The Cradle Will Rock
In 1935, President Roosevelt (1882–1945) created the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided jobs for 8.5 million people, including artists, writers, musicians, and actors. Inspired by rank-and-file labor activism, Marc Blitzstein (1905–1964) intended his WPA Federal Theatre Project musical The Cradle Will Rock for a “new audience . . . clamoring for something vital.” After the federal government postponed its opening during a period of labor unrest, the production was moved and actors performed from the audience to avoid breaking union rules.
In 1935, President Roosevelt (1882–1945) created the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided jobs for 8.5 million people, including artists, writers, musicians, and actors. Inspired by rank-and-file labor activism, Marc Blitzstein (1905–1964) intended his WPA Federal Theatre Project musical <em>The Cradle Will Rock</em> for a “new audience . . . clamoring for something vital.” After the federal government postponed its opening during a period of labor unrest, the production was moved and actors performed from the audience to avoid breaking union rules.