Skip to main content

To: Hon. President Biden, House of Representative and Senate

Reestablish Federal Theatre Project

Most of the actors are out of work since the Pandemic.

The Federal Theatre Project was one of four (subsequently five) arts-related projects called Federal Project Number One, established under the Works Progress Administration (WPA) during Roosevelt's first term. The WPA was created through Executive Order No. 7034 issued on May 6, 1935.

President Biden need to reestablish FEDERAL THEATRE using his executive powers, so that all actors could work again.

Why is this important?

President Biden's predecessor FDR signed the New Deal Legislation to bring the country out of Depression and also brought forth FEDERAL THEATRE.

We the actors and artists are out of work and are in a similar situation comparable to the Depression era of 1930's with Covid 19 still hanging over our heads. All the theaters along with so many businesses are shut down. Actors and artists are out of work since the beginning of the Pandemic.

FEDERAL THEATRE was a successful project and it created a new awareness among the public and work for all the actors and others that depend on theatre.

An idea is a most powerful thing. And theatre is the place to nurture those ideas in these changing and rebuilding times. It is the Federal Theatre that gave opportunity to everyone to become an artist. And some of the most wonderful artists came out of that project, for instance, Arthur Miller, Orson Welles to name a couple. It's not just commercial theatre that only few people can afford to go. Federal Theatre is open for everyone and it is full of new ideas. It is time to restart this project again.

Other Western countries have it in one form or the other of this theatre and they produce wonderful plays and create excellent artists. You need ART and a person can not live by bread alone. Coming out of Pandemic and being cooked up in self-containment in our apartments, it is essential to have a theatre to go to, that is cheap and affordable to everyone, not just for few. Moreover, It is good for the society and for everyone's mental health.

Tell President Biden to publicly support this proposal and sign it as part of the New Stimulus legislation or a separate Executive Order from the White House.

Updates

2021-03-10 22:32:42 -0500

100 signatures reached

2021-03-10 20:55:31 -0500

The Virus Cost Performers Their Work, Then Their Health Coverage
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/09/arts/coronavirus-actors.html?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_nn_20210309&instance_id=27904&nl=the-morningĀ®i_id=77585148&segment_id=53125&te=1&user_id=879adc58a58be17075e047640d110087

2021-03-10 16:01:17 -0500

50 signatures reached

2021-03-10 15:10:04 -0500

25 signatures reached

2021-03-10 14:57:11 -0500

10 signatures reached