Hero theatre presents waiting for lefty and great scenes from clifford odets. Most of his other plays of the 1930s, most notably awake and sing 1935 and paradise lost 1935, concern the economic and psychological plight of poor new york city jewish families and heighten middleclass jewish speech into a kind of poetry. Clifford odets 19061963 odets was born in philadelphia to an impoverished jewish family. The play, which focuses on a group of taxi drivers planning a labor strike, was the first of odets works to be performed on the stage. Waiting for lefty by clifford odets looking up at down readings february 1821 some of the most influential theatre artists of the twentieth century, men and women who were instrumental to the development of theatre and film in america, passed through or were once associates of the group theatre. Lefty, a play about a taxi drivers strike, sought to engage the audience with the production and meld leftwing labor politics and artistic forms. Waiting for lefty is a 1935 political and perhaps even. In other words he is the head of a union and the men. Odets began his acting career playing small supporting roles and understudying at the poets theatre and the guild theatre. On it are sitting six or seven men in a semicircle.
In the 1930s he became a charter member of the group theatre, the famous method acting troupe founded by harold clurman, lee strasberg and cheryl crawford. Lefty is the story of a meeting of a new york cab drivers union on the verge of a. Clifford odets was born july 18th, 1906 in philadelphia, pennsylvania. Full text of three dramas of american individualism. Explicit political messages dominate the play, whose ultimate goal was nothing less than the promotion of a communist revolution in america.
First presented by the famous group theatre, the play has become a symbol of its times and a beacon for many soontobe famous playwrights. Clifford odets stateexpanded to show the template expanded, i. The union members are waiting for their representative, lefty, to arrive so that they can vote on a strike. Complete summary of clifford odets waiting for lefty. Lolling against the proscenium down left is a young man chewing a toothpick. During the play these men are waiting for a man named lefty, who is the leader of this union. Waiting for lefty remained popular and will remain relevant as an artifact of this time period as an expression of the ideology of american communism. Clifford odets 19061963 waiting for lefty is ingenious and forthright rather than impressive as play writing. A critical and popular success, this masterfully constructed work brings searing intensity and rare theatrical excitement to its probing, yet sharply. Seattles waiting for lefty university of washington. The flowering peach, clifford odets, oct 1, 1973, drama, 89 pages. Odets s early, more leftwing plays, such as waiting for lefty, awake and sing. Waiting for lefty by clifford odets looking up at down readings february 1821 some of the most influential theatre artists of the twentieth century, men and women who were instrumental to the development of theatre and film in america, passed through. Clifford odets birthdaywednesday, july 18, 1906 birthplacephiladelphia, pennsylvania, u.
Waiting for lefty is a play set during the great depression. Clifford odets article about clifford odets by the free. The year waiting for lefty was published, odets was officially a part of the communist party, and it is apparent throughout this script. Consisting of a series of related vignettes, the entire play is framed by a meeting of cab drivers who are planning a labor strike. Subcategories this category has the following 2 subcategories, out of 2 total. Catherine jones recommends cain and the social realist plays of clifford odets, penner concludes that the 1930s was a decade dominated by the masculine cult of virility and the overthrow of. Clifford odets waiting for lefty is not a timeless story rather it is the produ ct of a specific time and culture that needs to be scrutinized in order to evaluate its value better. Enclosure a collection of plays, robert james nelson, gerald clifford weales, 1975, drama, 282 pages. Golden boy opened in 1937 and was a commercial success at the box office, running for 250 performances. When it was first produced by the group theater in 1935, waiting for lefty made a sensation of its playwright, clifford odets, who became the theatrical conscience of his generation, much as arthur miller and tony kushner later would for their own generations. Clifford odets s waiting for lefty is a vigorous, confrontational work, based on a 1934 stake of unionized new york cabdrivers.
His affiliation with the american communist party is strongly noticeable in all most all of his early works and especially waiting for lefty. In the climactic finale of his taxiunion drama waiting for lefty, the. The year waiting for lefty was published, its author, clifford odets, was officially a. Waiting for lefty, written by clifford odets about a 1934 taxi union strike, is one of the best examples of this tradition, written while odets was working with the group theatre in new york. Waiting for lefty study guide contains a biography of clifford odets, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Books by clifford odets author of waiting for lefty and.
Dec 12, 2010 waiting for lefty by clifford odets directed by drew vanderburg in this last segment the union workers declare a strike, to stand up for their right to earn a living wage. Waiting for lefty by clifford odets essay example topics. Clifford odets july 18, 1906 august 14, 1963 was an american playwright, screenwriter, and director. Odets family moved from pennsylvania to the bronx, ny where his father was a successful businessman and owned a printing.
This video contains fats opening monologue and the joe and. Jan 14, 2011 waiting for lefty by clifford odets directed by drew vanderburg this is the first of seven segments of odets s famous unionization play. From january 1935 odets socially relevant dramas were extremely influential. Decoding healthcare 3pm podcast 2 band guys beyond polarity button mashers 1 song cast out. Start your 48hour free trial to unlock this waiting for lefty study guide and get. Waiting for lefty and great scenes from clifford odets promo. This was the quintessential proletarian drama in which the actors and the audience on opening night arose at the end of. Waiting for lefty by clifford odets directed by drew vanderburg in this last segment the union workers declare a strike, to stand up for their right to earn a living wage. Odets fame as a playwright was made when he wrote and acted in waiting for lefty, produced by the. Waiting for lefty by clifford odets is a play that is centered on taxi drivers meeting, who are planning to hold a labour strike. In 1935 odets first play on broadway, waiting for lefty, was a smash hit. Benjamin, miller, stein, mitchell, phillips, keller.
The play was waiting for lefty, by clifford odets, and the show was so successful it gave the group the confidence to go from strength to strength. Clifford odetss waiting for lefty is a vigorous, confrontational work, based on a 1934 strike of. Download waitingforleftyandotherplays ebook pdf or read online books in pdf, epub, and mobi format. After graduating from high school he became an actor and in 1931 joined the group. In a series of six vignettes, various drivers make a plea to strike. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. It garnered critical accolades and was soon adapted into a hollywood film, and later, a broadway musical. Waiting for lefty as the curtain goes up weseea bare stage. Waiting for lefty is a hamhanded political statement to make the point that communism lefty.
The framing uses the audience as part of the meeting the play was premiered by the group theatre, a new york city theatre company founded by harold. Waiting for lefty, oneact play by clifford odets, published and produced in 1935. Waiting for lefty and other plays by clifford odets. The framing uses the audience as part of the meeting. Waiting for lefty is a 1935 political and perhaps even revolutionary play written by american playwright clifford odets. He was raised in philadelphia and in the bronx, new york, and dropped out of school to become an actor. He met harold clurman when he began attending initial meetings. Waiting for lefty, which odets wrote in three days, crosscut a union meeting with scenes of the aftermath of the depression, which had left more than one in four workers unemployed. Waiting for lefty by clifford odets university of washington. Clifford odets s name will always be associated by theatergoers with the word strike.
In the mid1930s he was widely seen as the potential successor to nobel prizewinning playwright eugene oneill, as oneill began to withdraw from broadways commercial pressures and increasing critical backlash. Seattles production of waiting for lefty in 1936 by selena voelker. Buy a cheap copy of waiting for lefty and other plays book by clifford odets. Featured software all software latest this just in old school emulation msdos games historical software classic pc games software library. Chicago manual of style, and the american psychological association apa. Clifford odets statecollapsed to show the template collapsed, i. The stage is assumed to be the platform at a labor union meeting, and the audience to be the assembled members of the. After working as an actor for several years in new york citys avantgarde, leftwing group theatre repertory company, clifford odets produced his first play, waiting for lefty, in 1935.
It was firstly produced by the group theatrean american, new york city. The roundabout theatre company presented the first revival of odets s 1949 play, the big knife, in the spring of 20 at the american airlines theatre in new york, with doug hughes. Odets fame as a playwright was made when he wrote and acted in waiting for lefty, produced by the group theatre in 1934. His first play, waiting for lefty 1935, an agitprop play about strikers, was an enormous success. Waiting for lefty solidarity forever part 7 of 7 youtube. Its production in new york was simultaneous with the citys famous taxicab strike, and for that reason among others it gained considerable public attention. Waiting for lefty by clifford odets directed by drew vanderburg this is the first of seven segments of odetss famous unionization play. Click download or read online button to waitingforleftyandotherplays book pdf for free now. Waiting for lefty and other plays book by clifford odets. Download pdf waitingforleftyandotherplays free online. Coming in the midst of the depression and labor struggles of the 1930s, the play was labeled as communist propaganda by critics. Respond to the following on waiting for lefty by clifford odets in 750 words. A fat man of porcine appearance is talking directly to the audience.
One of the first examples of proletarian drama, the play takes place during the depression, in a meeting hall of the taxi drivers union. Clifford odetss waiting for lefty is a vigorous, confrontational work, based on a 1934 stake of unionized new york cabdrivers. Beginning with waiting for lefty 1935, odets quickly became the most famous young playwright in america. Clifford odets iconic 1935 play waiting for lefty was first produced for the group theatre in new york city, pictured above. Waiting for lefty is a 1935 play by clifford odets. One of the most celebrated and significant plays of the modern american theatre, waiting for lefty by clifford odets is set in the depression era and deals with the exploitation of the working classes. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of waiting for lefty by clifford odets. Pdf waiting for lefty, which was written by clifford odets during the great. Clifford odets dropped out of high school to pursue acting.
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