The Arts Under Attack from Across the Political Spectrum

A broadcast of the debate between playwright August Wilson and critic Robert Brustein over multiculturalism and the theater. The discussion is moderated by actress, playwright, and performance artist Anna Deavere Smith. Wilson, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and author of the play "Fences," says the modern theater system jeopardizes the values of black actors because it is dominated by white society. Brustein, the American Repertory Theater's artistic director and the theater critic of "The New Republic," claims Wilson's ideas encourage black separatism.

Theatre critic, director, and educator Robert Brustein (pronounced "steen," not "stein"). Brustein is a venerable voice in the American theatre...he's the founder and Artistic Director of the American Repertory Company, director of the Harvard Drama Center (he held a similar position at Yale for 13 years), drama critic for the New Republic for more than 30 years and the author of seven books on the theatre.

Robert Brustein, theater critic for The New Republic since 1959. Brustein founded the Yale Repertory Theater and the American Repertory Theater at Harvard. His new book of essays is titled Who Needs Theatre: Dramatic Opinions.