charitable organizations and private donors. Subseries 1.3 Financials and Correspondence includes budget materials, expense reports, and benefit information, as well as correspondence between members of the LSTC, memos, and fan mail (called \"love letters\") from schools and other workshop sites. Subseries 1.4 Public Relations and Printed Pieces consist of various publications made by the Living Stage such as their newsletters and advertisements, as well as transcripts of speeches made by LSTC executives and press releases promoting the Living Stage.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries 2: Artistic and Workshop Files (1966-2001), which is split into 3 subseries, contains the creative aspects of the Living Stage, including details about residencies and the personnel of the Company, as well as workshop reports, scripts, and \"Jams.\" Subseries 2.1 Residency and Personnel Files contains all documents related to the people of the Living Stage, including casting information and details about out of state residencies (including those in Stockholm, Boston, Pittsburgh, New York and others). Subseries 2.2 Production Reports and Workshops encompasses the output of the Living Stage Theatre Company in the form of workshops, which are series of performances put on at schools, museums, and communities, and the production reports which sought to analyze audience reception of and reaction to these performances. Look to the \"Baltimore Incident\" for an excellent example of how contentious and revolutionary the Living Stage's performances were. Subseries 2.3 Production Files and Scripts, while small, contains items related to the Living Stage's \"Jams\" including scripts, research, and other assorted play files. \u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eSeries 3: Audiovisual and Photographic Materials (1967-1999) includes all photos, negatives, and film of the Living Stage or their productions. It is divided into three subseries. Subseries 3.1 Photographic Materials includes various photos and negatives showing the cast of the Living Stage at various times, as well as production stills. Unfortunately, the majority of these are undated or have little in the way of description. Subseries 3.2 Audio and film reels includes tapings of various workshops and productions mostly from the 1970s and 1980s. Subseries 3.3 Audio and video tapes contains cassette, VHS, Betamax, and U-matic tapes either used by the Living Stage for performances or made by/about the Living Stage.\u003c/p\u003e"],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Content"],"scopecontent_tesim":["The Living Stage records consists of material spanning the length of the organization's history from 1965, when the Living Stage was known as the Children's Theatre, to 2001. Included in the records are administrative files, financial papers, grant requests and applications, correspondence, workshop reports and scripts, as well as audiovisual and photographic materials.","Series 1: Administrative and Financial Files (1965-2000) includes documents relating to the day to day running of the Living Stage Theatre Company as well as programming, project planning, financials, budgets, grants, press releases and printed documents. It is divided further into 4 subseries. Subseries 1.1 Policies, Planning, and Development includes the administrative files of the Living Stage including season summaries by date, long range plans, meeting minutes, and Community Service Project information. Subseries 1.2 Grants and Foundations contains all materials related to grant requests, endowments (including the National Endowment for the Arts), and donations made by both large charitable organizations and private donors. Subseries 1.3 Financials and Correspondence includes budget materials, expense reports, and benefit information, as well as correspondence between members of the LSTC, memos, and fan mail (called \"love letters\") from schools and other workshop sites. Subseries 1.4 Public Relations and Printed Pieces consist of various publications made by the Living Stage such as their newsletters and advertisements, as well as transcripts of speeches made by LSTC executives and press releases promoting the Living Stage.","Series 2: Artistic and Workshop Files (1966-2001), which is split into 3 subseries, contains the creative aspects of the Living Stage, including details about residencies and the personnel of the Company, as well as workshop reports, scripts, and \"Jams.\" Subseries 2.1 Residency and Personnel Files contains all documents related to the people of the Living Stage, including casting information and details about out of state residencies (including those in Stockholm, Boston, Pittsburgh, New York and others). Subseries 2.2 Production Reports and Workshops encompasses the output of the Living Stage Theatre Company in the form of workshops, which are series of performances put on at schools, museums, and communities, and the production reports which sought to analyze audience reception of and reaction to these performances. Look to the \"Baltimore Incident\" for an excellent example of how contentious and revolutionary the Living Stage's performances were. Subseries 2.3 Production Files and Scripts, while small, contains items related to the Living Stage's \"Jams\" including scripts, research, and other assorted play files. ","Series 3: Audiovisual and Photographic Materials (1967-1999) includes all photos, negatives, and film of the Living Stage or their productions. It is divided into three subseries. Subseries 3.1 Photographic Materials includes various photos and negatives showing the cast of the Living Stage at various times, as well as production stills. Unfortunately, the majority of these are undated or have little in the way of description. Subseries 3.2 Audio and film reels includes tapings of various workshops and productions mostly from the 1970s and 1980s. Subseries 3.3 Audio and video tapes contains cassette, VHS, Betamax, and U-matic tapes either used by the Living Stage for performances or made by/about the Living Stage."],"userestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)\u003c/p\u003e"],"userestrict_heading_ssm":["Use Restrictions"],"userestrict_tesim":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)"],"abstract_html_tesm":["\u003cabstract id=\"aspace_ref348\"\u003eThe Living Stage records documents the Living Stage Theatre Company, founded by Robert Alexander as an offshoot of Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. The records were created from 1965-2001.\u003c/abstract\u003e"],"abstract_tesim":["The Living Stage records documents the Living Stage Theatre Company, founded by Robert Alexander as an offshoot of Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. The records were created from 1965-2001."],"physloc_html_tesm":["\u003cphysloc id=\"aspace_e176c0c8972614dd614b2ea45cfacaaf\"\u003eR 52, C 6, S 3 - R 53, C 2, S 6\n\nMap Case 8.2\u003c/physloc\u003e"],"physloc_tesim":["R 52, C 6, S 3 - R 53, C 2, S 6\n\nMap Case 8.2"],"names_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center"],"corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center"],"language_ssim":["English"],"descrules_ssm":["Describing Archives: A Content Standard"],"total_component_count_is":1502,"online_item_count_is":0,"component_level_isim":[0],"sort_isi":0,"timestamp":"2026-05-01T00:33:57.755Z"}]}},"label":"Breadcrumbs"}}},"links":{"self":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_602"}},{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_521","type":"collection","attributes":{"title":"Robert and Wilva Breen papers","creator":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_521#creator","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"Breen, Robert","label":"Creator"}},"abstract_or_scope":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_521#abstract_or_scope","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"The Robert and Wilva Breen papers consists of correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, photographs, notebooks, and audiovisual materials largely related to the creation and running of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA), as well as Robert and Wilva Breen's long-term involvement with the organization. The bulk of the collection originates from 1933 - 2000s, with an outlier date of 1834 from an antique newspaper.","label":"Abstract Or Scope"}},"breadcrumbs":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_521#breadcrumbs","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_521","ead_ssi":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_521","_root_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_521","_nest_parent_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_521","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/GMU/repositories_2_resources_521.xml","title_ssm":["Robert and Wilva Breen papers"],"title_tesim":["Robert and Wilva Breen papers"],"unitdate_ssm":["1834, 1933-2000s"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["1834, 1933-2000s"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["C0004","/repositories/2/resources/521"],"text":["C0004","/repositories/2/resources/521","Robert and Wilva Breen papers","Helsingør (Denmark)","Broadway (New York, N.Y.)","Ballet","Theater and society","Theater -- Europe -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- New York (State) -- New York","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- United States","World War, 1939-1945 -- Theater and the war","Theater programs","Experimental theater -- United States","Theater -- Europe","Theater -- Production and direction","Performing arts","Theater","Theatrical posters","Photographs","Box 35, Folder 12; Box 36, Folder 1; and Box 70, Folder 18 are restricted due to their physical fragility.","Box 89, Folder 8 and 9 are restricted due to personally identifiable information.","There are no other access restrictions.","Selections from the Robert and Wilva Breen papers are also available digitally on ","In 2009 and 2022 many of the audiotape reels found in this collection were converted to digital format and are available for use in the Special Collections Research Center's Reading Room.","The collection was originally arranged by subject and then topic. Additional accessions were added and arranged in the order they arrived in Special Collections Research Center.","Strom, Stephanie. \"Robert Breen, 80, Arts Executive And Theatrical Producer, Is Dead.\" Nytimes.com.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","Oliver, Myrna. \"Robert Breen; Initiated Cultural Exchanges.\" Articles.latimes.com.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","Riedel, Michael. \"This theater's chaotic history includes a Titanic survivor, the 'Tonight' show and porn.\" Nypost.com.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","ANTA West records (Collection 1965). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","Robert Breen, born December 26, 1909 in Hibbing, Minnesota, served as the Executive Secretary of the American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) from 1946-1952, and was instrumental in much of the organization's success, both domestically and internationally. In addition to serving in the U.S. Army Air Corps, Breen had an extensive background in theater. Prior to joining ANTA, Breen founded a theater program at the College of St. Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota, as well as established the Chicago unit for the Works Progress Administration's Federal Theatre Project with his wife, Wilva Davis Breen. Wilva herself was instrumental in promoting and guiding ANTA's many and varied operations, and getting the organization off the ground. The Breens' apartment home - situated above the Hudson Theatre in New York City, NY - served as ANTA's early headquarters. Davis Breen served as Breen's constant support and collaborator until he passed away on March 31, 1990."," The American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) was the United States' first national theater and dance organization, in the tradition of European national theaters. Originating in 1935 with a charter from the U.S. Congress, ANTA continued until 1966 when the National Endowment for the Arts came into being. ANTA was responsible for both the presentation of American theater in the U.S. and abroad."," Although officially formed in 1935, ANTA did not begin actual operation until 1946 due to a variety of factors, including the Great Depression and World War II. During the depression, federal funding was funnelled towards the Works Progress Administration's Federal Theatre Project, another national performing arts program. In addition to these setbacks, the ANTA board, comprised of prominent citizens and business leaders from outside the theater community, could not agree on the goals of ANTA. Eventually, Robert Breen and Robert Porterfield, two men with Army and theater backgrounds, took the reins of ANTA and initiated its revitalization. Porterfield and Breen developed ANTA's \"Foundation Plan,\" with the intention of having ANTA become the foundation for and driving force behind the stimulation of growth of American theater. The plan, successfully undertaken by Breen, Porterfield, and Breen's wife Wilva Davis Breen, called for a National Foundation to make loans and grants, insure theater projects against loss, as well as a National Service Bureau to provide technical assistance for acting companies, as well as a national clearing house for theater information. The plan was adopted by the ANTA Board in 1946."," Under the guidance of Breen, ANTA produced several projects in the U.S. with successful results during the postwar years. From 1946 - 1948, ANTA sponsored a series of plays called the Experimental Theatre. Its goal was to \"present new, interesting plays which would not see production on Broadway due to present high costs.\" Admittedly, the plays were \"not necessarily perfect\" but \"worthy of a trial production in a simplified fashion\" according to an ANTA letter offering subscription to the series, which included high profile playwrights and actors. During the late 1940s and early 1950s ANTA sponsored a number of drama festivals across the U.S., featuring well-known actors. ANTA also featured a televised production of short plays for NBC television. With the intention of promoting theater growth in the U.S. and showcasing new talent, ANTA produced, supported, and promoted theater projects all across the United States."," Internationally, ANTA promoted artistic exchange between the U.S. and Europe, and entertained American troops there. This was initiated with a 1949 tour of William Shakespeare's \"Hamlet\" throughout Europe, produced by and starring Breen in the titular role. This tour famously culminated in a performance at Elsinore Castle in Denmark - the actual setting of the play. Perhaps ANTA's, as well as Breen's, greatest success came with the international tour of George Gershwin's \"Porgy and Bess\" (produced with Blevins Davis), which toured from 1952-1956, visiting 89 cities and 29 countries. The opera's performance in the Soviet Union was considered the first cultural exchange post-World War II between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. ANTA also sponsored the American National Ballet Theatre's tour of Europe in 1950, performing in eighteen cities and eight countries. The tour lasted from August to December of 1950 and played to an audience of over 150,000, and was the first international tour of any American ballet company."," ANTA also produced a number of Broadway plays and musicals out of the formerly named Guild Hall Theatre, renamed the ANTA Theatre in the 1960s and 1970s. ANTA West, which grew out of the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of ANTA in 1957, promoted and facilitated the growth of theater in the Southern California region.","Part of the Robert and Wilva Breen papers was donated to The Ohio State University.","The Special Collections Research Center does not have the equipment necessary to play  obsolete audiovisual material found in the found in the Robert and Wilva Breen papers. Additional time and money may be required to digitize this material for access.","Processed by Special Collections Research Center Staff. EAD markup completed in February 2009 by Jordan Patty. Reprocessed by Amanda Brent from 2017-2018. EAD markup completed by Amanda Brent in December 2018.","Special Collections Research Center also holds the  , the  , the  , and many other "," The Ohio State University Libraries' Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute holds the "," The UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library holds the ","The Robert and Wilva Breen papers consists of correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, photographs, notebooks, and audiovisual materials largely related to the creation and running of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA), as well as Robert and Wilva Breen's long-term involvement with the organization from 1944 through the 1950s. The collection also contains many photographs of theaters and theatrical performances from across the United States, including from Broadway and Off-Broadway theaters and shows, as well as numerous colleges, universities, high schools, and local children's theaters. The bulk of the collection originates from the 1940s - 2000s, with an outlier date of 1834 from an antique newspaper.","The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/).","The Robert and Wilva Breen papers consists of correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, photographs, notebooks, and audiovisual materials largely related to the creation and running of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA), as well as Robert and Wilva Breen's long-term involvement with the organization. The bulk of the collection originates from 1933 - 2000s, with an outlier date of 1834 from an antique newspaper.","R2, C9, S3- C11, S7\nR3 C1 S1 - C2, S5\nOSR3, C4, S4\nMap Case 8.1-8.2, 9.1","George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","American National Ballet Theater","American National Theatre and Academy","ANTA (Organization)","ANTA West (Organization)","Breen, Robert","Breen, Wilva","Porterfield, Robert, 1905-1971","English"],"unitid_tesim":["C0004","/repositories/2/resources/521"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Robert and Wilva Breen papers"],"collection_title_tesim":["Robert and Wilva Breen papers"],"collection_ssim":["Robert and Wilva Breen papers"],"repository_ssm":["George Mason University"],"repository_ssim":["George Mason University"],"geogname_ssm":["Helsingør (Denmark)","Broadway (New York, N.Y.)"],"geogname_ssim":["Helsingør (Denmark)","Broadway (New York, N.Y.)"],"creator_ssm":["Breen, Robert","Breen, Wilva"],"creator_ssim":["Breen, Robert","Breen, Wilva"],"creator_persname_ssim":["Breen, Robert","Breen, Wilva"],"creators_ssim":["Breen, Robert","Breen, Wilva"],"places_ssim":["Helsingør (Denmark)","Broadway (New York, N.Y.)"],"access_terms_ssm":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)."],"acqinfo_ssim":["This collection was donated by the trustees of the Robert and Wilva Breen papers in 1988, and Wilva Breen and The Ohio State University in 1989. There were multiple accessions of materials throughout the 1990s. Additional materials were donated by Diana Lawrence and Mike Timoney in 2011."],"access_subjects_ssim":["Ballet","Theater and society","Theater -- Europe -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- New York (State) -- New York","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- United States","World War, 1939-1945 -- Theater and the war","Theater programs","Experimental theater -- United States","Theater -- Europe","Theater -- Production and direction","Performing arts","Theater","Theatrical posters","Photographs"],"access_subjects_ssm":["Ballet","Theater and society","Theater -- Europe -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- New York (State) -- New York","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- United States","World War, 1939-1945 -- Theater and the war","Theater programs","Experimental theater -- United States","Theater -- Europe","Theater -- Production and direction","Performing arts","Theater","Theatrical posters","Photographs"],"has_online_content_ssim":["false"],"extent_ssm":["80.5 Linear Feet 207 boxes, 1 map case"],"extent_tesim":["80.5 Linear Feet 207 boxes, 1 map case"],"genreform_ssim":["Theatrical posters","Photographs"],"date_range_isim":[1831,1832,1833,1834,1835,1836,1837,1838,1839,1840,1841,1842,1843,1844,1845,1846,1847,1848,1849,1850,1851,1852,1853,1854,1855,1856,1857,1858,1859,1860,1861,1862,1863,1864,1865,1866,1867,1868,1869,1870,1871,1872,1873,1874,1875,1876,1877,1878,1879,1880,1881,1882,1883,1884,1885,1886,1887,1888,1889,1890,1891,1892,1893,1894,1895,1896,1897,1898,1899,1900,1901,1902,1903,1904,1905,1906,1907,1908,1909,1910,1911,1912,1913,1914,1915,1916,1917,1918,1919,1920,1921,1922,1923,1924,1925,1926,1927,1928,1929,1930,1931,1932,1933,1934,1935,1936,1937,1938,1939,1940,1941,1942,1943,1944,1945,1946,1947,1948,1949,1950,1951,1952,1953,1954,1955,1956,1957,1958,1959,1960,1961,1962,1963,1964,1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978,1979,1980,1981,1982,1983,1984,1985,1986,1987,1988,1989,1990,1991,1992,1993,1994,1995,1996,1997,1998,1999,2000],"accessrestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eBox 35, Folder 12; Box 36, Folder 1; and Box 70, Folder 18 are restricted due to their physical fragility.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eBox 89, Folder 8 and 9 are restricted due to personally identifiable information.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eThere are no other access restrictions.\u003c/p\u003e"],"accessrestrict_heading_ssm":["Access Restrictions"],"accessrestrict_tesim":["Box 35, Folder 12; Box 36, Folder 1; and Box 70, Folder 18 are restricted due to their physical fragility.","Box 89, Folder 8 and 9 are restricted due to personally identifiable information.","There are no other access restrictions."],"altformavail_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eSelections from the Robert and Wilva Breen papers are also available digitally on \u003cextptr href=\"http://mars.gmu.edu/handle/1920/4609\" title=\"Mason Archival Respository Service (MARS).\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eIn 2009 and 2022 many of the audiotape reels found in this collection were converted to digital format and are available for use in the Special Collections Research Center's Reading Room.\u003c/p\u003e"],"altformavail_heading_ssm":["Alternative Form Available"],"altformavail_tesim":["Selections from the Robert and Wilva Breen papers are also available digitally on ","In 2009 and 2022 many of the audiotape reels found in this collection were converted to digital format and are available for use in the Special Collections Research Center's Reading Room."],"arrangement_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe collection was originally arranged by subject and then topic. Additional accessions were added and arranged in the order they arrived in Special Collections Research Center.\u003c/p\u003e"],"arrangement_heading_ssm":["Arrangement"],"arrangement_tesim":["The collection was originally arranged by subject and then topic. Additional accessions were added and arranged in the order they arrived in Special Collections Research Center."],"bibliography_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eStrom, Stephanie. \"Robert Breen, 80, Arts Executive And Theatrical Producer, Is Dead.\" Nytimes.com. \u003cbibref\u003e\u003cextptr href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/1990/04/02/obituaries/robert-breen-80-arts-executive-and-theatrical-producer-is-dead.html\" title=\"https://www.nytimes.com/1990/04/02/obituaries/robert-breen-80-arts-executive-and-theatrical-producer-is-dead.html\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/bibref\u003e (accessed December 12, 2018).\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eOliver, Myrna. \"Robert Breen; Initiated Cultural Exchanges.\" Articles.latimes.com. \u003cbibref\u003e\u003cextptr href=\"http://articles.latimes.com/1990-04-05/news/mn-617_1_robert-breen\" title=\"http://articles.latimes.com/1990-04-05/news/mn-617_1_robert-breen\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/bibref\u003e (accessed December 12, 2018).\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eRiedel, Michael. \"This theater's chaotic history includes a Titanic survivor, the 'Tonight' show and porn.\" Nypost.com. \u003cbibref\u003e\u003cextptr href=\"https://nypost.com/2017/03/28/this-theaters-chaotic-history-includes-a-titanic-survivor-the-tonight-show-and-porn/\" title=\"https://nypost.com/2017/03/28/this-theaters-chaotic-history-includes-a-titanic-survivor-the-tonight-show-and-porn/\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/bibref\u003e (accessed December 12, 2018).\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eANTA West records (Collection 1965). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA. \u003cbibref\u003e\u003cextptr href=\"https://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c8fn1762/\" title=\"https://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c8fn1762/\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/bibref\u003e (accessed December 12, 2018).\u003c/p\u003e"],"bibliography_heading_ssm":["Bibliography"],"bibliography_tesim":["Strom, Stephanie. \"Robert Breen, 80, Arts Executive And Theatrical Producer, Is Dead.\" Nytimes.com.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","Oliver, Myrna. \"Robert Breen; Initiated Cultural Exchanges.\" Articles.latimes.com.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","Riedel, Michael. \"This theater's chaotic history includes a Titanic survivor, the 'Tonight' show and porn.\" Nypost.com.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","ANTA West records (Collection 1965). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.   (accessed December 12, 2018)."],"bioghist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eRobert Breen, born December 26, 1909 in Hibbing, Minnesota, served as the Executive Secretary of the American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) from 1946-1952, and was instrumental in much of the organization's success, both domestically and internationally. In addition to serving in the U.S. Army Air Corps, Breen had an extensive background in theater. Prior to joining ANTA, Breen founded a theater program at the College of St. Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota, as well as established the Chicago unit for the Works Progress Administration's Federal Theatre Project with his wife, Wilva Davis Breen. Wilva herself was instrumental in promoting and guiding ANTA's many and varied operations, and getting the organization off the ground. The Breens' apartment home - situated above the Hudson Theatre in New York City, NY - served as ANTA's early headquarters. Davis Breen served as Breen's constant support and collaborator until he passed away on March 31, 1990.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e The American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) was the United States' first national theater and dance organization, in the tradition of European national theaters. Originating in 1935 with a charter from the U.S. Congress, ANTA continued until 1966 when the National Endowment for the Arts came into being. ANTA was responsible for both the presentation of American theater in the U.S. and abroad.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e Although officially formed in 1935, ANTA did not begin actual operation until 1946 due to a variety of factors, including the Great Depression and World War II. During the depression, federal funding was funnelled towards the Works Progress Administration's Federal Theatre Project, another national performing arts program. In addition to these setbacks, the ANTA board, comprised of prominent citizens and business leaders from outside the theater community, could not agree on the goals of ANTA. Eventually, Robert Breen and Robert Porterfield, two men with Army and theater backgrounds, took the reins of ANTA and initiated its revitalization. Porterfield and Breen developed ANTA's \"Foundation Plan,\" with the intention of having ANTA become the foundation for and driving force behind the stimulation of growth of American theater. The plan, successfully undertaken by Breen, Porterfield, and Breen's wife Wilva Davis Breen, called for a National Foundation to make loans and grants, insure theater projects against loss, as well as a National Service Bureau to provide technical assistance for acting companies, as well as a national clearing house for theater information. The plan was adopted by the ANTA Board in 1946.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e Under the guidance of Breen, ANTA produced several projects in the U.S. with successful results during the postwar years. From 1946 - 1948, ANTA sponsored a series of plays called the Experimental Theatre. Its goal was to \"present new, interesting plays which would not see production on Broadway due to present high costs.\" Admittedly, the plays were \"not necessarily perfect\" but \"worthy of a trial production in a simplified fashion\" according to an ANTA letter offering subscription to the series, which included high profile playwrights and actors. During the late 1940s and early 1950s ANTA sponsored a number of drama festivals across the U.S., featuring well-known actors. ANTA also featured a televised production of short plays for NBC television. With the intention of promoting theater growth in the U.S. and showcasing new talent, ANTA produced, supported, and promoted theater projects all across the United States.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e Internationally, ANTA promoted artistic exchange between the U.S. and Europe, and entertained American troops there. This was initiated with a 1949 tour of William Shakespeare's \"Hamlet\" throughout Europe, produced by and starring Breen in the titular role. This tour famously culminated in a performance at Elsinore Castle in Denmark - the actual setting of the play. Perhaps ANTA's, as well as Breen's, greatest success came with the international tour of George Gershwin's \"Porgy and Bess\" (produced with Blevins Davis), which toured from 1952-1956, visiting 89 cities and 29 countries. The opera's performance in the Soviet Union was considered the first cultural exchange post-World War II between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. ANTA also sponsored the American National Ballet Theatre's tour of Europe in 1950, performing in eighteen cities and eight countries. The tour lasted from August to December of 1950 and played to an audience of over 150,000, and was the first international tour of any American ballet company.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e ANTA also produced a number of Broadway plays and musicals out of the formerly named Guild Hall Theatre, renamed the ANTA Theatre in the 1960s and 1970s. ANTA West, which grew out of the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of ANTA in 1957, promoted and facilitated the growth of theater in the Southern California region.\u003c/p\u003e"],"bioghist_heading_ssm":["Biographical and Historical Note"],"bioghist_tesim":["Robert Breen, born December 26, 1909 in Hibbing, Minnesota, served as the Executive Secretary of the American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) from 1946-1952, and was instrumental in much of the organization's success, both domestically and internationally. In addition to serving in the U.S. Army Air Corps, Breen had an extensive background in theater. Prior to joining ANTA, Breen founded a theater program at the College of St. Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota, as well as established the Chicago unit for the Works Progress Administration's Federal Theatre Project with his wife, Wilva Davis Breen. Wilva herself was instrumental in promoting and guiding ANTA's many and varied operations, and getting the organization off the ground. The Breens' apartment home - situated above the Hudson Theatre in New York City, NY - served as ANTA's early headquarters. Davis Breen served as Breen's constant support and collaborator until he passed away on March 31, 1990."," The American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) was the United States' first national theater and dance organization, in the tradition of European national theaters. Originating in 1935 with a charter from the U.S. Congress, ANTA continued until 1966 when the National Endowment for the Arts came into being. ANTA was responsible for both the presentation of American theater in the U.S. and abroad."," Although officially formed in 1935, ANTA did not begin actual operation until 1946 due to a variety of factors, including the Great Depression and World War II. During the depression, federal funding was funnelled towards the Works Progress Administration's Federal Theatre Project, another national performing arts program. In addition to these setbacks, the ANTA board, comprised of prominent citizens and business leaders from outside the theater community, could not agree on the goals of ANTA. Eventually, Robert Breen and Robert Porterfield, two men with Army and theater backgrounds, took the reins of ANTA and initiated its revitalization. Porterfield and Breen developed ANTA's \"Foundation Plan,\" with the intention of having ANTA become the foundation for and driving force behind the stimulation of growth of American theater. The plan, successfully undertaken by Breen, Porterfield, and Breen's wife Wilva Davis Breen, called for a National Foundation to make loans and grants, insure theater projects against loss, as well as a National Service Bureau to provide technical assistance for acting companies, as well as a national clearing house for theater information. The plan was adopted by the ANTA Board in 1946."," Under the guidance of Breen, ANTA produced several projects in the U.S. with successful results during the postwar years. From 1946 - 1948, ANTA sponsored a series of plays called the Experimental Theatre. Its goal was to \"present new, interesting plays which would not see production on Broadway due to present high costs.\" Admittedly, the plays were \"not necessarily perfect\" but \"worthy of a trial production in a simplified fashion\" according to an ANTA letter offering subscription to the series, which included high profile playwrights and actors. During the late 1940s and early 1950s ANTA sponsored a number of drama festivals across the U.S., featuring well-known actors. ANTA also featured a televised production of short plays for NBC television. With the intention of promoting theater growth in the U.S. and showcasing new talent, ANTA produced, supported, and promoted theater projects all across the United States."," Internationally, ANTA promoted artistic exchange between the U.S. and Europe, and entertained American troops there. This was initiated with a 1949 tour of William Shakespeare's \"Hamlet\" throughout Europe, produced by and starring Breen in the titular role. This tour famously culminated in a performance at Elsinore Castle in Denmark - the actual setting of the play. Perhaps ANTA's, as well as Breen's, greatest success came with the international tour of George Gershwin's \"Porgy and Bess\" (produced with Blevins Davis), which toured from 1952-1956, visiting 89 cities and 29 countries. The opera's performance in the Soviet Union was considered the first cultural exchange post-World War II between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. ANTA also sponsored the American National Ballet Theatre's tour of Europe in 1950, performing in eighteen cities and eight countries. The tour lasted from August to December of 1950 and played to an audience of over 150,000, and was the first international tour of any American ballet company."," ANTA also produced a number of Broadway plays and musicals out of the formerly named Guild Hall Theatre, renamed the ANTA Theatre in the 1960s and 1970s. ANTA West, which grew out of the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of ANTA in 1957, promoted and facilitated the growth of theater in the Southern California region."],"custodhist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003ePart of the Robert and Wilva Breen papers was donated to The Ohio State University.\u003c/p\u003e"],"custodhist_heading_ssm":["Custodial History"],"custodhist_tesim":["Part of the Robert and Wilva Breen papers was donated to The Ohio State University."],"phystech_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Special Collections Research Center does not have the equipment necessary to play  obsolete audiovisual material found in the found in the Robert and Wilva Breen papers. Additional time and money may be required to digitize this material for access.\u003c/p\u003e"],"phystech_heading_ssm":["Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements"],"phystech_tesim":["The Special Collections Research Center does not have the equipment necessary to play  obsolete audiovisual material found in the found in the Robert and Wilva Breen papers. Additional time and money may be required to digitize this material for access."],"prefercite_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eRobert and Wilva Breen papers, C0004, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.\u003c/p\u003e"],"prefercite_tesim":["Robert and Wilva Breen papers, C0004, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries."],"processinfo_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eProcessed by Special Collections Research Center Staff. EAD markup completed in February 2009 by Jordan Patty. Reprocessed by Amanda Brent from 2017-2018. EAD markup completed by Amanda Brent in December 2018.\u003c/p\u003e"],"processinfo_heading_ssm":["Processing Information"],"processinfo_tesim":["Processed by Special Collections Research Center Staff. EAD markup completed in February 2009 by Jordan Patty. Reprocessed by Amanda Brent from 2017-2018. EAD markup completed by Amanda Brent in December 2018."],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eSpecial Collections Research Center also holds the \u003cextptr href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0145\" title=\"Porgy and Bess poster collection\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e, the \u003cextptr href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0002\" title=\"Federal Theatre Project collection\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e, the \u003cextptr href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0043\" title=\"Robert C. Schnitzer papers\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e, and many other \u003cextptr href=\"https://scrc.gmu.edu/collections-subject.php#THEATRE\" title=\"performing arts collections.\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e The Ohio State University Libraries' Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute holds the \u003cextptr href=\"https://library.osu.edu/collections/spec.tri.rb\" title=\"Robert Breen and Wilva papers.\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e The UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library holds the \u003cextptr href=\"https://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c8fn1762/\" title=\"ANTA West records.\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/p\u003e"],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Material"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["Special Collections Research Center also holds the  , the  , the  , and many other "," The Ohio State University Libraries' Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute holds the "," The UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library holds the "],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Robert and Wilva Breen papers consists of correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, photographs, notebooks, and audiovisual materials largely related to the creation and running of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA), as well as Robert and Wilva Breen's long-term involvement with the organization from 1944 through the 1950s. The collection also contains many photographs of theaters and theatrical performances from across the United States, including from Broadway and Off-Broadway theaters and shows, as well as numerous colleges, universities, high schools, and local children's theaters. The bulk of the collection originates from the 1940s - 2000s, with an outlier date of 1834 from an antique newspaper.\u003c/p\u003e"],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Content"],"scopecontent_tesim":["The Robert and Wilva Breen papers consists of correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, photographs, notebooks, and audiovisual materials largely related to the creation and running of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA), as well as Robert and Wilva Breen's long-term involvement with the organization from 1944 through the 1950s. The collection also contains many photographs of theaters and theatrical performances from across the United States, including from Broadway and Off-Broadway theaters and shows, as well as numerous colleges, universities, high schools, and local children's theaters. The bulk of the collection originates from the 1940s - 2000s, with an outlier date of 1834 from an antique newspaper."],"userestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/).\u003c/p\u003e"],"userestrict_heading_ssm":["Use Restrictions"],"userestrict_tesim":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)."],"abstract_html_tesm":["\u003cabstract id=\"aspace_ref348\"\u003eThe Robert and Wilva Breen papers consists of correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, photographs, notebooks, and audiovisual materials largely related to the creation and running of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA), as well as Robert and Wilva Breen's long-term involvement with the organization. The bulk of the collection originates from 1933 - 2000s, with an outlier date of 1834 from an antique newspaper.\u003c/abstract\u003e"],"abstract_tesim":["The Robert and Wilva Breen papers consists of correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, photographs, notebooks, and audiovisual materials largely related to the creation and running of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA), as well as Robert and Wilva Breen's long-term involvement with the organization. The bulk of the collection originates from 1933 - 2000s, with an outlier date of 1834 from an antique newspaper."],"physloc_html_tesm":["\u003cphysloc id=\"aspace_ddb931edc4f44bf997d326b2923a7505\"\u003eR2, C9, S3- C11, S7\nR3 C1 S1 - C2, S5\nOSR3, C4, S4\nMap Case 8.1-8.2, 9.1\u003c/physloc\u003e"],"physloc_tesim":["R2, C9, S3- C11, S7\nR3 C1 S1 - C2, S5\nOSR3, C4, S4\nMap Case 8.1-8.2, 9.1"],"names_coll_ssim":["American National Ballet Theater","American National Theatre and Academy","ANTA (Organization)","ANTA West (Organization)","Porterfield, Robert, 1905-1971"],"names_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","American National Ballet Theater","American National Theatre and Academy","ANTA (Organization)","ANTA West (Organization)","Breen, Robert","Breen, Wilva","Porterfield, Robert, 1905-1971"],"corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","American National Ballet Theater","American National Theatre and Academy","ANTA (Organization)","ANTA West (Organization)"],"persname_ssim":["Breen, Robert","Breen, Wilva","Porterfield, Robert, 1905-1971"],"language_ssim":["English"],"descrules_ssm":["Describing Archives: A Content Standard"],"total_component_count_is":3014,"online_item_count_is":0,"component_level_isim":[0],"sort_isi":0,"timestamp":"2026-05-08T07:16:03.204Z","collection":{"numFound":1,"start":0,"numFoundExact":true,"docs":[{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_521","ead_ssi":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_521","_root_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_521","_nest_parent_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_521","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/GMU/repositories_2_resources_521.xml","title_ssm":["Robert and Wilva Breen papers"],"title_tesim":["Robert and Wilva Breen papers"],"unitdate_ssm":["1834, 1933-2000s"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["1834, 1933-2000s"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["C0004","/repositories/2/resources/521"],"text":["C0004","/repositories/2/resources/521","Robert and Wilva Breen papers","Helsingør (Denmark)","Broadway (New York, N.Y.)","Ballet","Theater and society","Theater -- Europe -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- New York (State) -- New York","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- United States","World War, 1939-1945 -- Theater and the war","Theater programs","Experimental theater -- United States","Theater -- Europe","Theater -- Production and direction","Performing arts","Theater","Theatrical posters","Photographs","Box 35, Folder 12; Box 36, Folder 1; and Box 70, Folder 18 are restricted due to their physical fragility.","Box 89, Folder 8 and 9 are restricted due to personally identifiable information.","There are no other access restrictions.","Selections from the Robert and Wilva Breen papers are also available digitally on ","In 2009 and 2022 many of the audiotape reels found in this collection were converted to digital format and are available for use in the Special Collections Research Center's Reading Room.","The collection was originally arranged by subject and then topic. Additional accessions were added and arranged in the order they arrived in Special Collections Research Center.","Strom, Stephanie. \"Robert Breen, 80, Arts Executive And Theatrical Producer, Is Dead.\" Nytimes.com.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","Oliver, Myrna. \"Robert Breen; Initiated Cultural Exchanges.\" Articles.latimes.com.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","Riedel, Michael. \"This theater's chaotic history includes a Titanic survivor, the 'Tonight' show and porn.\" Nypost.com.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","ANTA West records (Collection 1965). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","Robert Breen, born December 26, 1909 in Hibbing, Minnesota, served as the Executive Secretary of the American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) from 1946-1952, and was instrumental in much of the organization's success, both domestically and internationally. In addition to serving in the U.S. Army Air Corps, Breen had an extensive background in theater. Prior to joining ANTA, Breen founded a theater program at the College of St. Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota, as well as established the Chicago unit for the Works Progress Administration's Federal Theatre Project with his wife, Wilva Davis Breen. Wilva herself was instrumental in promoting and guiding ANTA's many and varied operations, and getting the organization off the ground. The Breens' apartment home - situated above the Hudson Theatre in New York City, NY - served as ANTA's early headquarters. Davis Breen served as Breen's constant support and collaborator until he passed away on March 31, 1990."," The American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) was the United States' first national theater and dance organization, in the tradition of European national theaters. Originating in 1935 with a charter from the U.S. Congress, ANTA continued until 1966 when the National Endowment for the Arts came into being. ANTA was responsible for both the presentation of American theater in the U.S. and abroad."," Although officially formed in 1935, ANTA did not begin actual operation until 1946 due to a variety of factors, including the Great Depression and World War II. During the depression, federal funding was funnelled towards the Works Progress Administration's Federal Theatre Project, another national performing arts program. In addition to these setbacks, the ANTA board, comprised of prominent citizens and business leaders from outside the theater community, could not agree on the goals of ANTA. Eventually, Robert Breen and Robert Porterfield, two men with Army and theater backgrounds, took the reins of ANTA and initiated its revitalization. Porterfield and Breen developed ANTA's \"Foundation Plan,\" with the intention of having ANTA become the foundation for and driving force behind the stimulation of growth of American theater. The plan, successfully undertaken by Breen, Porterfield, and Breen's wife Wilva Davis Breen, called for a National Foundation to make loans and grants, insure theater projects against loss, as well as a National Service Bureau to provide technical assistance for acting companies, as well as a national clearing house for theater information. The plan was adopted by the ANTA Board in 1946."," Under the guidance of Breen, ANTA produced several projects in the U.S. with successful results during the postwar years. From 1946 - 1948, ANTA sponsored a series of plays called the Experimental Theatre. Its goal was to \"present new, interesting plays which would not see production on Broadway due to present high costs.\" Admittedly, the plays were \"not necessarily perfect\" but \"worthy of a trial production in a simplified fashion\" according to an ANTA letter offering subscription to the series, which included high profile playwrights and actors. During the late 1940s and early 1950s ANTA sponsored a number of drama festivals across the U.S., featuring well-known actors. ANTA also featured a televised production of short plays for NBC television. With the intention of promoting theater growth in the U.S. and showcasing new talent, ANTA produced, supported, and promoted theater projects all across the United States."," Internationally, ANTA promoted artistic exchange between the U.S. and Europe, and entertained American troops there. This was initiated with a 1949 tour of William Shakespeare's \"Hamlet\" throughout Europe, produced by and starring Breen in the titular role. This tour famously culminated in a performance at Elsinore Castle in Denmark - the actual setting of the play. Perhaps ANTA's, as well as Breen's, greatest success came with the international tour of George Gershwin's \"Porgy and Bess\" (produced with Blevins Davis), which toured from 1952-1956, visiting 89 cities and 29 countries. The opera's performance in the Soviet Union was considered the first cultural exchange post-World War II between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. ANTA also sponsored the American National Ballet Theatre's tour of Europe in 1950, performing in eighteen cities and eight countries. The tour lasted from August to December of 1950 and played to an audience of over 150,000, and was the first international tour of any American ballet company."," ANTA also produced a number of Broadway plays and musicals out of the formerly named Guild Hall Theatre, renamed the ANTA Theatre in the 1960s and 1970s. ANTA West, which grew out of the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of ANTA in 1957, promoted and facilitated the growth of theater in the Southern California region.","Part of the Robert and Wilva Breen papers was donated to The Ohio State University.","The Special Collections Research Center does not have the equipment necessary to play  obsolete audiovisual material found in the found in the Robert and Wilva Breen papers. Additional time and money may be required to digitize this material for access.","Processed by Special Collections Research Center Staff. EAD markup completed in February 2009 by Jordan Patty. Reprocessed by Amanda Brent from 2017-2018. EAD markup completed by Amanda Brent in December 2018.","Special Collections Research Center also holds the  , the  , the  , and many other "," The Ohio State University Libraries' Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute holds the "," The UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library holds the ","The Robert and Wilva Breen papers consists of correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, photographs, notebooks, and audiovisual materials largely related to the creation and running of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA), as well as Robert and Wilva Breen's long-term involvement with the organization from 1944 through the 1950s. The collection also contains many photographs of theaters and theatrical performances from across the United States, including from Broadway and Off-Broadway theaters and shows, as well as numerous colleges, universities, high schools, and local children's theaters. The bulk of the collection originates from the 1940s - 2000s, with an outlier date of 1834 from an antique newspaper.","The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/).","The Robert and Wilva Breen papers consists of correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, photographs, notebooks, and audiovisual materials largely related to the creation and running of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA), as well as Robert and Wilva Breen's long-term involvement with the organization. The bulk of the collection originates from 1933 - 2000s, with an outlier date of 1834 from an antique newspaper.","R2, C9, S3- C11, S7\nR3 C1 S1 - C2, S5\nOSR3, C4, S4\nMap Case 8.1-8.2, 9.1","George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","American National Ballet Theater","American National Theatre and Academy","ANTA (Organization)","ANTA West (Organization)","Breen, Robert","Breen, Wilva","Porterfield, Robert, 1905-1971","English"],"unitid_tesim":["C0004","/repositories/2/resources/521"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Robert and Wilva Breen papers"],"collection_title_tesim":["Robert and Wilva Breen papers"],"collection_ssim":["Robert and Wilva Breen papers"],"repository_ssm":["George Mason University"],"repository_ssim":["George Mason University"],"geogname_ssm":["Helsingør (Denmark)","Broadway (New York, N.Y.)"],"geogname_ssim":["Helsingør (Denmark)","Broadway (New York, N.Y.)"],"creator_ssm":["Breen, Robert","Breen, Wilva"],"creator_ssim":["Breen, Robert","Breen, Wilva"],"creator_persname_ssim":["Breen, Robert","Breen, Wilva"],"creators_ssim":["Breen, Robert","Breen, Wilva"],"places_ssim":["Helsingør (Denmark)","Broadway (New York, N.Y.)"],"access_terms_ssm":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)."],"acqinfo_ssim":["This collection was donated by the trustees of the Robert and Wilva Breen papers in 1988, and Wilva Breen and The Ohio State University in 1989. There were multiple accessions of materials throughout the 1990s. Additional materials were donated by Diana Lawrence and Mike Timoney in 2011."],"access_subjects_ssim":["Ballet","Theater and society","Theater -- Europe -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- New York (State) -- New York","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- United States","World War, 1939-1945 -- Theater and the war","Theater programs","Experimental theater -- United States","Theater -- Europe","Theater -- Production and direction","Performing arts","Theater","Theatrical posters","Photographs"],"access_subjects_ssm":["Ballet","Theater and society","Theater -- Europe -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- New York (State) -- New York","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Theater -- United States","World War, 1939-1945 -- Theater and the war","Theater programs","Experimental theater -- United States","Theater -- Europe","Theater -- Production and direction","Performing arts","Theater","Theatrical posters","Photographs"],"has_online_content_ssim":["false"],"extent_ssm":["80.5 Linear Feet 207 boxes, 1 map case"],"extent_tesim":["80.5 Linear Feet 207 boxes, 1 map case"],"genreform_ssim":["Theatrical posters","Photographs"],"date_range_isim":[1831,1832,1833,1834,1835,1836,1837,1838,1839,1840,1841,1842,1843,1844,1845,1846,1847,1848,1849,1850,1851,1852,1853,1854,1855,1856,1857,1858,1859,1860,1861,1862,1863,1864,1865,1866,1867,1868,1869,1870,1871,1872,1873,1874,1875,1876,1877,1878,1879,1880,1881,1882,1883,1884,1885,1886,1887,1888,1889,1890,1891,1892,1893,1894,1895,1896,1897,1898,1899,1900,1901,1902,1903,1904,1905,1906,1907,1908,1909,1910,1911,1912,1913,1914,1915,1916,1917,1918,1919,1920,1921,1922,1923,1924,1925,1926,1927,1928,1929,1930,1931,1932,1933,1934,1935,1936,1937,1938,1939,1940,1941,1942,1943,1944,1945,1946,1947,1948,1949,1950,1951,1952,1953,1954,1955,1956,1957,1958,1959,1960,1961,1962,1963,1964,1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978,1979,1980,1981,1982,1983,1984,1985,1986,1987,1988,1989,1990,1991,1992,1993,1994,1995,1996,1997,1998,1999,2000],"accessrestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eBox 35, Folder 12; Box 36, Folder 1; and Box 70, Folder 18 are restricted due to their physical fragility.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eBox 89, Folder 8 and 9 are restricted due to personally identifiable information.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eThere are no other access restrictions.\u003c/p\u003e"],"accessrestrict_heading_ssm":["Access Restrictions"],"accessrestrict_tesim":["Box 35, Folder 12; Box 36, Folder 1; and Box 70, Folder 18 are restricted due to their physical fragility.","Box 89, Folder 8 and 9 are restricted due to personally identifiable information.","There are no other access restrictions."],"altformavail_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eSelections from the Robert and Wilva Breen papers are also available digitally on \u003cextptr href=\"http://mars.gmu.edu/handle/1920/4609\" title=\"Mason Archival Respository Service (MARS).\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eIn 2009 and 2022 many of the audiotape reels found in this collection were converted to digital format and are available for use in the Special Collections Research Center's Reading Room.\u003c/p\u003e"],"altformavail_heading_ssm":["Alternative Form Available"],"altformavail_tesim":["Selections from the Robert and Wilva Breen papers are also available digitally on ","In 2009 and 2022 many of the audiotape reels found in this collection were converted to digital format and are available for use in the Special Collections Research Center's Reading Room."],"arrangement_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe collection was originally arranged by subject and then topic. Additional accessions were added and arranged in the order they arrived in Special Collections Research Center.\u003c/p\u003e"],"arrangement_heading_ssm":["Arrangement"],"arrangement_tesim":["The collection was originally arranged by subject and then topic. Additional accessions were added and arranged in the order they arrived in Special Collections Research Center."],"bibliography_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eStrom, Stephanie. \"Robert Breen, 80, Arts Executive And Theatrical Producer, Is Dead.\" Nytimes.com. \u003cbibref\u003e\u003cextptr href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/1990/04/02/obituaries/robert-breen-80-arts-executive-and-theatrical-producer-is-dead.html\" title=\"https://www.nytimes.com/1990/04/02/obituaries/robert-breen-80-arts-executive-and-theatrical-producer-is-dead.html\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/bibref\u003e (accessed December 12, 2018).\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eOliver, Myrna. \"Robert Breen; Initiated Cultural Exchanges.\" Articles.latimes.com. \u003cbibref\u003e\u003cextptr href=\"http://articles.latimes.com/1990-04-05/news/mn-617_1_robert-breen\" title=\"http://articles.latimes.com/1990-04-05/news/mn-617_1_robert-breen\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/bibref\u003e (accessed December 12, 2018).\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eRiedel, Michael. \"This theater's chaotic history includes a Titanic survivor, the 'Tonight' show and porn.\" Nypost.com. \u003cbibref\u003e\u003cextptr href=\"https://nypost.com/2017/03/28/this-theaters-chaotic-history-includes-a-titanic-survivor-the-tonight-show-and-porn/\" title=\"https://nypost.com/2017/03/28/this-theaters-chaotic-history-includes-a-titanic-survivor-the-tonight-show-and-porn/\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/bibref\u003e (accessed December 12, 2018).\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003eANTA West records (Collection 1965). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA. \u003cbibref\u003e\u003cextptr href=\"https://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c8fn1762/\" title=\"https://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c8fn1762/\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/bibref\u003e (accessed December 12, 2018).\u003c/p\u003e"],"bibliography_heading_ssm":["Bibliography"],"bibliography_tesim":["Strom, Stephanie. \"Robert Breen, 80, Arts Executive And Theatrical Producer, Is Dead.\" Nytimes.com.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","Oliver, Myrna. \"Robert Breen; Initiated Cultural Exchanges.\" Articles.latimes.com.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","Riedel, Michael. \"This theater's chaotic history includes a Titanic survivor, the 'Tonight' show and porn.\" Nypost.com.   (accessed December 12, 2018).","ANTA West records (Collection 1965). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.   (accessed December 12, 2018)."],"bioghist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eRobert Breen, born December 26, 1909 in Hibbing, Minnesota, served as the Executive Secretary of the American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) from 1946-1952, and was instrumental in much of the organization's success, both domestically and internationally. In addition to serving in the U.S. Army Air Corps, Breen had an extensive background in theater. Prior to joining ANTA, Breen founded a theater program at the College of St. Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota, as well as established the Chicago unit for the Works Progress Administration's Federal Theatre Project with his wife, Wilva Davis Breen. Wilva herself was instrumental in promoting and guiding ANTA's many and varied operations, and getting the organization off the ground. The Breens' apartment home - situated above the Hudson Theatre in New York City, NY - served as ANTA's early headquarters. Davis Breen served as Breen's constant support and collaborator until he passed away on March 31, 1990.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e The American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) was the United States' first national theater and dance organization, in the tradition of European national theaters. Originating in 1935 with a charter from the U.S. Congress, ANTA continued until 1966 when the National Endowment for the Arts came into being. ANTA was responsible for both the presentation of American theater in the U.S. and abroad.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e Although officially formed in 1935, ANTA did not begin actual operation until 1946 due to a variety of factors, including the Great Depression and World War II. During the depression, federal funding was funnelled towards the Works Progress Administration's Federal Theatre Project, another national performing arts program. In addition to these setbacks, the ANTA board, comprised of prominent citizens and business leaders from outside the theater community, could not agree on the goals of ANTA. Eventually, Robert Breen and Robert Porterfield, two men with Army and theater backgrounds, took the reins of ANTA and initiated its revitalization. Porterfield and Breen developed ANTA's \"Foundation Plan,\" with the intention of having ANTA become the foundation for and driving force behind the stimulation of growth of American theater. The plan, successfully undertaken by Breen, Porterfield, and Breen's wife Wilva Davis Breen, called for a National Foundation to make loans and grants, insure theater projects against loss, as well as a National Service Bureau to provide technical assistance for acting companies, as well as a national clearing house for theater information. The plan was adopted by the ANTA Board in 1946.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e Under the guidance of Breen, ANTA produced several projects in the U.S. with successful results during the postwar years. From 1946 - 1948, ANTA sponsored a series of plays called the Experimental Theatre. Its goal was to \"present new, interesting plays which would not see production on Broadway due to present high costs.\" Admittedly, the plays were \"not necessarily perfect\" but \"worthy of a trial production in a simplified fashion\" according to an ANTA letter offering subscription to the series, which included high profile playwrights and actors. During the late 1940s and early 1950s ANTA sponsored a number of drama festivals across the U.S., featuring well-known actors. ANTA also featured a televised production of short plays for NBC television. With the intention of promoting theater growth in the U.S. and showcasing new talent, ANTA produced, supported, and promoted theater projects all across the United States.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e Internationally, ANTA promoted artistic exchange between the U.S. and Europe, and entertained American troops there. This was initiated with a 1949 tour of William Shakespeare's \"Hamlet\" throughout Europe, produced by and starring Breen in the titular role. This tour famously culminated in a performance at Elsinore Castle in Denmark - the actual setting of the play. Perhaps ANTA's, as well as Breen's, greatest success came with the international tour of George Gershwin's \"Porgy and Bess\" (produced with Blevins Davis), which toured from 1952-1956, visiting 89 cities and 29 countries. The opera's performance in the Soviet Union was considered the first cultural exchange post-World War II between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. ANTA also sponsored the American National Ballet Theatre's tour of Europe in 1950, performing in eighteen cities and eight countries. The tour lasted from August to December of 1950 and played to an audience of over 150,000, and was the first international tour of any American ballet company.\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e ANTA also produced a number of Broadway plays and musicals out of the formerly named Guild Hall Theatre, renamed the ANTA Theatre in the 1960s and 1970s. ANTA West, which grew out of the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of ANTA in 1957, promoted and facilitated the growth of theater in the Southern California region.\u003c/p\u003e"],"bioghist_heading_ssm":["Biographical and Historical Note"],"bioghist_tesim":["Robert Breen, born December 26, 1909 in Hibbing, Minnesota, served as the Executive Secretary of the American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) from 1946-1952, and was instrumental in much of the organization's success, both domestically and internationally. In addition to serving in the U.S. Army Air Corps, Breen had an extensive background in theater. Prior to joining ANTA, Breen founded a theater program at the College of St. Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota, as well as established the Chicago unit for the Works Progress Administration's Federal Theatre Project with his wife, Wilva Davis Breen. Wilva herself was instrumental in promoting and guiding ANTA's many and varied operations, and getting the organization off the ground. The Breens' apartment home - situated above the Hudson Theatre in New York City, NY - served as ANTA's early headquarters. Davis Breen served as Breen's constant support and collaborator until he passed away on March 31, 1990."," The American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) was the United States' first national theater and dance organization, in the tradition of European national theaters. Originating in 1935 with a charter from the U.S. Congress, ANTA continued until 1966 when the National Endowment for the Arts came into being. ANTA was responsible for both the presentation of American theater in the U.S. and abroad."," Although officially formed in 1935, ANTA did not begin actual operation until 1946 due to a variety of factors, including the Great Depression and World War II. During the depression, federal funding was funnelled towards the Works Progress Administration's Federal Theatre Project, another national performing arts program. In addition to these setbacks, the ANTA board, comprised of prominent citizens and business leaders from outside the theater community, could not agree on the goals of ANTA. Eventually, Robert Breen and Robert Porterfield, two men with Army and theater backgrounds, took the reins of ANTA and initiated its revitalization. Porterfield and Breen developed ANTA's \"Foundation Plan,\" with the intention of having ANTA become the foundation for and driving force behind the stimulation of growth of American theater. The plan, successfully undertaken by Breen, Porterfield, and Breen's wife Wilva Davis Breen, called for a National Foundation to make loans and grants, insure theater projects against loss, as well as a National Service Bureau to provide technical assistance for acting companies, as well as a national clearing house for theater information. The plan was adopted by the ANTA Board in 1946."," Under the guidance of Breen, ANTA produced several projects in the U.S. with successful results during the postwar years. From 1946 - 1948, ANTA sponsored a series of plays called the Experimental Theatre. Its goal was to \"present new, interesting plays which would not see production on Broadway due to present high costs.\" Admittedly, the plays were \"not necessarily perfect\" but \"worthy of a trial production in a simplified fashion\" according to an ANTA letter offering subscription to the series, which included high profile playwrights and actors. During the late 1940s and early 1950s ANTA sponsored a number of drama festivals across the U.S., featuring well-known actors. ANTA also featured a televised production of short plays for NBC television. With the intention of promoting theater growth in the U.S. and showcasing new talent, ANTA produced, supported, and promoted theater projects all across the United States."," Internationally, ANTA promoted artistic exchange between the U.S. and Europe, and entertained American troops there. This was initiated with a 1949 tour of William Shakespeare's \"Hamlet\" throughout Europe, produced by and starring Breen in the titular role. This tour famously culminated in a performance at Elsinore Castle in Denmark - the actual setting of the play. Perhaps ANTA's, as well as Breen's, greatest success came with the international tour of George Gershwin's \"Porgy and Bess\" (produced with Blevins Davis), which toured from 1952-1956, visiting 89 cities and 29 countries. The opera's performance in the Soviet Union was considered the first cultural exchange post-World War II between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. ANTA also sponsored the American National Ballet Theatre's tour of Europe in 1950, performing in eighteen cities and eight countries. The tour lasted from August to December of 1950 and played to an audience of over 150,000, and was the first international tour of any American ballet company."," ANTA also produced a number of Broadway plays and musicals out of the formerly named Guild Hall Theatre, renamed the ANTA Theatre in the 1960s and 1970s. ANTA West, which grew out of the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of ANTA in 1957, promoted and facilitated the growth of theater in the Southern California region."],"custodhist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003ePart of the Robert and Wilva Breen papers was donated to The Ohio State University.\u003c/p\u003e"],"custodhist_heading_ssm":["Custodial History"],"custodhist_tesim":["Part of the Robert and Wilva Breen papers was donated to The Ohio State University."],"phystech_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Special Collections Research Center does not have the equipment necessary to play  obsolete audiovisual material found in the found in the Robert and Wilva Breen papers. Additional time and money may be required to digitize this material for access.\u003c/p\u003e"],"phystech_heading_ssm":["Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements"],"phystech_tesim":["The Special Collections Research Center does not have the equipment necessary to play  obsolete audiovisual material found in the found in the Robert and Wilva Breen papers. Additional time and money may be required to digitize this material for access."],"prefercite_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eRobert and Wilva Breen papers, C0004, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.\u003c/p\u003e"],"prefercite_tesim":["Robert and Wilva Breen papers, C0004, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries."],"processinfo_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eProcessed by Special Collections Research Center Staff. EAD markup completed in February 2009 by Jordan Patty. Reprocessed by Amanda Brent from 2017-2018. EAD markup completed by Amanda Brent in December 2018.\u003c/p\u003e"],"processinfo_heading_ssm":["Processing Information"],"processinfo_tesim":["Processed by Special Collections Research Center Staff. EAD markup completed in February 2009 by Jordan Patty. Reprocessed by Amanda Brent from 2017-2018. EAD markup completed by Amanda Brent in December 2018."],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eSpecial Collections Research Center also holds the \u003cextptr href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0145\" title=\"Porgy and Bess poster collection\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e, the \u003cextptr href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0002\" title=\"Federal Theatre Project collection\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e, the \u003cextptr href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0043\" title=\"Robert C. Schnitzer papers\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e, and many other \u003cextptr href=\"https://scrc.gmu.edu/collections-subject.php#THEATRE\" title=\"performing arts collections.\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e The Ohio State University Libraries' Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute holds the \u003cextptr href=\"https://library.osu.edu/collections/spec.tri.rb\" title=\"Robert Breen and Wilva papers.\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n","\u003cp\u003e The UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library holds the \u003cextptr href=\"https://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c8fn1762/\" title=\"ANTA West records.\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e\u003c/p\u003e"],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Material"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["Special Collections Research Center also holds the  , the  , the  , and many other "," The Ohio State University Libraries' Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute holds the "," The UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library holds the "],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Robert and Wilva Breen papers consists of correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, photographs, notebooks, and audiovisual materials largely related to the creation and running of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA), as well as Robert and Wilva Breen's long-term involvement with the organization from 1944 through the 1950s. The collection also contains many photographs of theaters and theatrical performances from across the United States, including from Broadway and Off-Broadway theaters and shows, as well as numerous colleges, universities, high schools, and local children's theaters. The bulk of the collection originates from the 1940s - 2000s, with an outlier date of 1834 from an antique newspaper.\u003c/p\u003e"],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Content"],"scopecontent_tesim":["The Robert and Wilva Breen papers consists of correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, photographs, notebooks, and audiovisual materials largely related to the creation and running of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA), as well as Robert and Wilva Breen's long-term involvement with the organization from 1944 through the 1950s. The collection also contains many photographs of theaters and theatrical performances from across the United States, including from Broadway and Off-Broadway theaters and shows, as well as numerous colleges, universities, high schools, and local children's theaters. The bulk of the collection originates from the 1940s - 2000s, with an outlier date of 1834 from an antique newspaper."],"userestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/).\u003c/p\u003e"],"userestrict_heading_ssm":["Use Restrictions"],"userestrict_tesim":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)."],"abstract_html_tesm":["\u003cabstract id=\"aspace_ref348\"\u003eThe Robert and Wilva Breen papers consists of correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, photographs, notebooks, and audiovisual materials largely related to the creation and running of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA), as well as Robert and Wilva Breen's long-term involvement with the organization. The bulk of the collection originates from 1933 - 2000s, with an outlier date of 1834 from an antique newspaper.\u003c/abstract\u003e"],"abstract_tesim":["The Robert and Wilva Breen papers consists of correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, photographs, notebooks, and audiovisual materials largely related to the creation and running of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA), as well as Robert and Wilva Breen's long-term involvement with the organization. The bulk of the collection originates from 1933 - 2000s, with an outlier date of 1834 from an antique newspaper."],"physloc_html_tesm":["\u003cphysloc id=\"aspace_ddb931edc4f44bf997d326b2923a7505\"\u003eR2, C9, S3- C11, S7\nR3 C1 S1 - C2, S5\nOSR3, C4, S4\nMap Case 8.1-8.2, 9.1\u003c/physloc\u003e"],"physloc_tesim":["R2, C9, S3- C11, S7\nR3 C1 S1 - C2, S5\nOSR3, C4, S4\nMap Case 8.1-8.2, 9.1"],"names_coll_ssim":["American National Ballet Theater","American National Theatre and Academy","ANTA (Organization)","ANTA West (Organization)","Porterfield, Robert, 1905-1971"],"names_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","American National Ballet Theater","American National Theatre and Academy","ANTA (Organization)","ANTA West (Organization)","Breen, Robert","Breen, Wilva","Porterfield, Robert, 1905-1971"],"corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. 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These include the Federal Art Project, Federal Music Project, and Federal Writers Project.","label":"Abstract Or Scope"}},"breadcrumbs":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_190#breadcrumbs","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_190","ead_ssi":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_190","_root_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_190","_nest_parent_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_190","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/GMU/repositories_2_resources_190.xml","title_filing_ssi":"Works Progress Administration oral histories","title_ssm":["Works Progress Administration oral histories collection"],"title_tesim":["Works Progress Administration oral histories collection"],"unitdate_ssm":["1961-1984"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["1961-1984"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["C0153","/repositories/2/resources/190"],"text":["C0153","/repositories/2/resources/190","Works Progress Administration oral histories collection","Theater -- United States","Dance -- United States","Acting","New Deal, 1933-1939","Performing arts","Theater","Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century","Sound recordings","Oral histories","There are no access restrictions.","Most of the oral histories from this collection were digitized through a Council on Library \u0026 Information Resources (CLIR) grant in 2019. 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These include the Federal Art Project, Federal Music Project, and Federal Writers Project.\u003c/abstract\u003e"],"abstract_tesim":["Collection includes transcripts and recordings of oral interviews with persons who were associated with various Works Progress Administration (WPA) projects in the 1930s. These include the Federal Art Project, Federal Music Project, and Federal Writers Project."],"names_coll_ssim":["Federal Art Project","Federal Music Project (U.S.)","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","Federal Writers' Project","United States. Works Progress Administration"],"names_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","Federal Art Project","Federal Music Project (U.S.)","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","Federal Writers' Project","United States. Works Progress Administration"],"corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. 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Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","Federal Art Project","Federal Music Project (U.S.)","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","Federal Writers' Project","United States. Works Progress Administration","English"],"unitid_tesim":["C0153","/repositories/2/resources/190"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Works Progress Administration oral histories collection"],"collection_title_tesim":["Works Progress Administration oral histories collection"],"collection_ssim":["Works Progress Administration oral histories collection"],"repository_ssm":["George Mason University"],"repository_ssim":["George Mason University"],"creator_ssm":["George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture"],"creator_ssim":["George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture"],"creator_corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture"],"creators_ssim":["George Mason University. 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