Whitehead Urges New Techniques In U. S. Theatre

"The theatre, on the threshold of new traditions, must not be limited in its thinking," Robert Whitehead commented in his talk, "On the Theatre" last week.

Whitehead, Chairman of the Advisory Committee, Lincoln Square Theatre for Repertory Drama, and well-known producer, stressed the psychological and subjective bases of the American theatre. Theatre in the Soviet Union, by contrast, favors the belief that "art that was psychological is decadent."

After tracing the development of American theatre, from its Victorian basis through reforms by O'Neill until the emergence of the Group Theatre, Whitehead talked specifically about the modern American theatre and the Lincoln Square Theatre. Modern theatre, Whitehead believes, will develop new techniques, greater ranges, and more imagination in choices of topics and presentations during the next decade--if limitations are not imposed. During the past, natural talent supported the theatre; today, it is necessary to create a new heritage and tradition.

The Lincoln Square Theatre, which will be completed by 1961, will house a repertory drama group, plus a four year acting school. It will produce new plays and some contemporary classics of Shaw, Ibsen, and Chekov. Whitehead hopes to model the Lincoln Square Theatre after the East Berlin Brecht Theatre. This German theatre has its own company of writers, actors, and producers.