The_Federal_Theatre_Project

The Federal Theatre Project The Federal Theatre Project During the 1930’s, at the height of the depression-era, many Americans found themselves out of work and desperate for a paycheck. With the nation’s economy still in the recovery stages from the 1929 Stock Market crash, the government was forced to create a number of public works projects. Those projects were outlined in President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal, in which the Works Progress Administration (WPA) was established on May 6, 1935 through Executive Order NO. 7034. The WPA gave citizens the chance to re-enter the workforce, but more specifically catered to the demand of unemployed professional artists. One of the five arts projects implemented by the Federal government was the Federal Theatre Project (FTP), which organized and produced theater events. The history of the FTP was filled with employment opportunities, artistic creativity, and controversy which eventually led to the projects incineration. The FTP was clear in its intentions to produce American Theater during a time of crisis for the American people. Not only would the theater professionals benefit from work, but the country would be strengthen by national art, showing that the American spirit was not defeated by the depression. FTP established in August 27, theatre, ftp, projects, people, federal, wpa, theater, one, new, documentary, american, works, public, project, professional, nation, living, included, important, government, gave, children, york, work, vaudeville, units, unit, two, third, theatre’s, sub-project, second, out, newspaper, negro