‘Rachel Corrie’ and the Theatre of Public Opinion

My Name Is Rachel Corrie, a play which tells the story of an American college student killed by an Israeli bulldozer while protesting the demolition of Palestinian homes, was slated to open on March 22 at the highly respected New York Theatre Workshop. After artistic director Jim Nicola decided to postpone the opening indefinitely, the decision sparked an international controversy. The questions the “Rachel Corrie” postponement raises — about funding for the arts, the role of marketing and donor relations to programming, the question of political theater, and Middle East issues on the American stage — are crucial.

The backlash against NYTW also merits closer scrutiny: are the causes of this rancor more complex than they appear at first glance? ‘Rachel Corrie’ and the Theatre of Public Opinion addresses these questions in a panel discussion.

Participants include:

EDWARD EINHORN, Artistic Director, Untitled Theater Company #61, New York

JOHN HEILPERN, theater critic for the New York Observer, Adjunct Assistant Professor at the Columbia School of the Arts

GREGORY MOSHER, theater director and Director, Columbia University Arts Initiative

CHRISTOPHER SHINN, playwright

ALISA SOLOMON, journalist, theater critic, and Professor at the Columbia
School of Journalism

KELLY STUART, playwright