The Theatre History Podcast
Episode 113: Todd London on Zelda Fichandler and the History of Nonprofit Theatre in the United States
May 19, 202646 min · 6,426 words
Show notes
Zelda Fichandler was one of the founders of the repertory theatre movement in the United States. Her tireless advocacy for the cause of nonprofit theatre led to a substantial volume of writing, much of which has now been edited by Todd London and published as The Long Revolution: Sixty Years on the Frontlines of a New American Theatre, and today Todd joins us to talk about this book.
Highlighted moments
the commercial theater in Zelda's formulation was a one-shot, make-a-pudding, smash-a-pudding enterprise. You know, you make it, it works, it goes on the road, it doesn't work, you smash it, and you make something else.
“on one hand, there's the censorship of commerce. And on the other, there's the censorship of subsidy and government.”
“the theater is not a place where plays get made. A theater is the enfolding of an artistic idea and the elaboration of that idea over time through singular vision and resident artists”
“Many of the founders of these theaters were women, women of a certain, you know, cultural class and their friends. And then when the theaters became viable, they were taken over by men.”
Transcript
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