#338 A New Deal for the Arts: Murals, Music and Theatrical Mayhem

The Bowery Boys: New York City History

PART 2 of our two-part podcast series, "A NEW DEAL FOR NEW YORK"

In this episode, we look at how one aspect of FDR's New Deal -- the WPA's Federal Project Number One -- was used to put the country's creative community back to work and lift the spirits of downtrodden Americans.

Federal Project Number One -- the "artistic wing" of the Works Progress Administration -- inspired one of the most important and lasting cultural revolutions in the United States, an infusion of funds that put musicians, painters, writers and the theater community back to work, creating works that would promote and celebrate the American experience.

The already-rich creative communities of New York City thrived during the program in several unique ways -- from the stages of Broadway to the art studios of Harlem.

In this episode we present several tales from the four main units of Federal One -- the Federal Music Project, the Federal Theatre Project, the Federal Art Project and the Federal Writers' Project

Including the stories of these WPA creators --

-- Juanita Hall: A future Tony-winning actress whose WPA-funded gospel chorus performed more than 5,000 times

-- Orson Welles: A brilliant stage producer (not yet a filmmaker) whose bold stage inventions pressed the limits of government censorship.

-- Jackson Pollock: A budding painter just finding his artistic voice, making a living working on murals and canvas

-- Zora Neale Hurston: The Harlem Renaissance anthropologist and novelist who used the WPA program to explore folklore and traditions in Florida.

PLUS: The mural program, the WPA Guides and the contributions of WNYC and the New York Public Library

boweryboyshistory.com

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