{"links":{"self":"https://arvasarchive.org/catalog.json?f%5Baccess_subjects%5D%5B%5D=Theater+programs\u0026f%5Bdate_range%5D%5B%5D=1968\u0026f%5Bnames%5D%5B%5D=Federal+Theatre+Project+%28U.S.%29","last":"https://arvasarchive.org/catalog.json?f%5Baccess_subjects%5D%5B%5D=Theater+programs\u0026f%5Bdate_range%5D%5B%5D=1968\u0026f%5Bnames%5D%5B%5D=Federal+Theatre+Project+%28U.S.%29\u0026page=1"},"meta":{"pages":{"current_page":1,"next_page":null,"prev_page":null,"total_pages":1,"limit_value":10,"offset_value":0,"total_count":2,"first_page?":true,"last_page?":true}},"data":[{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_331","type":"collection","attributes":{"title":"Federal Theatre Project collection, 1885/1986, bulk 1935/1939","creator":{"id":"https://arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_331#creator","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","label":"Creator"}},"abstract_or_scope":{"id":"https://arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_331#abstract_or_scope","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"The Federal Theatre Project collection contains administrative records, play service and research records, library records, production records, and costumes created or collected by the Federal Theatre Project from 1935 to 1939. A few items in the collection were created before or after this time period but directly relate to the 1930s material. This collection consists of original materials with some duplicates and photocopies.","label":"Abstract Or Scope"}},"breadcrumbs":{"id":"https://arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_331#breadcrumbs","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_331","ead_ssi":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_331","_root_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_331","_nest_parent_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_331","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/GMU/repositories_2_resources_331.xml","title_filing_ssi":"Federal Theatre Project collection","title_ssm":["Federal Theatre Project collection"],"title_tesim":["Federal Theatre Project collection"],"unitdate_ssm":["circa 1885-1986","1935-1939"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["circa 1885-1986"],"unitdate_bulk_ssim":["1935-1939"],"normalized_date_ssm":["1885/1986, bulk 1935/1939"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Federal Theatre Project collection, 1885/1986, bulk 1935/1939"],"text":["Federal Theatre Project collection, 1885/1986, bulk 1935/1939","C0002","/repositories/2/resources/331","Children's theater","New Deal, 1933-1939","Political plays, American","Radio and theater","Theater programs","Theater -- United States","Theater","Theater -- Production and direction","Performing arts","Playscript","There are no access restrictions.","Portions of this collection were digitized and are available to view .","Arranged into five series.","Series\n      Series 1: Administrative Records, 1935-1939 (Boxes 1-5, 361, 365-366, 368)\n      Series 2: Play Service and Research Records, 1935-1939 (Boxes 5-105)\n      Series 3: Library Records, 1885-1986 (Boxes 106-306)\n      Series 4: Production Records, 193-193 (Boxes 307-363, 366-367)\n      Series 5: Costumes, circa 1935-1939 (Boxes 369-371)","The Federal Theatre Project was a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided employment for large numbers of artists, writers, and performers during the Great Depression (1929-1939). The Federal Theatre began in 1935 and, until its end in 1939, flourished as the first and only federally sponsored and subsidized theater program in the United States. Directed by Hallie Flanagan (1880-1969), it was a way for theatrical professionals to gain employment during the Depression. Jobs were provided for many people, including actors, playwrights, scene designers, scene builders, seamstresses, lighting experts, ushers, box-office men, and stagehands.","Like many New Deal programs implemented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Federal Theatre Project was intended not only to benefit its participants, but also to enrich the condition of the nation. Theater was a distinguished part of American popular culture, but the economic downturn of the Depression had bankrupted the entire theater industry. As the theater houses closed down, the nation was left without an outlet for theatrical creativity. According to Hallie Flanagan, this hurt the nation as much as it hurt the theater industry - indeed, the nation was their audience and the theater could provide entertaining distractions from the effects of Depression as well as offer commentary on present conditions.","But it was not enough to simply return to the pre-Depression concept of theater. In the first meeting with her staff Flanagan expressed her willingness to follow Roosevelt's experimental approach to public policy: \"In a changing world, a world of experiment, the stage too must experiment - with ideas, with the psychological relationship of men and women, with color and light.... The theatre must grow up.\"","Flanagan pursued her ideal of developing the relationship between the Federal Theatre and the federal government: \"Any theatre sponsored by the government of the United States should do no plays of a cheap, trivial, outworn or vulgar nature, but only such plays as the Government can stand proudly behind in a planned theatrical program, national in scope, regional in emphasis, and American in democratic attitude.\" To Flanagan, it was imperative that this new theater should be progressive and experimental, yet within a patriotic and informative framework.","The productions that best embodied Flanagan's views on theater were the Living Newspapers. These hard-hitting, poignant plays dealt with contemporary factual material, dramatizing issues such as housing, agriculture, labor, and destitution. Always ending on an upbeat note, Living Newspapers underscored the importance of hard work and morality in overcoming difficult times. Living Newspaper titles include: Triple A Plowed Under, Injunction Granted, One Third of a Nation, and Spirocheta.","The Federal Theatre was noted for employing Black Americans at a time when the Federal Government did not actively protect the rights of marginalized communities. This unit was called \"The Negro Unit,\" which at the time was a socially acceptable term used to describe people of African descent. All-Black theatre companies were an established industry before the Depression. As a result, the inclusion of this unit greatly contributed to the success of the Federal Theatre Project. Some of the most spectacular productions were put on by Black theater professionals, for example: Macbeth, Haiti, Turpentine, Run Little Chillun, and The Trial of Dr. Beck.","Processed by Special Collections Research Center staff. Reprocessed and EAD completed in 2012 by Greta Kuriger. Finding aid updated by Robert Vay in February 2023.","The Special Collections Research Center also holds the Federal Theatre Project photograph collection, the Federal Theatre Project personal papers, the Arnold Sungaard papers, and the Works Progress Administration oral histories collection.","The scripts are also available as a series in the .","Content Warning: Some materials contain racist language and slurs, including play titles.","The Federal Theatre Project collection contains administrative records, play service and research records, library records, production records, and costumes created or collected by the Federal Theatre Project from 1935 to 1939. A few items in the collection were created before or after this time period but directly relate to the 1930s material. This collection consists of original materials with some duplicates and photocopies.","Series 1 contains correspondence, memoranda, reports, inventories, reorganization plans, briefs, and speeches relating to the background organization, policies, services, and procedures of the Federal Theatre Project (FTP). Publications featuring articles on productions and organizational activities such as Federal Theatre are included in this series. Personnel file information such as biographical and employee tests are also included, as is research studies of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), Federal Art Project (FAP) and the Historical Records Survey (HRS). This series is arranged alphabetically.","Series 2 is titled Play Service and Research Records and comprises two subseries. Subseries 2.1 contains research on drama, theatre technique, and theatre operations. This subseries is arranged alphabetically. Subseries 2.2 is titled Play Reader Reports and contains thousands of reports completed by the Federal Theatre for possible production or inclusion in play lists. This subseries is loosely arranged alphabetically by play title. Some duplicate material.","Series 3 is titled Library Records and consists of three subseries: Playscripts, Radio scripts, and Play lists. Subseries 3.1 includes hundreds of playscripts from over 900 productions performed or considered for production from around the United States. Most of the scripts are in English but some are in Yiddish or Italian. Some duplicate material. Arranged alphabetically by title. Subseries 3.2 includes radio scripts. Series of shows include topics such as art, children's shows, mysteries, health, music, history, and science. Arranged alphabetically by series and single broadcast title. Subseries 3.3 consists of play lists. These lists were created to aid play selection among the various units of the Federal Theatre. Lists are arranged alphabetically by subject categories such as children's plays, historical drama, holidays, minstrel shows, operettas, puppet plays, and vaudeville.","Series 4 is titled Production Records and consists of three subseries: Production Title File, Playbills and Programs, and Music File. Subseries 4.1 includes memoranda, production bulletins, publicity, and reports relating to play productions. Each production bulletin contains some or all of the following: synopsis, director's report, set and costume designs, lighting scheme, blueprints, photographs, program, reviews, royalty information, and a script. Arranged alphabetically by title. Subseries 4.2 includes programs, heralds, handbills, and other announcements of FTP productions on different sized and colored paper. The first section of this subseries is arranged alphabetically by state in which the performance was produced and then it is arranged alphabetically by play title. The second section is arranged alphabetically by play title. There may be duplicates between the two arrangements. Subseries 4.3 includes manuscript scores and parts for multiple Federal Theatre productions. Resource material used for reference purposes for play productions and Federal Theatre units and regions throughout the United States consists of mostly printed music and is found under \"miscellaneous\". Chiefly arranged alphabetically by title and then according to standard orchestral instrument order. Some duplicates.","Series 5 is titled Costumes and includes two coats and two pairs of pants created and used by the Federal Theatre Project.","The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/).","The Federal Theatre Project collection contains administrative records, play service and research records, library records, production records, and costumes created or collected by the Federal Theatre Project from 1935 to 1939. A few items in the collection were created before or after this time period but directly relate to the 1930s material. This collection consists of original materials with some duplicates and photocopies.","R 1, C 8, S 6 - C 9, S 7\n\nR 2, C 1, S 1 - C 8, S 3\nOS R 7, C 1, S1\nOS R 3, C 5, S 5 - S 6\nMap Case 9.1, 11.1, 11.3-11.5, 21.2","George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","English"],"collection_title_tesim":["Federal Theatre Project collection, 1885/1986, bulk 1935/1939"],"collection_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project collection, 1885/1986, bulk 1935/1939"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["C0002","/repositories/2/resources/331"],"unitid_tesim":["C0002","/repositories/2/resources/331"],"repository_ssm":["George Mason University"],"repository_ssim":["George Mason University"],"creator_ssm":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"creator_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"creator_corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"creators_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"access_terms_ssm":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)."],"acqinfo_ssim":["Donated by the Library of Congress."],"access_subjects_ssim":["Children's theater","New Deal, 1933-1939","Political plays, American","Radio and theater","Theater programs","Theater -- United States","Theater","Theater -- Production and direction","Performing arts","Playscript"],"access_subjects_ssm":["Children's theater","New Deal, 1933-1939","Political plays, American","Radio and theater","Theater programs","Theater -- United States","Theater","Theater -- Production and direction","Performing arts","Playscript"],"has_online_content_ssim":["false"],"extent_ssm":["185 Linear Feet 371 boxes"],"extent_tesim":["185 Linear Feet 371 boxes"],"genreform_ssim":["Playscript"],"date_range_isim":[1885,1886,1887,1888,1889,1890,1891,1892,1893,1894,1895,1896,1897,1898,1899,1900,1901,1902,1903,1904,1905,1906,1907,1908,1909,1910,1911,1912,1913,1914,1915,1916,1917,1918,1919,1920,1921,1922,1923,1924,1925,1926,1927,1928,1929,1930,1931,1932,1933,1934,1935,1936,1937,1938,1939,1940,1941,1942,1943,1944,1945,1946,1947,1948,1949,1950,1951,1952,1953,1954,1955,1956,1957,1958,1959,1960,1961,1962,1963,1964,1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978,1979,1980,1981,1982,1983,1984,1985,1986],"accessrestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThere are no access restrictions.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"accessrestrict_heading_ssm":["Access Restrictions"],"accessrestrict_tesim":["There are no access restrictions."],"altformavail_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003ePortions of this collection were digitized and are available to view \u003cextptr href=\"https://digitalcollections.gmu.edu/search?c=Federal+Theatre+Project+collection\u0026amp;cc=Federal+Theatre+Project+collection\u0026amp;ln=en\" title=\"here\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"altformavail_heading_ssm":["Alternative Form Available"],"altformavail_tesim":["Portions of this collection were digitized and are available to view ."],"arrangement_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eArranged into five series.\u003c/p\u003e    ","\u003clist type=\"ordered\"\u003e\n      \u003chead\u003eSeries\u003c/head\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 1: Administrative Records, 1935-1939 (Boxes 1-5, 361, 365-366, 368)\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 2: Play Service and Research Records, 1935-1939 (Boxes 5-105)\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 3: Library Records, 1885-1986 (Boxes 106-306)\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 4: Production Records, 193-193 (Boxes 307-363, 366-367)\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 5: Costumes, circa 1935-1939 (Boxes 369-371)\u003c/item\u003e\n    \u003c/list\u003e\n  "],"arrangement_heading_ssm":["Arrangement"],"arrangement_tesim":["Arranged into five series.","Series\n      Series 1: Administrative Records, 1935-1939 (Boxes 1-5, 361, 365-366, 368)\n      Series 2: Play Service and Research Records, 1935-1939 (Boxes 5-105)\n      Series 3: Library Records, 1885-1986 (Boxes 106-306)\n      Series 4: Production Records, 193-193 (Boxes 307-363, 366-367)\n      Series 5: Costumes, circa 1935-1939 (Boxes 369-371)"],"bioghist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Federal Theatre Project was a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided employment for large numbers of artists, writers, and performers during the Great Depression (1929-1939). The Federal Theatre began in 1935 and, until its end in 1939, flourished as the first and only federally sponsored and subsidized theater program in the United States. Directed by Hallie Flanagan (1880-1969), it was a way for theatrical professionals to gain employment during the Depression. Jobs were provided for many people, including actors, playwrights, scene designers, scene builders, seamstresses, lighting experts, ushers, box-office men, and stagehands.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eLike many New Deal programs implemented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Federal Theatre Project was intended not only to benefit its participants, but also to enrich the condition of the nation. Theater was a distinguished part of American popular culture, but the economic downturn of the Depression had bankrupted the entire theater industry. As the theater houses closed down, the nation was left without an outlet for theatrical creativity. According to Hallie Flanagan, this hurt the nation as much as it hurt the theater industry - indeed, the nation was their audience and the theater could provide entertaining distractions from the effects of Depression as well as offer commentary on present conditions.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eBut it was not enough to simply return to the pre-Depression concept of theater. In the first meeting with her staff Flanagan expressed her willingness to follow Roosevelt's experimental approach to public policy: \"In a changing world, a world of experiment, the stage too must experiment - with ideas, with the psychological relationship of men and women, with color and light.... The theatre must grow up.\"\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eFlanagan pursued her ideal of developing the relationship between the Federal Theatre and the federal government: \"Any theatre sponsored by the government of the United States should do no plays of a cheap, trivial, outworn or vulgar nature, but only such plays as the Government can stand proudly behind in a planned theatrical program, national in scope, regional in emphasis, and American in democratic attitude.\" To Flanagan, it was imperative that this new theater should be progressive and experimental, yet within a patriotic and informative framework.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eThe productions that best embodied Flanagan's views on theater were the Living Newspapers. These hard-hitting, poignant plays dealt with contemporary factual material, dramatizing issues such as housing, agriculture, labor, and destitution. Always ending on an upbeat note, Living Newspapers underscored the importance of hard work and morality in overcoming difficult times. Living Newspaper titles include: Triple A Plowed Under, Injunction Granted, One Third of a Nation, and Spirocheta.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eThe Federal Theatre was noted for employing Black Americans at a time when the Federal Government did not actively protect the rights of marginalized communities. This unit was called \"The Negro Unit,\" which at the time was a socially acceptable term used to describe people of African descent. All-Black theatre companies were an established industry before the Depression. As a result, the inclusion of this unit greatly contributed to the success of the Federal Theatre Project. Some of the most spectacular productions were put on by Black theater professionals, for example: Macbeth, Haiti, Turpentine, Run Little Chillun, and The Trial of Dr. Beck.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"bioghist_heading_ssm":["Historical Information"],"bioghist_tesim":["The Federal Theatre Project was a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided employment for large numbers of artists, writers, and performers during the Great Depression (1929-1939). The Federal Theatre began in 1935 and, until its end in 1939, flourished as the first and only federally sponsored and subsidized theater program in the United States. Directed by Hallie Flanagan (1880-1969), it was a way for theatrical professionals to gain employment during the Depression. Jobs were provided for many people, including actors, playwrights, scene designers, scene builders, seamstresses, lighting experts, ushers, box-office men, and stagehands.","Like many New Deal programs implemented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Federal Theatre Project was intended not only to benefit its participants, but also to enrich the condition of the nation. Theater was a distinguished part of American popular culture, but the economic downturn of the Depression had bankrupted the entire theater industry. As the theater houses closed down, the nation was left without an outlet for theatrical creativity. According to Hallie Flanagan, this hurt the nation as much as it hurt the theater industry - indeed, the nation was their audience and the theater could provide entertaining distractions from the effects of Depression as well as offer commentary on present conditions.","But it was not enough to simply return to the pre-Depression concept of theater. In the first meeting with her staff Flanagan expressed her willingness to follow Roosevelt's experimental approach to public policy: \"In a changing world, a world of experiment, the stage too must experiment - with ideas, with the psychological relationship of men and women, with color and light.... The theatre must grow up.\"","Flanagan pursued her ideal of developing the relationship between the Federal Theatre and the federal government: \"Any theatre sponsored by the government of the United States should do no plays of a cheap, trivial, outworn or vulgar nature, but only such plays as the Government can stand proudly behind in a planned theatrical program, national in scope, regional in emphasis, and American in democratic attitude.\" To Flanagan, it was imperative that this new theater should be progressive and experimental, yet within a patriotic and informative framework.","The productions that best embodied Flanagan's views on theater were the Living Newspapers. These hard-hitting, poignant plays dealt with contemporary factual material, dramatizing issues such as housing, agriculture, labor, and destitution. Always ending on an upbeat note, Living Newspapers underscored the importance of hard work and morality in overcoming difficult times. Living Newspaper titles include: Triple A Plowed Under, Injunction Granted, One Third of a Nation, and Spirocheta.","The Federal Theatre was noted for employing Black Americans at a time when the Federal Government did not actively protect the rights of marginalized communities. This unit was called \"The Negro Unit,\" which at the time was a socially acceptable term used to describe people of African descent. All-Black theatre companies were an established industry before the Depression. As a result, the inclusion of this unit greatly contributed to the success of the Federal Theatre Project. Some of the most spectacular productions were put on by Black theater professionals, for example: Macbeth, Haiti, Turpentine, Run Little Chillun, and The Trial of Dr. Beck."],"prefercite_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eFederal Theatre Project collection, C0002, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"prefercite_tesim":["Federal Theatre Project collection, C0002, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries."],"processinfo_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eProcessed by Special Collections Research Center staff. Reprocessed and EAD completed in 2012 by Greta Kuriger. Finding aid updated by Robert Vay in February 2023.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"processinfo_heading_ssm":["Processing Information"],"processinfo_tesim":["Processed by Special Collections Research Center staff. Reprocessed and EAD completed in 2012 by Greta Kuriger. Finding aid updated by Robert Vay in February 2023."],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Special Collections Research Center also holds the Federal Theatre Project photograph collection, the Federal Theatre Project personal papers, the Arnold Sungaard papers, and the Works Progress Administration oral histories collection.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eThe scripts are also available as a series in the \u003cextptr show=\"new\" title=\"FTP digital collection\" href=\"https://mars.gmu.edu/handle/1920/3478\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e. \u003c/p\u003e  "],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Material"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["The Special Collections Research Center also holds the Federal Theatre Project photograph collection, the Federal Theatre Project personal papers, the Arnold Sungaard papers, and the Works Progress Administration oral histories collection.","The scripts are also available as a series in the ."],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eContent Warning: Some materials contain racist language and slurs, including play titles.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eThe Federal Theatre Project collection contains administrative records, play service and research records, library records, production records, and costumes created or collected by the Federal Theatre Project from 1935 to 1939. A few items in the collection were created before or after this time period but directly relate to the 1930s material. This collection consists of original materials with some duplicates and photocopies.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 1 contains correspondence, memoranda, reports, inventories, reorganization plans, briefs, and speeches relating to the background organization, policies, services, and procedures of the Federal Theatre Project (FTP). Publications featuring articles on productions and organizational activities such as Federal Theatre are included in this series. Personnel file information such as biographical and employee tests are also included, as is research studies of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), Federal Art Project (FAP) and the Historical Records Survey (HRS). This series is arranged alphabetically.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 2 is titled Play Service and Research Records and comprises two subseries. Subseries 2.1 contains research on drama, theatre technique, and theatre operations. This subseries is arranged alphabetically. Subseries 2.2 is titled Play Reader Reports and contains thousands of reports completed by the Federal Theatre for possible production or inclusion in play lists. This subseries is loosely arranged alphabetically by play title. Some duplicate material.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 3 is titled Library Records and consists of three subseries: Playscripts, Radio scripts, and Play lists. Subseries 3.1 includes hundreds of playscripts from over 900 productions performed or considered for production from around the United States. Most of the scripts are in English but some are in Yiddish or Italian. Some duplicate material. Arranged alphabetically by title. Subseries 3.2 includes radio scripts. Series of shows include topics such as art, children's shows, mysteries, health, music, history, and science. Arranged alphabetically by series and single broadcast title. Subseries 3.3 consists of play lists. These lists were created to aid play selection among the various units of the Federal Theatre. Lists are arranged alphabetically by subject categories such as children's plays, historical drama, holidays, minstrel shows, operettas, puppet plays, and vaudeville.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 4 is titled Production Records and consists of three subseries: Production Title File, Playbills and Programs, and Music File. Subseries 4.1 includes memoranda, production bulletins, publicity, and reports relating to play productions. Each production bulletin contains some or all of the following: synopsis, director's report, set and costume designs, lighting scheme, blueprints, photographs, program, reviews, royalty information, and a script. Arranged alphabetically by title. Subseries 4.2 includes programs, heralds, handbills, and other announcements of FTP productions on different sized and colored paper. The first section of this subseries is arranged alphabetically by state in which the performance was produced and then it is arranged alphabetically by play title. The second section is arranged alphabetically by play title. There may be duplicates between the two arrangements. Subseries 4.3 includes manuscript scores and parts for multiple Federal Theatre productions. Resource material used for reference purposes for play productions and Federal Theatre units and regions throughout the United States consists of mostly printed music and is found under \"miscellaneous\". Chiefly arranged alphabetically by title and then according to standard orchestral instrument order. Some duplicates.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 5 is titled Costumes and includes two coats and two pairs of pants created and used by the Federal Theatre Project.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Content"],"scopecontent_tesim":["Content Warning: Some materials contain racist language and slurs, including play titles.","The Federal Theatre Project collection contains administrative records, play service and research records, library records, production records, and costumes created or collected by the Federal Theatre Project from 1935 to 1939. A few items in the collection were created before or after this time period but directly relate to the 1930s material. This collection consists of original materials with some duplicates and photocopies.","Series 1 contains correspondence, memoranda, reports, inventories, reorganization plans, briefs, and speeches relating to the background organization, policies, services, and procedures of the Federal Theatre Project (FTP). Publications featuring articles on productions and organizational activities such as Federal Theatre are included in this series. Personnel file information such as biographical and employee tests are also included, as is research studies of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), Federal Art Project (FAP) and the Historical Records Survey (HRS). This series is arranged alphabetically.","Series 2 is titled Play Service and Research Records and comprises two subseries. Subseries 2.1 contains research on drama, theatre technique, and theatre operations. This subseries is arranged alphabetically. Subseries 2.2 is titled Play Reader Reports and contains thousands of reports completed by the Federal Theatre for possible production or inclusion in play lists. This subseries is loosely arranged alphabetically by play title. Some duplicate material.","Series 3 is titled Library Records and consists of three subseries: Playscripts, Radio scripts, and Play lists. Subseries 3.1 includes hundreds of playscripts from over 900 productions performed or considered for production from around the United States. Most of the scripts are in English but some are in Yiddish or Italian. Some duplicate material. Arranged alphabetically by title. Subseries 3.2 includes radio scripts. Series of shows include topics such as art, children's shows, mysteries, health, music, history, and science. Arranged alphabetically by series and single broadcast title. Subseries 3.3 consists of play lists. These lists were created to aid play selection among the various units of the Federal Theatre. Lists are arranged alphabetically by subject categories such as children's plays, historical drama, holidays, minstrel shows, operettas, puppet plays, and vaudeville.","Series 4 is titled Production Records and consists of three subseries: Production Title File, Playbills and Programs, and Music File. Subseries 4.1 includes memoranda, production bulletins, publicity, and reports relating to play productions. Each production bulletin contains some or all of the following: synopsis, director's report, set and costume designs, lighting scheme, blueprints, photographs, program, reviews, royalty information, and a script. Arranged alphabetically by title. Subseries 4.2 includes programs, heralds, handbills, and other announcements of FTP productions on different sized and colored paper. The first section of this subseries is arranged alphabetically by state in which the performance was produced and then it is arranged alphabetically by play title. The second section is arranged alphabetically by play title. There may be duplicates between the two arrangements. Subseries 4.3 includes manuscript scores and parts for multiple Federal Theatre productions. Resource material used for reference purposes for play productions and Federal Theatre units and regions throughout the United States consists of mostly printed music and is found under \"miscellaneous\". Chiefly arranged alphabetically by title and then according to standard orchestral instrument order. Some duplicates.","Series 5 is titled Costumes and includes two coats and two pairs of pants created and used by the Federal Theatre Project."],"userestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/).\u003c/p\u003e  "],"userestrict_heading_ssm":["Use Restrictions"],"userestrict_tesim":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)."],"abstract_html_tesm":["\u003cabstract id=\"aspace_0f4707cda45d410e12f09ae2a350510a\" label=\"Abstract\"\u003eThe Federal Theatre Project collection contains administrative records, play service and research records, library records, production records, and costumes created or collected by the Federal Theatre Project from 1935 to 1939. A few items in the collection were created before or after this time period but directly relate to the 1930s material. This collection consists of original materials with some duplicates and photocopies.\u003c/abstract\u003e\n    "],"abstract_tesim":["The Federal Theatre Project collection contains administrative records, play service and research records, library records, production records, and costumes created or collected by the Federal Theatre Project from 1935 to 1939. A few items in the collection were created before or after this time period but directly relate to the 1930s material. This collection consists of original materials with some duplicates and photocopies."],"physloc_html_tesm":["\u003cphysloc id=\"aspace_d65479dc2ffe44debbb5af464a6479da\"\u003e\nR 1, C 8, S 6 - C 9, S 7\n\nR 2, C 1, S 1 - C 8, S 3\nOS R 7, C 1, S1\nOS R 3, C 5, S 5 - S 6\nMap Case 9.1, 11.1, 11.3-11.5, 21.2\u003c/physloc\u003e\n    "],"physloc_tesim":["R 1, C 8, S 6 - C 9, S 7\n\nR 2, C 1, S 1 - C 8, S 3\nOS R 7, C 1, S1\nOS R 3, C 5, S 5 - S 6\nMap Case 9.1, 11.1, 11.3-11.5, 21.2"],"corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"names_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"language_ssim":["English"],"descrules_ssm":["Describing Archives: A Content Standard"],"total_component_count_is":3180,"online_item_count_is":0,"component_level_isim":[0],"sort_isi":0,"timestamp":"2026-08-14T22:34:37.194Z","collection":{"numFound":1,"start":0,"numFoundExact":true,"docs":[{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_331","ead_ssi":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_331","_root_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_331","_nest_parent_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_331","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/GMU/repositories_2_resources_331.xml","title_filing_ssi":"Federal Theatre Project collection","title_ssm":["Federal Theatre Project collection"],"title_tesim":["Federal Theatre Project collection"],"unitdate_ssm":["circa 1885-1986","1935-1939"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["circa 1885-1986"],"unitdate_bulk_ssim":["1935-1939"],"normalized_date_ssm":["1885/1986, bulk 1935/1939"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Federal Theatre Project collection, 1885/1986, bulk 1935/1939"],"text":["Federal Theatre Project collection, 1885/1986, bulk 1935/1939","C0002","/repositories/2/resources/331","Children's theater","New Deal, 1933-1939","Political plays, American","Radio and theater","Theater programs","Theater -- United States","Theater","Theater -- Production and direction","Performing arts","Playscript","There are no access restrictions.","Portions of this collection were digitized and are available to view .","Arranged into five series.","Series\n      Series 1: Administrative Records, 1935-1939 (Boxes 1-5, 361, 365-366, 368)\n      Series 2: Play Service and Research Records, 1935-1939 (Boxes 5-105)\n      Series 3: Library Records, 1885-1986 (Boxes 106-306)\n      Series 4: Production Records, 193-193 (Boxes 307-363, 366-367)\n      Series 5: Costumes, circa 1935-1939 (Boxes 369-371)","The Federal Theatre Project was a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided employment for large numbers of artists, writers, and performers during the Great Depression (1929-1939). The Federal Theatre began in 1935 and, until its end in 1939, flourished as the first and only federally sponsored and subsidized theater program in the United States. Directed by Hallie Flanagan (1880-1969), it was a way for theatrical professionals to gain employment during the Depression. Jobs were provided for many people, including actors, playwrights, scene designers, scene builders, seamstresses, lighting experts, ushers, box-office men, and stagehands.","Like many New Deal programs implemented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Federal Theatre Project was intended not only to benefit its participants, but also to enrich the condition of the nation. Theater was a distinguished part of American popular culture, but the economic downturn of the Depression had bankrupted the entire theater industry. As the theater houses closed down, the nation was left without an outlet for theatrical creativity. According to Hallie Flanagan, this hurt the nation as much as it hurt the theater industry - indeed, the nation was their audience and the theater could provide entertaining distractions from the effects of Depression as well as offer commentary on present conditions.","But it was not enough to simply return to the pre-Depression concept of theater. In the first meeting with her staff Flanagan expressed her willingness to follow Roosevelt's experimental approach to public policy: \"In a changing world, a world of experiment, the stage too must experiment - with ideas, with the psychological relationship of men and women, with color and light.... The theatre must grow up.\"","Flanagan pursued her ideal of developing the relationship between the Federal Theatre and the federal government: \"Any theatre sponsored by the government of the United States should do no plays of a cheap, trivial, outworn or vulgar nature, but only such plays as the Government can stand proudly behind in a planned theatrical program, national in scope, regional in emphasis, and American in democratic attitude.\" To Flanagan, it was imperative that this new theater should be progressive and experimental, yet within a patriotic and informative framework.","The productions that best embodied Flanagan's views on theater were the Living Newspapers. These hard-hitting, poignant plays dealt with contemporary factual material, dramatizing issues such as housing, agriculture, labor, and destitution. Always ending on an upbeat note, Living Newspapers underscored the importance of hard work and morality in overcoming difficult times. Living Newspaper titles include: Triple A Plowed Under, Injunction Granted, One Third of a Nation, and Spirocheta.","The Federal Theatre was noted for employing Black Americans at a time when the Federal Government did not actively protect the rights of marginalized communities. This unit was called \"The Negro Unit,\" which at the time was a socially acceptable term used to describe people of African descent. All-Black theatre companies were an established industry before the Depression. As a result, the inclusion of this unit greatly contributed to the success of the Federal Theatre Project. Some of the most spectacular productions were put on by Black theater professionals, for example: Macbeth, Haiti, Turpentine, Run Little Chillun, and The Trial of Dr. Beck.","Processed by Special Collections Research Center staff. Reprocessed and EAD completed in 2012 by Greta Kuriger. Finding aid updated by Robert Vay in February 2023.","The Special Collections Research Center also holds the Federal Theatre Project photograph collection, the Federal Theatre Project personal papers, the Arnold Sungaard papers, and the Works Progress Administration oral histories collection.","The scripts are also available as a series in the .","Content Warning: Some materials contain racist language and slurs, including play titles.","The Federal Theatre Project collection contains administrative records, play service and research records, library records, production records, and costumes created or collected by the Federal Theatre Project from 1935 to 1939. A few items in the collection were created before or after this time period but directly relate to the 1930s material. This collection consists of original materials with some duplicates and photocopies.","Series 1 contains correspondence, memoranda, reports, inventories, reorganization plans, briefs, and speeches relating to the background organization, policies, services, and procedures of the Federal Theatre Project (FTP). Publications featuring articles on productions and organizational activities such as Federal Theatre are included in this series. Personnel file information such as biographical and employee tests are also included, as is research studies of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), Federal Art Project (FAP) and the Historical Records Survey (HRS). This series is arranged alphabetically.","Series 2 is titled Play Service and Research Records and comprises two subseries. Subseries 2.1 contains research on drama, theatre technique, and theatre operations. This subseries is arranged alphabetically. Subseries 2.2 is titled Play Reader Reports and contains thousands of reports completed by the Federal Theatre for possible production or inclusion in play lists. This subseries is loosely arranged alphabetically by play title. Some duplicate material.","Series 3 is titled Library Records and consists of three subseries: Playscripts, Radio scripts, and Play lists. Subseries 3.1 includes hundreds of playscripts from over 900 productions performed or considered for production from around the United States. Most of the scripts are in English but some are in Yiddish or Italian. Some duplicate material. Arranged alphabetically by title. Subseries 3.2 includes radio scripts. Series of shows include topics such as art, children's shows, mysteries, health, music, history, and science. Arranged alphabetically by series and single broadcast title. Subseries 3.3 consists of play lists. These lists were created to aid play selection among the various units of the Federal Theatre. Lists are arranged alphabetically by subject categories such as children's plays, historical drama, holidays, minstrel shows, operettas, puppet plays, and vaudeville.","Series 4 is titled Production Records and consists of three subseries: Production Title File, Playbills and Programs, and Music File. Subseries 4.1 includes memoranda, production bulletins, publicity, and reports relating to play productions. Each production bulletin contains some or all of the following: synopsis, director's report, set and costume designs, lighting scheme, blueprints, photographs, program, reviews, royalty information, and a script. Arranged alphabetically by title. Subseries 4.2 includes programs, heralds, handbills, and other announcements of FTP productions on different sized and colored paper. The first section of this subseries is arranged alphabetically by state in which the performance was produced and then it is arranged alphabetically by play title. The second section is arranged alphabetically by play title. There may be duplicates between the two arrangements. Subseries 4.3 includes manuscript scores and parts for multiple Federal Theatre productions. Resource material used for reference purposes for play productions and Federal Theatre units and regions throughout the United States consists of mostly printed music and is found under \"miscellaneous\". Chiefly arranged alphabetically by title and then according to standard orchestral instrument order. Some duplicates.","Series 5 is titled Costumes and includes two coats and two pairs of pants created and used by the Federal Theatre Project.","The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/).","The Federal Theatre Project collection contains administrative records, play service and research records, library records, production records, and costumes created or collected by the Federal Theatre Project from 1935 to 1939. A few items in the collection were created before or after this time period but directly relate to the 1930s material. This collection consists of original materials with some duplicates and photocopies.","R 1, C 8, S 6 - C 9, S 7\n\nR 2, C 1, S 1 - C 8, S 3\nOS R 7, C 1, S1\nOS R 3, C 5, S 5 - S 6\nMap Case 9.1, 11.1, 11.3-11.5, 21.2","George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","English"],"collection_title_tesim":["Federal Theatre Project collection, 1885/1986, bulk 1935/1939"],"collection_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project collection, 1885/1986, bulk 1935/1939"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["C0002","/repositories/2/resources/331"],"unitid_tesim":["C0002","/repositories/2/resources/331"],"repository_ssm":["George Mason University"],"repository_ssim":["George Mason University"],"creator_ssm":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"creator_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"creator_corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"creators_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"access_terms_ssm":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)."],"acqinfo_ssim":["Donated by the Library of Congress."],"access_subjects_ssim":["Children's theater","New Deal, 1933-1939","Political plays, American","Radio and theater","Theater programs","Theater -- United States","Theater","Theater -- Production and direction","Performing arts","Playscript"],"access_subjects_ssm":["Children's theater","New Deal, 1933-1939","Political plays, American","Radio and theater","Theater programs","Theater -- United States","Theater","Theater -- Production and direction","Performing arts","Playscript"],"has_online_content_ssim":["false"],"extent_ssm":["185 Linear Feet 371 boxes"],"extent_tesim":["185 Linear Feet 371 boxes"],"genreform_ssim":["Playscript"],"date_range_isim":[1885,1886,1887,1888,1889,1890,1891,1892,1893,1894,1895,1896,1897,1898,1899,1900,1901,1902,1903,1904,1905,1906,1907,1908,1909,1910,1911,1912,1913,1914,1915,1916,1917,1918,1919,1920,1921,1922,1923,1924,1925,1926,1927,1928,1929,1930,1931,1932,1933,1934,1935,1936,1937,1938,1939,1940,1941,1942,1943,1944,1945,1946,1947,1948,1949,1950,1951,1952,1953,1954,1955,1956,1957,1958,1959,1960,1961,1962,1963,1964,1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978,1979,1980,1981,1982,1983,1984,1985,1986],"accessrestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThere are no access restrictions.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"accessrestrict_heading_ssm":["Access Restrictions"],"accessrestrict_tesim":["There are no access restrictions."],"altformavail_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003ePortions of this collection were digitized and are available to view \u003cextptr href=\"https://digitalcollections.gmu.edu/search?c=Federal+Theatre+Project+collection\u0026amp;cc=Federal+Theatre+Project+collection\u0026amp;ln=en\" title=\"here\" show=\"new\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"altformavail_heading_ssm":["Alternative Form Available"],"altformavail_tesim":["Portions of this collection were digitized and are available to view ."],"arrangement_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eArranged into five series.\u003c/p\u003e    ","\u003clist type=\"ordered\"\u003e\n      \u003chead\u003eSeries\u003c/head\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 1: Administrative Records, 1935-1939 (Boxes 1-5, 361, 365-366, 368)\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 2: Play Service and Research Records, 1935-1939 (Boxes 5-105)\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 3: Library Records, 1885-1986 (Boxes 106-306)\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 4: Production Records, 193-193 (Boxes 307-363, 366-367)\u003c/item\u003e\n      \u003citem\u003eSeries 5: Costumes, circa 1935-1939 (Boxes 369-371)\u003c/item\u003e\n    \u003c/list\u003e\n  "],"arrangement_heading_ssm":["Arrangement"],"arrangement_tesim":["Arranged into five series.","Series\n      Series 1: Administrative Records, 1935-1939 (Boxes 1-5, 361, 365-366, 368)\n      Series 2: Play Service and Research Records, 1935-1939 (Boxes 5-105)\n      Series 3: Library Records, 1885-1986 (Boxes 106-306)\n      Series 4: Production Records, 193-193 (Boxes 307-363, 366-367)\n      Series 5: Costumes, circa 1935-1939 (Boxes 369-371)"],"bioghist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Federal Theatre Project was a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided employment for large numbers of artists, writers, and performers during the Great Depression (1929-1939). The Federal Theatre began in 1935 and, until its end in 1939, flourished as the first and only federally sponsored and subsidized theater program in the United States. Directed by Hallie Flanagan (1880-1969), it was a way for theatrical professionals to gain employment during the Depression. Jobs were provided for many people, including actors, playwrights, scene designers, scene builders, seamstresses, lighting experts, ushers, box-office men, and stagehands.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eLike many New Deal programs implemented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Federal Theatre Project was intended not only to benefit its participants, but also to enrich the condition of the nation. Theater was a distinguished part of American popular culture, but the economic downturn of the Depression had bankrupted the entire theater industry. As the theater houses closed down, the nation was left without an outlet for theatrical creativity. According to Hallie Flanagan, this hurt the nation as much as it hurt the theater industry - indeed, the nation was their audience and the theater could provide entertaining distractions from the effects of Depression as well as offer commentary on present conditions.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eBut it was not enough to simply return to the pre-Depression concept of theater. In the first meeting with her staff Flanagan expressed her willingness to follow Roosevelt's experimental approach to public policy: \"In a changing world, a world of experiment, the stage too must experiment - with ideas, with the psychological relationship of men and women, with color and light.... The theatre must grow up.\"\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eFlanagan pursued her ideal of developing the relationship between the Federal Theatre and the federal government: \"Any theatre sponsored by the government of the United States should do no plays of a cheap, trivial, outworn or vulgar nature, but only such plays as the Government can stand proudly behind in a planned theatrical program, national in scope, regional in emphasis, and American in democratic attitude.\" To Flanagan, it was imperative that this new theater should be progressive and experimental, yet within a patriotic and informative framework.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eThe productions that best embodied Flanagan's views on theater were the Living Newspapers. These hard-hitting, poignant plays dealt with contemporary factual material, dramatizing issues such as housing, agriculture, labor, and destitution. Always ending on an upbeat note, Living Newspapers underscored the importance of hard work and morality in overcoming difficult times. Living Newspaper titles include: Triple A Plowed Under, Injunction Granted, One Third of a Nation, and Spirocheta.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eThe Federal Theatre was noted for employing Black Americans at a time when the Federal Government did not actively protect the rights of marginalized communities. This unit was called \"The Negro Unit,\" which at the time was a socially acceptable term used to describe people of African descent. All-Black theatre companies were an established industry before the Depression. As a result, the inclusion of this unit greatly contributed to the success of the Federal Theatre Project. Some of the most spectacular productions were put on by Black theater professionals, for example: Macbeth, Haiti, Turpentine, Run Little Chillun, and The Trial of Dr. Beck.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"bioghist_heading_ssm":["Historical Information"],"bioghist_tesim":["The Federal Theatre Project was a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided employment for large numbers of artists, writers, and performers during the Great Depression (1929-1939). The Federal Theatre began in 1935 and, until its end in 1939, flourished as the first and only federally sponsored and subsidized theater program in the United States. Directed by Hallie Flanagan (1880-1969), it was a way for theatrical professionals to gain employment during the Depression. Jobs were provided for many people, including actors, playwrights, scene designers, scene builders, seamstresses, lighting experts, ushers, box-office men, and stagehands.","Like many New Deal programs implemented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Federal Theatre Project was intended not only to benefit its participants, but also to enrich the condition of the nation. Theater was a distinguished part of American popular culture, but the economic downturn of the Depression had bankrupted the entire theater industry. As the theater houses closed down, the nation was left without an outlet for theatrical creativity. According to Hallie Flanagan, this hurt the nation as much as it hurt the theater industry - indeed, the nation was their audience and the theater could provide entertaining distractions from the effects of Depression as well as offer commentary on present conditions.","But it was not enough to simply return to the pre-Depression concept of theater. In the first meeting with her staff Flanagan expressed her willingness to follow Roosevelt's experimental approach to public policy: \"In a changing world, a world of experiment, the stage too must experiment - with ideas, with the psychological relationship of men and women, with color and light.... The theatre must grow up.\"","Flanagan pursued her ideal of developing the relationship between the Federal Theatre and the federal government: \"Any theatre sponsored by the government of the United States should do no plays of a cheap, trivial, outworn or vulgar nature, but only such plays as the Government can stand proudly behind in a planned theatrical program, national in scope, regional in emphasis, and American in democratic attitude.\" To Flanagan, it was imperative that this new theater should be progressive and experimental, yet within a patriotic and informative framework.","The productions that best embodied Flanagan's views on theater were the Living Newspapers. These hard-hitting, poignant plays dealt with contemporary factual material, dramatizing issues such as housing, agriculture, labor, and destitution. Always ending on an upbeat note, Living Newspapers underscored the importance of hard work and morality in overcoming difficult times. Living Newspaper titles include: Triple A Plowed Under, Injunction Granted, One Third of a Nation, and Spirocheta.","The Federal Theatre was noted for employing Black Americans at a time when the Federal Government did not actively protect the rights of marginalized communities. This unit was called \"The Negro Unit,\" which at the time was a socially acceptable term used to describe people of African descent. All-Black theatre companies were an established industry before the Depression. As a result, the inclusion of this unit greatly contributed to the success of the Federal Theatre Project. Some of the most spectacular productions were put on by Black theater professionals, for example: Macbeth, Haiti, Turpentine, Run Little Chillun, and The Trial of Dr. Beck."],"prefercite_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eFederal Theatre Project collection, C0002, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"prefercite_tesim":["Federal Theatre Project collection, C0002, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries."],"processinfo_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eProcessed by Special Collections Research Center staff. Reprocessed and EAD completed in 2012 by Greta Kuriger. Finding aid updated by Robert Vay in February 2023.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"processinfo_heading_ssm":["Processing Information"],"processinfo_tesim":["Processed by Special Collections Research Center staff. Reprocessed and EAD completed in 2012 by Greta Kuriger. Finding aid updated by Robert Vay in February 2023."],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Special Collections Research Center also holds the Federal Theatre Project photograph collection, the Federal Theatre Project personal papers, the Arnold Sungaard papers, and the Works Progress Administration oral histories collection.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eThe scripts are also available as a series in the \u003cextptr show=\"new\" title=\"FTP digital collection\" href=\"https://mars.gmu.edu/handle/1920/3478\"\u003e\u003c/extptr\u003e. \u003c/p\u003e  "],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Material"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["The Special Collections Research Center also holds the Federal Theatre Project photograph collection, the Federal Theatre Project personal papers, the Arnold Sungaard papers, and the Works Progress Administration oral histories collection.","The scripts are also available as a series in the ."],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eContent Warning: Some materials contain racist language and slurs, including play titles.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eThe Federal Theatre Project collection contains administrative records, play service and research records, library records, production records, and costumes created or collected by the Federal Theatre Project from 1935 to 1939. A few items in the collection were created before or after this time period but directly relate to the 1930s material. This collection consists of original materials with some duplicates and photocopies.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 1 contains correspondence, memoranda, reports, inventories, reorganization plans, briefs, and speeches relating to the background organization, policies, services, and procedures of the Federal Theatre Project (FTP). Publications featuring articles on productions and organizational activities such as Federal Theatre are included in this series. Personnel file information such as biographical and employee tests are also included, as is research studies of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), Federal Art Project (FAP) and the Historical Records Survey (HRS). This series is arranged alphabetically.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 2 is titled Play Service and Research Records and comprises two subseries. Subseries 2.1 contains research on drama, theatre technique, and theatre operations. This subseries is arranged alphabetically. Subseries 2.2 is titled Play Reader Reports and contains thousands of reports completed by the Federal Theatre for possible production or inclusion in play lists. This subseries is loosely arranged alphabetically by play title. Some duplicate material.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 3 is titled Library Records and consists of three subseries: Playscripts, Radio scripts, and Play lists. Subseries 3.1 includes hundreds of playscripts from over 900 productions performed or considered for production from around the United States. Most of the scripts are in English but some are in Yiddish or Italian. Some duplicate material. Arranged alphabetically by title. Subseries 3.2 includes radio scripts. Series of shows include topics such as art, children's shows, mysteries, health, music, history, and science. Arranged alphabetically by series and single broadcast title. Subseries 3.3 consists of play lists. These lists were created to aid play selection among the various units of the Federal Theatre. Lists are arranged alphabetically by subject categories such as children's plays, historical drama, holidays, minstrel shows, operettas, puppet plays, and vaudeville.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 4 is titled Production Records and consists of three subseries: Production Title File, Playbills and Programs, and Music File. Subseries 4.1 includes memoranda, production bulletins, publicity, and reports relating to play productions. Each production bulletin contains some or all of the following: synopsis, director's report, set and costume designs, lighting scheme, blueprints, photographs, program, reviews, royalty information, and a script. Arranged alphabetically by title. Subseries 4.2 includes programs, heralds, handbills, and other announcements of FTP productions on different sized and colored paper. The first section of this subseries is arranged alphabetically by state in which the performance was produced and then it is arranged alphabetically by play title. The second section is arranged alphabetically by play title. There may be duplicates between the two arrangements. Subseries 4.3 includes manuscript scores and parts for multiple Federal Theatre productions. Resource material used for reference purposes for play productions and Federal Theatre units and regions throughout the United States consists of mostly printed music and is found under \"miscellaneous\". Chiefly arranged alphabetically by title and then according to standard orchestral instrument order. Some duplicates.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 5 is titled Costumes and includes two coats and two pairs of pants created and used by the Federal Theatre Project.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Content"],"scopecontent_tesim":["Content Warning: Some materials contain racist language and slurs, including play titles.","The Federal Theatre Project collection contains administrative records, play service and research records, library records, production records, and costumes created or collected by the Federal Theatre Project from 1935 to 1939. A few items in the collection were created before or after this time period but directly relate to the 1930s material. This collection consists of original materials with some duplicates and photocopies.","Series 1 contains correspondence, memoranda, reports, inventories, reorganization plans, briefs, and speeches relating to the background organization, policies, services, and procedures of the Federal Theatre Project (FTP). Publications featuring articles on productions and organizational activities such as Federal Theatre are included in this series. Personnel file information such as biographical and employee tests are also included, as is research studies of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), Federal Art Project (FAP) and the Historical Records Survey (HRS). This series is arranged alphabetically.","Series 2 is titled Play Service and Research Records and comprises two subseries. Subseries 2.1 contains research on drama, theatre technique, and theatre operations. This subseries is arranged alphabetically. Subseries 2.2 is titled Play Reader Reports and contains thousands of reports completed by the Federal Theatre for possible production or inclusion in play lists. This subseries is loosely arranged alphabetically by play title. Some duplicate material.","Series 3 is titled Library Records and consists of three subseries: Playscripts, Radio scripts, and Play lists. Subseries 3.1 includes hundreds of playscripts from over 900 productions performed or considered for production from around the United States. Most of the scripts are in English but some are in Yiddish or Italian. Some duplicate material. Arranged alphabetically by title. Subseries 3.2 includes radio scripts. Series of shows include topics such as art, children's shows, mysteries, health, music, history, and science. Arranged alphabetically by series and single broadcast title. Subseries 3.3 consists of play lists. These lists were created to aid play selection among the various units of the Federal Theatre. Lists are arranged alphabetically by subject categories such as children's plays, historical drama, holidays, minstrel shows, operettas, puppet plays, and vaudeville.","Series 4 is titled Production Records and consists of three subseries: Production Title File, Playbills and Programs, and Music File. Subseries 4.1 includes memoranda, production bulletins, publicity, and reports relating to play productions. Each production bulletin contains some or all of the following: synopsis, director's report, set and costume designs, lighting scheme, blueprints, photographs, program, reviews, royalty information, and a script. Arranged alphabetically by title. Subseries 4.2 includes programs, heralds, handbills, and other announcements of FTP productions on different sized and colored paper. The first section of this subseries is arranged alphabetically by state in which the performance was produced and then it is arranged alphabetically by play title. The second section is arranged alphabetically by play title. There may be duplicates between the two arrangements. Subseries 4.3 includes manuscript scores and parts for multiple Federal Theatre productions. Resource material used for reference purposes for play productions and Federal Theatre units and regions throughout the United States consists of mostly printed music and is found under \"miscellaneous\". Chiefly arranged alphabetically by title and then according to standard orchestral instrument order. Some duplicates.","Series 5 is titled Costumes and includes two coats and two pairs of pants created and used by the Federal Theatre Project."],"userestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/).\u003c/p\u003e  "],"userestrict_heading_ssm":["Use Restrictions"],"userestrict_tesim":["The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)."],"abstract_html_tesm":["\u003cabstract id=\"aspace_0f4707cda45d410e12f09ae2a350510a\" label=\"Abstract\"\u003eThe Federal Theatre Project collection contains administrative records, play service and research records, library records, production records, and costumes created or collected by the Federal Theatre Project from 1935 to 1939. A few items in the collection were created before or after this time period but directly relate to the 1930s material. This collection consists of original materials with some duplicates and photocopies.\u003c/abstract\u003e\n    "],"abstract_tesim":["The Federal Theatre Project collection contains administrative records, play service and research records, library records, production records, and costumes created or collected by the Federal Theatre Project from 1935 to 1939. A few items in the collection were created before or after this time period but directly relate to the 1930s material. This collection consists of original materials with some duplicates and photocopies."],"physloc_html_tesm":["\u003cphysloc id=\"aspace_d65479dc2ffe44debbb5af464a6479da\"\u003e\nR 1, C 8, S 6 - C 9, S 7\n\nR 2, C 1, S 1 - C 8, S 3\nOS R 7, C 1, S1\nOS R 3, C 5, S 5 - S 6\nMap Case 9.1, 11.1, 11.3-11.5, 21.2\u003c/physloc\u003e\n    "],"physloc_tesim":["R 1, C 8, S 6 - C 9, S 7\n\nR 2, C 1, S 1 - C 8, S 3\nOS R 7, C 1, S1\nOS R 3, C 5, S 5 - S 6\nMap Case 9.1, 11.1, 11.3-11.5, 21.2"],"corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"names_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)"],"language_ssim":["English"],"descrules_ssm":["Describing Archives: A Content Standard"],"total_component_count_is":3180,"online_item_count_is":0,"component_level_isim":[0],"sort_isi":0,"timestamp":"2026-08-14T22:34:37.194Z"}]}},"label":"Breadcrumbs"}}},"links":{"self":"https://arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_331"}},{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_209","type":"collection","attributes":{"title":"George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records, 1935/2000","creator":{"id":"https://arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_209#creator","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","label":"Creator"}},"abstract_or_scope":{"id":"https://arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_209#abstract_or_scope","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"The George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records describe the operations, research, publications, and outreach of the George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture. Records date from 1935 to 2000.","label":"Abstract Or Scope"}},"breadcrumbs":{"id":"https://arvasarchive.org/catalog/vifgm_repositories_2_resources_209#breadcrumbs","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_209","ead_ssi":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_209","_root_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_209","_nest_parent_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_209","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/GMU/repositories_2_resources_209.xml","title_filing_ssi":"George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records","title_ssm":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records"],"title_tesim":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records"],"unitdate_ssm":["1935-2006"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["1935-2006"],"normalized_date_ssm":["1935/2000"],"normalized_title_ssm":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records, 1935/2000"],"text":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records, 1935/2000","R0021","/repositories/2/resources/209","Theater programs","Dance","Ballet","None","There are no restrictions.","Collection is arranged within the following series:","Series 1: Administrative Records\nSeries 2: Correspondence\nSeries 3: Outreach Activities Records\nSeries 4: IFTP Publications\nSeries 5: Photographs\nSeries 6: Indexes, Inventories, and Collection Control Records\nSeries 7: Research Materials\nSeries 8: Audiovisual materials","Within each series, the records are arranged alphabetically by subject, topic, or individual.","The Federal Theatre Project (FTP) began in 1935 as part of the New Deal's Works Progress Administration, employing several thousand actors, directors, playwrights, producers and others in the performing arts industry during the Great Depression. During its four-year run the FTP produced plays, musicals, dance and radio programs, circuses, and marionette shows. It featured the early works of actors and producers such as Orson Welles, Arthur Miller, and Elia Kazan. The federal government discontinued the program in 1939, and thousands of scripts, photographs, posters, and other FTP records were dispersed between the National Archives, the Library of Congress, public libraries, and educational institutions. For over twenty-five years the main body of these records sat forgotten in a government-owned storage facility at Middle River, near Baltimore, Maryland until they were located by George Mason University English professors, Lorraine Brown and John O'Connor.","After Brown and O'Connor's discovery, and realizing the historical significance of these records, George Mason University entered into negotiations with the Library of Congress for permission to house and care for the collection and provide access to the materials to scholars. Many of the materials were physically deteriorating after so many years in less-than-ideal storage conditions. An agreement was reached, and the collection was placed on loan to George Mason University Libraries, with the aim that the collection would be processed, cared for, and used by scholars of the FTP and WPA. A center named The Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project was established at Mason, and a staff of archives and library professionals was hired to process, describe, and provide access to the records in Mason's Fenwick Library.","While initially, the center was focused on unpacking, sorting, processing, and inventorying the collection, it soon concentrated on disseminating the materials and facilitating scholarship regarding the FTP. It participated in grants to preserve the materials and produce programming and exhibitions to expose the materials to a larger audience. It continued to build on the collection by conducting oral history interviews of former FTP personnel, acquisition their personal papers, and photographic duplication of deteriorating records inside the collection, such as original posters, set, and costume design drawings. George Mason University Libraries established its Special Collections \u0026 Archives (SC\u0026A) department in 1979, and the Federal Theatre Project Materials became a collection under the custody of that entity.","In 1980 the Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project was renamed the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project (IFTP), part of the newly established Center for Government, Society, and the Arts (CGSA).","In 1993, the Library of Congress began the process of recalling collections that it had loaned to libraries across the country over the years, including the rich archives of the FTP housed at George Mason University. LC administrators suggested that the collection would be more accessible at the Library's Music Division in Washington, D.C. rather than in Fairfax. While the bulk of the original loaned collection was eventually returned to the Library in August of 1994, George Mason University Libraries was allowed to retain duplicates of many of the records to complement the additional materials it had independently acquired between 1975 and 1994. After the replevin of the FTP materials back to the Library of Congress, the IFTP focused more of its attention on the study of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA's) work in the Coldwar era, promoting the papers of Robert Breen, Director of ANTA, which are also held by George Mason University's Special Collections Research Center (formerly Special Collections \u0026 Archives). The CGSA and IFTP ceased operation during the summer of 1998.","Materials were transferred to Special Collections Research Center from the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture between the years 1979 and 2000.","Collection processed by Maegan Jankowsi and Robert Vay.","George Mason University Libraries records","Federal Theatre Project collection","Federal Theatre Project photograph collection","Federal Theatre Project personal papers","Works Progress Administration oral histories","Collection contains records pertaining to the operation of the the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project (IFTP) and its prior iteration, the Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project (RCFTP). These records include operational, research and correspondence files, materials related to the Institute's outreach, programming, audiovisual and photographic materials and publications.","The collection is organized within the following series:","Series 1: Administrative Records: These records consist of materials which document the day to day operation of the IFTP, its projects, initiatives, and development.","Series 2: Correspondence: This series contains manuscript and typewritten correspondence between IFTP personel and their colleagues and outside individuals and groups.","Series 3: Outreach Activities Records: These materials document the IFTP's efforts to provide external programming to promote and disseminate scholarship pertaining to and public awareness of the FTP throuugh exhibits, talks, and other programming.","Series 4: IFTP Publications: This series contains pamphlets detailing IFTP programs, organizational brochures and other publications created by IFTP to assist scholars in researching the FTP, Federal One, the newsletter of the RCFTP and IFTP, Free Adult and Uncensored, which details the history of the FTP, and other publications which promote and facilitate understanding of the FTP collection housed at George Mason University.","Series 5: Photographs: This series contains photographs created or procured by the IFTP. Featured are its personel, events, and programs, copy photographs of original FTP photos, posters, and other graphic items.","Series 6: Indexes, Inventories, and Collection Control Records: These records document the IFTP and RCFTP's fifteen-year effort to inventory, process, index, and describe the FTP collection.","Series 7: Research Materials: These consist of original FTP records descrbing plays and play types, newspaper and magazine articles and clippings, hearing transcripts, and other publications from scholars and government entities  pertaining to FTP and WPA used to study FTP personel and the plays, dance, and music that it produced.","Series 8: Audiovisual materials include audio and videotapes of documentaries pertaining to the FTP, programs presented by the IFTP, such as panel discussions, lectures, and symposia, and productions of original FTP plays staged during the 1980s and 1990s.  SCRC staff must be consulted for information regarding access to these records.","The George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records describe the operations, research, publications, and outreach of the George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture. Records date from 1935 to 2000.","SCRC storage area, Rows 81 and 82.","George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","United States. Works Progress Administration","English"],"collection_title_tesim":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records, 1935/2000"],"collection_ssim":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records, 1935/2000"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["R0021","/repositories/2/resources/209"],"unitid_tesim":["R0021","/repositories/2/resources/209"],"repository_ssm":["George Mason University"],"repository_ssim":["George Mason University"],"creator_ssm":["George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University"],"creator_ssim":["George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University"],"creator_corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","United States. Works Progress Administration"],"creators_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","United States. Works Progress Administration"],"access_subjects_ssim":["Theater programs","Dance","Ballet"],"access_subjects_ssm":["Theater programs","Dance","Ballet"],"has_online_content_ssim":["false"],"extent_ssm":["37.5 Linear Feet 81 boxes"],"extent_tesim":["37.5 Linear Feet 81 boxes"],"date_range_isim":[1935,1936,1937,1938,1939,1940,1941,1942,1943,1944,1945,1946,1947,1948,1949,1950,1951,1952,1953,1954,1955,1956,1957,1958,1959,1960,1961,1962,1963,1964,1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978,1979,1980,1981,1982,1983,1984,1985,1986,1987,1988,1989,1990,1991,1992,1993,1994,1995,1996,1997,1998,1999,2000],"accessrestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eNone\u003c/p\u003e  ","\u003cp\u003eThere are no restrictions.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"accessrestrict_heading_ssm":["Access Restrictions","Use Restictions"],"accessrestrict_tesim":["None","There are no restrictions."],"arrangement_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eCollection is arranged within the following series:\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 1: Administrative Records\nSeries 2: Correspondence\nSeries 3: Outreach Activities Records\nSeries 4: IFTP Publications\nSeries 5: Photographs\nSeries 6: Indexes, Inventories, and Collection Control Records\nSeries 7: Research Materials\nSeries 8: Audiovisual materials\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eWithin each series, the records are arranged alphabetically by subject, topic, or individual.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"arrangement_heading_ssm":["Arrangement"],"arrangement_tesim":["Collection is arranged within the following series:","Series 1: Administrative Records\nSeries 2: Correspondence\nSeries 3: Outreach Activities Records\nSeries 4: IFTP Publications\nSeries 5: Photographs\nSeries 6: Indexes, Inventories, and Collection Control Records\nSeries 7: Research Materials\nSeries 8: Audiovisual materials","Within each series, the records are arranged alphabetically by subject, topic, or individual."],"bioghist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Federal Theatre Project (FTP) began in 1935 as part of the New Deal's Works Progress Administration, employing several thousand actors, directors, playwrights, producers and others in the performing arts industry during the Great Depression. During its four-year run the FTP produced plays, musicals, dance and radio programs, circuses, and marionette shows. It featured the early works of actors and producers such as Orson Welles, Arthur Miller, and Elia Kazan. The federal government discontinued the program in 1939, and thousands of scripts, photographs, posters, and other FTP records were dispersed between the National Archives, the Library of Congress, public libraries, and educational institutions. For over twenty-five years the main body of these records sat forgotten in a government-owned storage facility at Middle River, near Baltimore, Maryland until they were located by George Mason University English professors, Lorraine Brown and John O'Connor.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eAfter Brown and O'Connor's discovery, and realizing the historical significance of these records, George Mason University entered into negotiations with the Library of Congress for permission to house and care for the collection and provide access to the materials to scholars. Many of the materials were physically deteriorating after so many years in less-than-ideal storage conditions. An agreement was reached, and the collection was placed on loan to George Mason University Libraries, with the aim that the collection would be processed, cared for, and used by scholars of the FTP and WPA. A center named The Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project was established at Mason, and a staff of archives and library professionals was hired to process, describe, and provide access to the records in Mason's Fenwick Library.  \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eWhile initially, the center was focused on unpacking, sorting, processing, and inventorying the collection, it soon concentrated on disseminating the materials and facilitating scholarship regarding the FTP. It participated in grants to preserve the materials and produce programming and exhibitions to expose the materials to a larger audience. It continued to build on the collection by conducting oral history interviews of former FTP personnel, acquisition their personal papers, and photographic duplication of deteriorating records inside the collection, such as original posters, set, and costume design drawings. George Mason University Libraries established its Special Collections \u0026amp; Archives (SC\u0026amp;A) department in 1979, and the Federal Theatre Project Materials became a collection under the custody of that entity.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eIn 1980 the Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project was renamed the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project (IFTP), part of the newly established Center for Government, Society, and the Arts (CGSA). \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eIn 1993, the Library of Congress began the process of recalling collections that it had loaned to libraries across the country over the years, including the rich archives of the FTP housed at George Mason University. LC administrators suggested that the collection would be more accessible at the Library's Music Division in Washington, D.C. rather than in Fairfax. While the bulk of the original loaned collection was eventually returned to the Library in August of 1994, George Mason University Libraries was allowed to retain duplicates of many of the records to complement the additional materials it had independently acquired between 1975 and 1994. After the replevin of the FTP materials back to the Library of Congress, the IFTP focused more of its attention on the study of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA's) work in the Coldwar era, promoting the papers of Robert Breen, Director of ANTA, which are also held by George Mason University's Special Collections Research Center (formerly Special Collections \u0026amp; Archives). The CGSA and IFTP ceased operation during the summer of 1998. \u003c/p\u003e  "],"bioghist_heading_ssm":["Historical Information"],"bioghist_tesim":["The Federal Theatre Project (FTP) began in 1935 as part of the New Deal's Works Progress Administration, employing several thousand actors, directors, playwrights, producers and others in the performing arts industry during the Great Depression. During its four-year run the FTP produced plays, musicals, dance and radio programs, circuses, and marionette shows. It featured the early works of actors and producers such as Orson Welles, Arthur Miller, and Elia Kazan. The federal government discontinued the program in 1939, and thousands of scripts, photographs, posters, and other FTP records were dispersed between the National Archives, the Library of Congress, public libraries, and educational institutions. For over twenty-five years the main body of these records sat forgotten in a government-owned storage facility at Middle River, near Baltimore, Maryland until they were located by George Mason University English professors, Lorraine Brown and John O'Connor.","After Brown and O'Connor's discovery, and realizing the historical significance of these records, George Mason University entered into negotiations with the Library of Congress for permission to house and care for the collection and provide access to the materials to scholars. Many of the materials were physically deteriorating after so many years in less-than-ideal storage conditions. An agreement was reached, and the collection was placed on loan to George Mason University Libraries, with the aim that the collection would be processed, cared for, and used by scholars of the FTP and WPA. A center named The Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project was established at Mason, and a staff of archives and library professionals was hired to process, describe, and provide access to the records in Mason's Fenwick Library.","While initially, the center was focused on unpacking, sorting, processing, and inventorying the collection, it soon concentrated on disseminating the materials and facilitating scholarship regarding the FTP. It participated in grants to preserve the materials and produce programming and exhibitions to expose the materials to a larger audience. It continued to build on the collection by conducting oral history interviews of former FTP personnel, acquisition their personal papers, and photographic duplication of deteriorating records inside the collection, such as original posters, set, and costume design drawings. George Mason University Libraries established its Special Collections \u0026 Archives (SC\u0026A) department in 1979, and the Federal Theatre Project Materials became a collection under the custody of that entity.","In 1980 the Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project was renamed the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project (IFTP), part of the newly established Center for Government, Society, and the Arts (CGSA).","In 1993, the Library of Congress began the process of recalling collections that it had loaned to libraries across the country over the years, including the rich archives of the FTP housed at George Mason University. LC administrators suggested that the collection would be more accessible at the Library's Music Division in Washington, D.C. rather than in Fairfax. While the bulk of the original loaned collection was eventually returned to the Library in August of 1994, George Mason University Libraries was allowed to retain duplicates of many of the records to complement the additional materials it had independently acquired between 1975 and 1994. After the replevin of the FTP materials back to the Library of Congress, the IFTP focused more of its attention on the study of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA's) work in the Coldwar era, promoting the papers of Robert Breen, Director of ANTA, which are also held by George Mason University's Special Collections Research Center (formerly Special Collections \u0026 Archives). The CGSA and IFTP ceased operation during the summer of 1998."],"custodhist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eMaterials were transferred to Special Collections Research Center from the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture between the years 1979 and 2000.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"custodhist_heading_ssm":["Acquisition Information"],"custodhist_tesim":["Materials were transferred to Special Collections Research Center from the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture between the years 1979 and 2000."],"prefercite_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eGeorge Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records, #R0021, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"prefercite_tesim":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records, #R0021, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries."],"processinfo_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eCollection processed by Maegan Jankowsi and Robert Vay.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"processinfo_heading_ssm":["Processing Information"],"processinfo_tesim":["Collection processed by Maegan Jankowsi and Robert Vay."],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003e\u003cextref href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/r0095\"\u003eGeorge Mason University Libraries records\u003c/extref\u003e \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003e\u003cextref href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0002\"\u003eFederal Theatre Project collection\u003c/extref\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003e\u003cextref href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0205\"\u003eFederal Theatre Project photograph collection\u003c/extref\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003e\u003cextref href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0227\"\u003eFederal Theatre Project personal papers\u003c/extref\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003e\u003cextref href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0153\"\u003eWorks Progress Administration oral histories\u003c/extref\u003e\u003c/p\u003e  "],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Materials"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["George Mason University Libraries records","Federal Theatre Project collection","Federal Theatre Project photograph collection","Federal Theatre Project personal papers","Works Progress Administration oral histories"],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eCollection contains records pertaining to the operation of the the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project (IFTP) and its prior iteration, the Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project (RCFTP). These records include operational, research and correspondence files, materials related to the Institute's outreach, programming, audiovisual and photographic materials and publications. \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eThe collection is organized within the following series:\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003e\nSeries 1: Administrative Records: These records consist of materials which document the day to day operation of the IFTP, its projects, initiatives, and development.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 2: Correspondence: This series contains manuscript and typewritten correspondence between IFTP personel and their colleagues and outside individuals and groups. \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 3: Outreach Activities Records: These materials document the IFTP's efforts to provide external programming to promote and disseminate scholarship pertaining to and public awareness of the FTP throuugh exhibits, talks, and other programming. \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 4: IFTP Publications: This series contains pamphlets detailing IFTP programs, organizational brochures and other publications created by IFTP to assist scholars in researching the FTP, Federal One, the newsletter of the RCFTP and IFTP, Free Adult and Uncensored, which details the history of the FTP, and other publications which promote and facilitate understanding of the FTP collection housed at George Mason University. \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 5: Photographs: This series contains photographs created or procured by the IFTP. Featured are its personel, events, and programs, copy photographs of original FTP photos, posters, and other graphic items. \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 6: Indexes, Inventories, and Collection Control Records: These records document the IFTP and RCFTP's fifteen-year effort to inventory, process, index, and describe the FTP collection.  \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 7: Research Materials: These consist of original FTP records descrbing plays and play types, newspaper and magazine articles and clippings, hearing transcripts, and other publications from scholars and government entities  pertaining to FTP and WPA used to study FTP personel and the plays, dance, and music that it produced.  \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 8: Audiovisual materials include audio and videotapes of documentaries pertaining to the FTP, programs presented by the IFTP, such as panel discussions, lectures, and symposia, and productions of original FTP plays staged during the 1980s and 1990s.  SCRC staff must be consulted for information regarding access to these records. \u003c/p\u003e  "],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Contents"],"scopecontent_tesim":["Collection contains records pertaining to the operation of the the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project (IFTP) and its prior iteration, the Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project (RCFTP). These records include operational, research and correspondence files, materials related to the Institute's outreach, programming, audiovisual and photographic materials and publications.","The collection is organized within the following series:","Series 1: Administrative Records: These records consist of materials which document the day to day operation of the IFTP, its projects, initiatives, and development.","Series 2: Correspondence: This series contains manuscript and typewritten correspondence between IFTP personel and their colleagues and outside individuals and groups.","Series 3: Outreach Activities Records: These materials document the IFTP's efforts to provide external programming to promote and disseminate scholarship pertaining to and public awareness of the FTP throuugh exhibits, talks, and other programming.","Series 4: IFTP Publications: This series contains pamphlets detailing IFTP programs, organizational brochures and other publications created by IFTP to assist scholars in researching the FTP, Federal One, the newsletter of the RCFTP and IFTP, Free Adult and Uncensored, which details the history of the FTP, and other publications which promote and facilitate understanding of the FTP collection housed at George Mason University.","Series 5: Photographs: This series contains photographs created or procured by the IFTP. Featured are its personel, events, and programs, copy photographs of original FTP photos, posters, and other graphic items.","Series 6: Indexes, Inventories, and Collection Control Records: These records document the IFTP and RCFTP's fifteen-year effort to inventory, process, index, and describe the FTP collection.","Series 7: Research Materials: These consist of original FTP records descrbing plays and play types, newspaper and magazine articles and clippings, hearing transcripts, and other publications from scholars and government entities  pertaining to FTP and WPA used to study FTP personel and the plays, dance, and music that it produced.","Series 8: Audiovisual materials include audio and videotapes of documentaries pertaining to the FTP, programs presented by the IFTP, such as panel discussions, lectures, and symposia, and productions of original FTP plays staged during the 1980s and 1990s.  SCRC staff must be consulted for information regarding access to these records."],"abstract_html_tesm":["\u003cabstract id=\"aspace_554430af778b5b3433a75c9894961db0\"\u003eThe George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records describe the operations, research, publications, and outreach of the George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture. Records date from 1935 to 2000.\u003c/abstract\u003e\n    "],"abstract_tesim":["The George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records describe the operations, research, publications, and outreach of the George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture. Records date from 1935 to 2000."],"physloc_html_tesm":["\u003cphysloc id=\"aspace_d66750c11aa95b4555db32d46e03745b\" label=\"Physical Location\"\u003eSCRC storage area, Rows 81 and 82.\u003c/physloc\u003e\n    "],"physloc_tesim":["SCRC storage area, Rows 81 and 82."],"corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","United States. Works Progress Administration"],"names_coll_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","United States. Works Progress Administration"],"names_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","United States. Works Progress Administration"],"language_ssim":["English"],"descrules_ssm":["Describing Archives: A Content Standard"],"total_component_count_is":621,"online_item_count_is":0,"component_level_isim":[0],"sort_isi":0,"timestamp":"2026-08-14T22:34:31.450Z","collection":{"numFound":1,"start":0,"numFoundExact":true,"docs":[{"id":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_209","ead_ssi":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_209","_root_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_209","_nest_parent_":"vifgm_repositories_2_resources_209","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/GMU/repositories_2_resources_209.xml","title_filing_ssi":"George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records","title_ssm":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records"],"title_tesim":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records"],"unitdate_ssm":["1935-2006"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["1935-2006"],"normalized_date_ssm":["1935/2000"],"normalized_title_ssm":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records, 1935/2000"],"text":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records, 1935/2000","R0021","/repositories/2/resources/209","Theater programs","Dance","Ballet","None","There are no restrictions.","Collection is arranged within the following series:","Series 1: Administrative Records\nSeries 2: Correspondence\nSeries 3: Outreach Activities Records\nSeries 4: IFTP Publications\nSeries 5: Photographs\nSeries 6: Indexes, Inventories, and Collection Control Records\nSeries 7: Research Materials\nSeries 8: Audiovisual materials","Within each series, the records are arranged alphabetically by subject, topic, or individual.","The Federal Theatre Project (FTP) began in 1935 as part of the New Deal's Works Progress Administration, employing several thousand actors, directors, playwrights, producers and others in the performing arts industry during the Great Depression. During its four-year run the FTP produced plays, musicals, dance and radio programs, circuses, and marionette shows. It featured the early works of actors and producers such as Orson Welles, Arthur Miller, and Elia Kazan. The federal government discontinued the program in 1939, and thousands of scripts, photographs, posters, and other FTP records were dispersed between the National Archives, the Library of Congress, public libraries, and educational institutions. For over twenty-five years the main body of these records sat forgotten in a government-owned storage facility at Middle River, near Baltimore, Maryland until they were located by George Mason University English professors, Lorraine Brown and John O'Connor.","After Brown and O'Connor's discovery, and realizing the historical significance of these records, George Mason University entered into negotiations with the Library of Congress for permission to house and care for the collection and provide access to the materials to scholars. Many of the materials were physically deteriorating after so many years in less-than-ideal storage conditions. An agreement was reached, and the collection was placed on loan to George Mason University Libraries, with the aim that the collection would be processed, cared for, and used by scholars of the FTP and WPA. A center named The Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project was established at Mason, and a staff of archives and library professionals was hired to process, describe, and provide access to the records in Mason's Fenwick Library.","While initially, the center was focused on unpacking, sorting, processing, and inventorying the collection, it soon concentrated on disseminating the materials and facilitating scholarship regarding the FTP. It participated in grants to preserve the materials and produce programming and exhibitions to expose the materials to a larger audience. It continued to build on the collection by conducting oral history interviews of former FTP personnel, acquisition their personal papers, and photographic duplication of deteriorating records inside the collection, such as original posters, set, and costume design drawings. George Mason University Libraries established its Special Collections \u0026 Archives (SC\u0026A) department in 1979, and the Federal Theatre Project Materials became a collection under the custody of that entity.","In 1980 the Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project was renamed the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project (IFTP), part of the newly established Center for Government, Society, and the Arts (CGSA).","In 1993, the Library of Congress began the process of recalling collections that it had loaned to libraries across the country over the years, including the rich archives of the FTP housed at George Mason University. LC administrators suggested that the collection would be more accessible at the Library's Music Division in Washington, D.C. rather than in Fairfax. While the bulk of the original loaned collection was eventually returned to the Library in August of 1994, George Mason University Libraries was allowed to retain duplicates of many of the records to complement the additional materials it had independently acquired between 1975 and 1994. After the replevin of the FTP materials back to the Library of Congress, the IFTP focused more of its attention on the study of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA's) work in the Coldwar era, promoting the papers of Robert Breen, Director of ANTA, which are also held by George Mason University's Special Collections Research Center (formerly Special Collections \u0026 Archives). The CGSA and IFTP ceased operation during the summer of 1998.","Materials were transferred to Special Collections Research Center from the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture between the years 1979 and 2000.","Collection processed by Maegan Jankowsi and Robert Vay.","George Mason University Libraries records","Federal Theatre Project collection","Federal Theatre Project photograph collection","Federal Theatre Project personal papers","Works Progress Administration oral histories","Collection contains records pertaining to the operation of the the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project (IFTP) and its prior iteration, the Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project (RCFTP). These records include operational, research and correspondence files, materials related to the Institute's outreach, programming, audiovisual and photographic materials and publications.","The collection is organized within the following series:","Series 1: Administrative Records: These records consist of materials which document the day to day operation of the IFTP, its projects, initiatives, and development.","Series 2: Correspondence: This series contains manuscript and typewritten correspondence between IFTP personel and their colleagues and outside individuals and groups.","Series 3: Outreach Activities Records: These materials document the IFTP's efforts to provide external programming to promote and disseminate scholarship pertaining to and public awareness of the FTP throuugh exhibits, talks, and other programming.","Series 4: IFTP Publications: This series contains pamphlets detailing IFTP programs, organizational brochures and other publications created by IFTP to assist scholars in researching the FTP, Federal One, the newsletter of the RCFTP and IFTP, Free Adult and Uncensored, which details the history of the FTP, and other publications which promote and facilitate understanding of the FTP collection housed at George Mason University.","Series 5: Photographs: This series contains photographs created or procured by the IFTP. Featured are its personel, events, and programs, copy photographs of original FTP photos, posters, and other graphic items.","Series 6: Indexes, Inventories, and Collection Control Records: These records document the IFTP and RCFTP's fifteen-year effort to inventory, process, index, and describe the FTP collection.","Series 7: Research Materials: These consist of original FTP records descrbing plays and play types, newspaper and magazine articles and clippings, hearing transcripts, and other publications from scholars and government entities  pertaining to FTP and WPA used to study FTP personel and the plays, dance, and music that it produced.","Series 8: Audiovisual materials include audio and videotapes of documentaries pertaining to the FTP, programs presented by the IFTP, such as panel discussions, lectures, and symposia, and productions of original FTP plays staged during the 1980s and 1990s.  SCRC staff must be consulted for information regarding access to these records.","The George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records describe the operations, research, publications, and outreach of the George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture. Records date from 1935 to 2000.","SCRC storage area, Rows 81 and 82.","George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","United States. Works Progress Administration","English"],"collection_title_tesim":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records, 1935/2000"],"collection_ssim":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records, 1935/2000"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["R0021","/repositories/2/resources/209"],"unitid_tesim":["R0021","/repositories/2/resources/209"],"repository_ssm":["George Mason University"],"repository_ssim":["George Mason University"],"creator_ssm":["George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University"],"creator_ssim":["George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University"],"creator_corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","United States. Works Progress Administration"],"creators_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","United States. Works Progress Administration"],"access_subjects_ssim":["Theater programs","Dance","Ballet"],"access_subjects_ssm":["Theater programs","Dance","Ballet"],"has_online_content_ssim":["false"],"extent_ssm":["37.5 Linear Feet 81 boxes"],"extent_tesim":["37.5 Linear Feet 81 boxes"],"date_range_isim":[1935,1936,1937,1938,1939,1940,1941,1942,1943,1944,1945,1946,1947,1948,1949,1950,1951,1952,1953,1954,1955,1956,1957,1958,1959,1960,1961,1962,1963,1964,1965,1966,1967,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978,1979,1980,1981,1982,1983,1984,1985,1986,1987,1988,1989,1990,1991,1992,1993,1994,1995,1996,1997,1998,1999,2000],"accessrestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eNone\u003c/p\u003e  ","\u003cp\u003eThere are no restrictions.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"accessrestrict_heading_ssm":["Access Restrictions","Use Restictions"],"accessrestrict_tesim":["None","There are no restrictions."],"arrangement_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eCollection is arranged within the following series:\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 1: Administrative Records\nSeries 2: Correspondence\nSeries 3: Outreach Activities Records\nSeries 4: IFTP Publications\nSeries 5: Photographs\nSeries 6: Indexes, Inventories, and Collection Control Records\nSeries 7: Research Materials\nSeries 8: Audiovisual materials\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eWithin each series, the records are arranged alphabetically by subject, topic, or individual.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"arrangement_heading_ssm":["Arrangement"],"arrangement_tesim":["Collection is arranged within the following series:","Series 1: Administrative Records\nSeries 2: Correspondence\nSeries 3: Outreach Activities Records\nSeries 4: IFTP Publications\nSeries 5: Photographs\nSeries 6: Indexes, Inventories, and Collection Control Records\nSeries 7: Research Materials\nSeries 8: Audiovisual materials","Within each series, the records are arranged alphabetically by subject, topic, or individual."],"bioghist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThe Federal Theatre Project (FTP) began in 1935 as part of the New Deal's Works Progress Administration, employing several thousand actors, directors, playwrights, producers and others in the performing arts industry during the Great Depression. During its four-year run the FTP produced plays, musicals, dance and radio programs, circuses, and marionette shows. It featured the early works of actors and producers such as Orson Welles, Arthur Miller, and Elia Kazan. The federal government discontinued the program in 1939, and thousands of scripts, photographs, posters, and other FTP records were dispersed between the National Archives, the Library of Congress, public libraries, and educational institutions. For over twenty-five years the main body of these records sat forgotten in a government-owned storage facility at Middle River, near Baltimore, Maryland until they were located by George Mason University English professors, Lorraine Brown and John O'Connor.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eAfter Brown and O'Connor's discovery, and realizing the historical significance of these records, George Mason University entered into negotiations with the Library of Congress for permission to house and care for the collection and provide access to the materials to scholars. Many of the materials were physically deteriorating after so many years in less-than-ideal storage conditions. An agreement was reached, and the collection was placed on loan to George Mason University Libraries, with the aim that the collection would be processed, cared for, and used by scholars of the FTP and WPA. A center named The Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project was established at Mason, and a staff of archives and library professionals was hired to process, describe, and provide access to the records in Mason's Fenwick Library.  \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eWhile initially, the center was focused on unpacking, sorting, processing, and inventorying the collection, it soon concentrated on disseminating the materials and facilitating scholarship regarding the FTP. It participated in grants to preserve the materials and produce programming and exhibitions to expose the materials to a larger audience. It continued to build on the collection by conducting oral history interviews of former FTP personnel, acquisition their personal papers, and photographic duplication of deteriorating records inside the collection, such as original posters, set, and costume design drawings. George Mason University Libraries established its Special Collections \u0026amp; Archives (SC\u0026amp;A) department in 1979, and the Federal Theatre Project Materials became a collection under the custody of that entity.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eIn 1980 the Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project was renamed the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project (IFTP), part of the newly established Center for Government, Society, and the Arts (CGSA). \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eIn 1993, the Library of Congress began the process of recalling collections that it had loaned to libraries across the country over the years, including the rich archives of the FTP housed at George Mason University. LC administrators suggested that the collection would be more accessible at the Library's Music Division in Washington, D.C. rather than in Fairfax. While the bulk of the original loaned collection was eventually returned to the Library in August of 1994, George Mason University Libraries was allowed to retain duplicates of many of the records to complement the additional materials it had independently acquired between 1975 and 1994. After the replevin of the FTP materials back to the Library of Congress, the IFTP focused more of its attention on the study of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA's) work in the Coldwar era, promoting the papers of Robert Breen, Director of ANTA, which are also held by George Mason University's Special Collections Research Center (formerly Special Collections \u0026amp; Archives). The CGSA and IFTP ceased operation during the summer of 1998. \u003c/p\u003e  "],"bioghist_heading_ssm":["Historical Information"],"bioghist_tesim":["The Federal Theatre Project (FTP) began in 1935 as part of the New Deal's Works Progress Administration, employing several thousand actors, directors, playwrights, producers and others in the performing arts industry during the Great Depression. During its four-year run the FTP produced plays, musicals, dance and radio programs, circuses, and marionette shows. It featured the early works of actors and producers such as Orson Welles, Arthur Miller, and Elia Kazan. The federal government discontinued the program in 1939, and thousands of scripts, photographs, posters, and other FTP records were dispersed between the National Archives, the Library of Congress, public libraries, and educational institutions. For over twenty-five years the main body of these records sat forgotten in a government-owned storage facility at Middle River, near Baltimore, Maryland until they were located by George Mason University English professors, Lorraine Brown and John O'Connor.","After Brown and O'Connor's discovery, and realizing the historical significance of these records, George Mason University entered into negotiations with the Library of Congress for permission to house and care for the collection and provide access to the materials to scholars. Many of the materials were physically deteriorating after so many years in less-than-ideal storage conditions. An agreement was reached, and the collection was placed on loan to George Mason University Libraries, with the aim that the collection would be processed, cared for, and used by scholars of the FTP and WPA. A center named The Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project was established at Mason, and a staff of archives and library professionals was hired to process, describe, and provide access to the records in Mason's Fenwick Library.","While initially, the center was focused on unpacking, sorting, processing, and inventorying the collection, it soon concentrated on disseminating the materials and facilitating scholarship regarding the FTP. It participated in grants to preserve the materials and produce programming and exhibitions to expose the materials to a larger audience. It continued to build on the collection by conducting oral history interviews of former FTP personnel, acquisition their personal papers, and photographic duplication of deteriorating records inside the collection, such as original posters, set, and costume design drawings. George Mason University Libraries established its Special Collections \u0026 Archives (SC\u0026A) department in 1979, and the Federal Theatre Project Materials became a collection under the custody of that entity.","In 1980 the Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project was renamed the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project (IFTP), part of the newly established Center for Government, Society, and the Arts (CGSA).","In 1993, the Library of Congress began the process of recalling collections that it had loaned to libraries across the country over the years, including the rich archives of the FTP housed at George Mason University. LC administrators suggested that the collection would be more accessible at the Library's Music Division in Washington, D.C. rather than in Fairfax. While the bulk of the original loaned collection was eventually returned to the Library in August of 1994, George Mason University Libraries was allowed to retain duplicates of many of the records to complement the additional materials it had independently acquired between 1975 and 1994. After the replevin of the FTP materials back to the Library of Congress, the IFTP focused more of its attention on the study of the American National Theater and Academy (ANTA's) work in the Coldwar era, promoting the papers of Robert Breen, Director of ANTA, which are also held by George Mason University's Special Collections Research Center (formerly Special Collections \u0026 Archives). The CGSA and IFTP ceased operation during the summer of 1998."],"custodhist_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eMaterials were transferred to Special Collections Research Center from the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture between the years 1979 and 2000.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"custodhist_heading_ssm":["Acquisition Information"],"custodhist_tesim":["Materials were transferred to Special Collections Research Center from the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture between the years 1979 and 2000."],"prefercite_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eGeorge Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records, #R0021, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"prefercite_tesim":["George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records, #R0021, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries."],"processinfo_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eCollection processed by Maegan Jankowsi and Robert Vay.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"processinfo_heading_ssm":["Processing Information"],"processinfo_tesim":["Collection processed by Maegan Jankowsi and Robert Vay."],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003e\u003cextref href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/r0095\"\u003eGeorge Mason University Libraries records\u003c/extref\u003e \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003e\u003cextref href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0002\"\u003eFederal Theatre Project collection\u003c/extref\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003e\u003cextref href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0205\"\u003eFederal Theatre Project photograph collection\u003c/extref\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003e\u003cextref href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0227\"\u003eFederal Theatre Project personal papers\u003c/extref\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003e\u003cextref href=\"https://aspace.gmu.edu/resources/c0153\"\u003eWorks Progress Administration oral histories\u003c/extref\u003e\u003c/p\u003e  "],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Materials"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["George Mason University Libraries records","Federal Theatre Project collection","Federal Theatre Project photograph collection","Federal Theatre Project personal papers","Works Progress Administration oral histories"],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eCollection contains records pertaining to the operation of the the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project (IFTP) and its prior iteration, the Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project (RCFTP). These records include operational, research and correspondence files, materials related to the Institute's outreach, programming, audiovisual and photographic materials and publications. \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eThe collection is organized within the following series:\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003e\nSeries 1: Administrative Records: These records consist of materials which document the day to day operation of the IFTP, its projects, initiatives, and development.\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 2: Correspondence: This series contains manuscript and typewritten correspondence between IFTP personel and their colleagues and outside individuals and groups. \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 3: Outreach Activities Records: These materials document the IFTP's efforts to provide external programming to promote and disseminate scholarship pertaining to and public awareness of the FTP throuugh exhibits, talks, and other programming. \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 4: IFTP Publications: This series contains pamphlets detailing IFTP programs, organizational brochures and other publications created by IFTP to assist scholars in researching the FTP, Federal One, the newsletter of the RCFTP and IFTP, Free Adult and Uncensored, which details the history of the FTP, and other publications which promote and facilitate understanding of the FTP collection housed at George Mason University. \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 5: Photographs: This series contains photographs created or procured by the IFTP. Featured are its personel, events, and programs, copy photographs of original FTP photos, posters, and other graphic items. \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 6: Indexes, Inventories, and Collection Control Records: These records document the IFTP and RCFTP's fifteen-year effort to inventory, process, index, and describe the FTP collection.  \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 7: Research Materials: These consist of original FTP records descrbing plays and play types, newspaper and magazine articles and clippings, hearing transcripts, and other publications from scholars and government entities  pertaining to FTP and WPA used to study FTP personel and the plays, dance, and music that it produced.  \u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eSeries 8: Audiovisual materials include audio and videotapes of documentaries pertaining to the FTP, programs presented by the IFTP, such as panel discussions, lectures, and symposia, and productions of original FTP plays staged during the 1980s and 1990s.  SCRC staff must be consulted for information regarding access to these records. \u003c/p\u003e  "],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Contents"],"scopecontent_tesim":["Collection contains records pertaining to the operation of the the Institute on the Federal Theatre Project (IFTP) and its prior iteration, the Research Center for the Federal Theatre Project (RCFTP). These records include operational, research and correspondence files, materials related to the Institute's outreach, programming, audiovisual and photographic materials and publications.","The collection is organized within the following series:","Series 1: Administrative Records: These records consist of materials which document the day to day operation of the IFTP, its projects, initiatives, and development.","Series 2: Correspondence: This series contains manuscript and typewritten correspondence between IFTP personel and their colleagues and outside individuals and groups.","Series 3: Outreach Activities Records: These materials document the IFTP's efforts to provide external programming to promote and disseminate scholarship pertaining to and public awareness of the FTP throuugh exhibits, talks, and other programming.","Series 4: IFTP Publications: This series contains pamphlets detailing IFTP programs, organizational brochures and other publications created by IFTP to assist scholars in researching the FTP, Federal One, the newsletter of the RCFTP and IFTP, Free Adult and Uncensored, which details the history of the FTP, and other publications which promote and facilitate understanding of the FTP collection housed at George Mason University.","Series 5: Photographs: This series contains photographs created or procured by the IFTP. Featured are its personel, events, and programs, copy photographs of original FTP photos, posters, and other graphic items.","Series 6: Indexes, Inventories, and Collection Control Records: These records document the IFTP and RCFTP's fifteen-year effort to inventory, process, index, and describe the FTP collection.","Series 7: Research Materials: These consist of original FTP records descrbing plays and play types, newspaper and magazine articles and clippings, hearing transcripts, and other publications from scholars and government entities  pertaining to FTP and WPA used to study FTP personel and the plays, dance, and music that it produced.","Series 8: Audiovisual materials include audio and videotapes of documentaries pertaining to the FTP, programs presented by the IFTP, such as panel discussions, lectures, and symposia, and productions of original FTP plays staged during the 1980s and 1990s.  SCRC staff must be consulted for information regarding access to these records."],"abstract_html_tesm":["\u003cabstract id=\"aspace_554430af778b5b3433a75c9894961db0\"\u003eThe George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records describe the operations, research, publications, and outreach of the George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture. Records date from 1935 to 2000.\u003c/abstract\u003e\n    "],"abstract_tesim":["The George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture records describe the operations, research, publications, and outreach of the George Mason University Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture. Records date from 1935 to 2000."],"physloc_html_tesm":["\u003cphysloc id=\"aspace_d66750c11aa95b4555db32d46e03745b\" label=\"Physical Location\"\u003eSCRC storage area, Rows 81 and 82.\u003c/physloc\u003e\n    "],"physloc_tesim":["SCRC storage area, Rows 81 and 82."],"corpname_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","United States. Works Progress Administration"],"names_coll_ssim":["Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","United States. Works Progress Administration"],"names_ssim":["George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center","George Mason University. Institute on the Federal Theatre Project and New Deal Culture","George Mason University","Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)","United States. 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