laman actress at the Half-Moon Theatre, and while I am pleased to see that Red Weekly considers the han-boon worthy or a thesire tewew, I was nevertheless distressed at the cone of your reviewer, mores of the ral moon in putting on this play in the first place.
1 cin amira him That no nệ concit nei with the curio. nor were these their moties Tor accepting the invitation to perform it at the Round House. The Half Moon may be a theatre but it is not an achsic pam or culture, nor does it present works which are the gloritied portrayal of the values of the fuling class."
one or is prime conced note the people living in the district.
While I consider it right and justifiod to devote a peragraph of your review to the Round House audience and its reaction to the play, I find it disappointing and unair to all concerned in the tormance with the words thin is an excallant production an le the Half moon to stew while he fulminetes bout the "bourgeois theatre and its "castration" of Brecht. As for the potential Budience, this single sentence is no Biourede ment to go and see the play.
wore wit you see as the unction or your reviews. If as i suppose in this cose, itils to encourage people to pame into contact with political drama, your reviewer has falled. I hope that if the Rod Weakly intends to review the Hai Mochis cresent production. Fallin'and Follow me, or indeed thase of any other theatres, they will take whet the play is sing and how the production says it as a starting point for their Freed Nick Adams review in your No. 4 issur and Tound its approach much more acceptable, Ruth Sagiow Morris Blake Replies:
My article on Brecht was not intended as a conventanal raviow. Red Weekly already published such a review of the sarlier production of this play. "Communique from the Army of the Arts' will try to deal with the problems of the relationship between ant and cass struggle in a sanety or contexis Last week's column was meant to be a fairly general appraisal of Brecht in relation to the traditional role of the theatre in capitalist pacity.
These are important quistions and require serious discussion. How political can so-called "political" theatre really be, given the soclal context in which it is presented. There may be perticular exceptions, but in general theatre does present ruling class values it is a vehicle of capitalist ideologvi. Even when intensary revutina works appear, The capitals. theatre logain in general - 1 exempt the Half Moon! eo-opts and neutralises the content of these works, precisely by axploiting them for profit. The fact is the working class, who have the most to gain from the content of Bracht's work, rarely sees it performed because they experienca the theatre as something traditionally reserved for the 'upper classes. In his review of "The Mother Nick Adams commented that avan the Half Moon audience -despite the location of the theatre in a working class arsa — was prodominantly patty- bourgeois. We must acu up to this problem.
These problems of the relationship between the contet of art, Its form and the social context in which sEe craiso cannot be reduco to the motwas orth people who are angaged in the creative work. The individual attitude of she writer, astor or producer may be important - but thay cannot docisivaly aflac the social role art plays in society. The most important on that we showd bo worrying about are those that keep the working class from attanding revolutionary theatre. Uintees we are able to crack this particuler nut, our best intentions will be of Smited effect.
Red Weekly will be reviewing Fall In and Follow Me! and will of course take up the content of the play. Howaver the problams of form and social context are upd bens trat ail revolutionaries in the army of the arts must deal with in a serious way.
In the late fifties and early sixties the African continent commanded wide attention. The ending of direct colonial rule over most of its territory began in 1957 in Ghana and was continued with extreme rapidity throughout the continent. For a whole period the leader. ships of the new states were given favourable publicity particulorly in the liberal and social democratic press.
In his 1962 book African Socialism, Fenner Brockway made a kaleidoscopic lour of the middle sixties. Continued imperialist control • of the key mining industries combined with the worldwide depression of commodity prices to hammer home the realities of neo-colonial dependence. Burgeoning groups of politicians, army officers, administrators and officiak constituted an elite minority, with living standards dramatically in contrast to those of the majority of their populations. While the Portuguese colonialists were faced with a mounting guetilla war in each of their three territories, a highly co-ordinated repression by the South poverty of the mass of the population.
STRIKE WAVE a measure of economic development has taken place, highlighting the wealth of the imperialist corporations and the conspicuous consumption of their local agents in contrast to the desperate Undoubtedly the stage is set for the re-emer: gence of massive social struggles inside the neo-colonialist countries of black Africa.
Meantime too the white South has seen a recent sharp escalation of struggles - notably the big strike wave which occurred in South which will be the flashpoint for revolution un Africa in the immediate future. But it will be equally necessary for the masses of black Africa to confront imperialism and its local agents head on. The joining together of these two processes will constitute the coming African socialist revolution.
One of the clearest indicators of the relative underdevelopment of the revolutionary process on the continent to date has been the luck of influence wielded by any of the Important tendencies in the internationa)