The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1935-02-01
Reviewed by
ARTHUR DOUR

nv KUN JUN
NEW THEATRE appears this
" month as the publication of the
newly formed New Theatre
League" which supersedes the old
League Of Workers Theatres. This
change, made possible by the steady
advance of the theatrical front, is
reflected in the new high standard
set by the current issue of New
Theatre.
The contents are led off by Black
Taylor's Broadway, Inc, VS.. the
Unions" An answer to Morton Eu-
stis's book, "B'way, Inc" Taylors
article is proof that the New The
atre League can now go beyond alb
stract political and dramatic theo-
ries to where these theories find root
in the daily experience of theatre
workers.
The concretizing of the theatrical
struggle is noteworthy throughout
the magazine. Tom Langley con
tributes an estimate Of Will Hayes,
the Sl50,000- per-year movie car,
who once suggested, concerning
this criminal thing, the I. w. w.
or what not" that There is a rem
edy-it is taken against the wall
standing" Hayes job as servant of
the bankers who own the moving
pictures, is to draw off the fire of
immortality" charges and to con-
vince the more obtuse reactionaries
that the Hollywood films are al
ready perfect medium for stulti-
fication of the masses.
Waiting for Lefty" Clifford
Odets' short play about taxi strik-
ers, is printed in full. The play has
already demonstrated its unusual
merit in production by actors of the
Group Theatre, of which Odets is
also an actor member. The charac-
tiers, particularly in the Union Hall
scenes, have an uncanny reality,
and the play itself has turbulence,
raff1sh proletarian humor, and a
convincing scenic form which COM
bines theatre of action with the
conventions of the minstrel show
and the Arabian Nights Tales. In
walking onto labor union platform
Odets opens new region to the
American theatre.
HAROLD ED GAR aptly uses
IL Broadwsy's own ysrdstick of
professionalism in his analyses of
recent Broadway productions. Like
the other writers in New Theatre,
he shows growing responsiveness
to the merits and admirable quail
ties of certain workers in the bour-
geois theatre, as well as of certain
phases of that theatre. An excep-
ton is his review of "The Chill
dren's Hour" which reveals the
plays defects, but ignores the beau
tiful work of the director and the
players.
Nathaniel Buchwald's article on
the Artefs Broadway season re
minds us that this forerunner of
the Theatre Union has also pro-
duced three outstanding plays in
succession. They are "Egor Built
schev," Recruits" and "Dostiga-
yev." The Artef now faces difficult
transition period from amateur to
professional standing, and from
Chassidic to American proletarisn
theology and methods Of staging.
The experiences of the Artef are
important especially for those for
eign Language groups which are
overcoming their sectionalism and
are entering the larger arena Of the
American revolutionary theatre.
Dancers will find the present
number of New Theatre highly pro-
vocative. Edna Ocko's review Of the
Workers Dance League recital at
Town Hall on Dec. %, draws a line
between dances intended for the
unframed eyes of thousands of peo-
pie who have never seen dancing
before and those which are in
| tended for the concert platform,
whose developed audiences find the
first type Crude and wearisome. ="
In the same number Emmanuel
Eisenberg insists that most revolu-
tionary dancers are still only
ladies" who display all the bour-
is-idealistic poses of the Purple
| days Of Nietzsche.
All these evidences of a concrete,
informed and authoritative APP
proach, combined with the regular
news pages of united front develop
ments in the amateur groups, prove
that New Theatre has become a real
weapon for the mass development
of the American theatre to its high
est artistic and social level"